Standards, policies and laws

A good knowledge of local, regional and national policies is important when planning NbS. This is because existing policies may both be a hindrance or help in NbS projects.  

Examples of policies that may influence the success of NbS implementation: 

  • Existing legislation – how strong are laws related to biodiversity protection, climate adaptation and water quality? 

  • Governance system – how adaptive is the management and policies in response to a rapidly changing environment?  

  • Rights of the landowner – how can local or national authorities collaborate with private landowners for the implementation of NbS? 

  • Existing incentives – are there incentives for citizens, private landowners, farmers, companies and municipalities to contribute to nature-positive measures? 

The governance systems in the Nordic countries have many similarities, but there are also differences in how the implementation of NbS can be supported through policies. When working with policy development to mainstream and upscale the use of NbS, this is both related to creating new policies, such as strategies and incentive programs, to strengthen existing policies that are already supporting NbS, such as nature protection and restoration initiatives, and to change policies that may not incentivize NbS.

There are several standards and criteria suggested for NbS, and these can also be applied when working with policy development, such as the IUCN global standard. Key elements that policies supporting NbS should also consider, are education and capacity building, financing, stakeholder involvement, knowledge-based management and cross-sectoral collaboration.  

The A-DVICE handbook focuses on the different kinds of policies, such as strategies, incentive programs and laws that may be useful when planning NbS in the Nordic region. In that handbook, you can read about policies on the local, regional and national levels in the Nordic region. This includes guidance on international goals and obligations, the Nordic policy landscapepolicy integration and cross-sectoral approachesfinancial instrumentseducation, capacity building and awareness raising, voluntary measures and stakeholder engagement, and assessment frameworks for NbS.

The Nordic Council of Ministries has also published more information on the differences between the policy landscapes in the five Nordic countries.