Sustainable futures
Valuing biodiversity
Biodiversity is crucial to human wellbeing, but is increasingly threatened. How can policymakers and practitioners help tackle this global challenge?
Dr Linjun Xie, an Assistant Professor in Sustainable Urbanism at University of Nottingham Ningbo China, is one of three Chinese researchers who have been asked by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) to participate (as a lead author) in an assessment of the interlinkages between biodiversity, water, food and health. The aim is to provide insights to inform the development of policy and practical actions in response to the global biodiversity crisis.
The IPBES is an independent inter-governmental body, set up to strengthen connections between science and policymaking on biodiversity and ecosystems, helping to support conservation, sustainable development and human well-being.
Dr Xie said: "The IPBES is a similar body to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), but with a focus on biodiversity rather than on climate change. After the UN Biodiversity Conference (COP15) in 2022, the global biodiversity crisis began to receive more attention. There is an urgent need to understand the linkages between the Sustainable Development Goals relating to protecting biodiversity, combating climate change, ensuring food and water security, and promoting health for all: that’s the rationale of the assessment that we are working on.”
Dr Xie’s research explores responses to climate change and the biodiversity challenge and in particular has worked on a project supported by the EU Horizon 2020 programme examining nature-based solutions in urban environments. ‘Green’ and ‘blue’ infrastructure (such as parks and urban wetlands) and vegetation that is integrated into buildings (green roofs and green walls, for example) can help to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss at the same time.
Dr Xie’s research influenced policy, contributing to the European Committee of the Regions' opinion for COP15 and the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) CitiesWithNature Action Platform, and informing the British Academy’s COP 26 policy briefs on nature-based solutions. The IPBES project brings researchers together with policymakers and practitioners to develop integrated approaches to tackling the interconnected challenges of biodiversity loss, climate change and societal issues. The project has been running for two years, with the final assessment due to be presented at the eleventh plenary session of the IPBES (IPBES 11) in December 2024.
"The potential of nature-based solutions is widely recognised."
For Dr Xie, awareness-raising is an important aspect of this work. She said: “The potential of nature-based solutions is widely recognised but though we have been promoting green infrastructure for some time, we still don’t see its widespread uptake in the urban arena. There’s more we need to do to mainstream nature-based solutions, helping policymakers and urban developers to see that nature-based solutions can deliver multiple benefits in urban settings. We’re working to normalise these approaches, and to institutionalise them in policymaking.’
Part of this awareness-raising work involves showing how nature-based solutions can be adapted to local contexts: the types of plant and the planting configuration that might be needed for a green roof, for example, depending on local climate.
Finally, being able to contribute Chinese perspectives is an important aspect of Dr Xie’s work. Looking at China’s experiences in deploying nature-based solutions, both through large-scale, state-led projects and through grass-roots initiatives led by local NGOs, all helps to contribute to the global debate: showing how nature-based solutions can be applied around the world in different physical, political and economic contexts.