The Sebeya catchment in Western Rwanda, once prone to recurrent flooding, erosion, and landslides, was transformed through the “Embedding Integrated Water Resources Management in Rwanda (EWMR)” project. Led by Rwanda Water Resources Board and partners, the project applied Nature-based Solutions (NbS) to restore 7,700 hectares using terraces, trenches, riverbank protections, and afforestation. The approach combined land rehabilitation with innovative financing, value chains, and inclusive planning. Over 35,000 green jobs were created, alongside improved soil health, aquifer recharge, agricultural productivity, and livelihoods. By integrating community-driven land use planning into district-level governance, the project laid the foundation for long-term resilience and scalability.

The “Sustainable Use of Mangroves in the WIO Region” project, funded by BMZ through WWF Germany, brings Tanzania’s dormant mangrove laws to life. In Kilwa and Pemba, the project supported villages and shehias to register or revitalize Village Natural Resources Committees (VNRCs) and Community Forest Management Areas (CoFMAs). Within 2 years of the project, 7 CoFMAs were established and 2 revived in Pemba; 3 VNRCs were established and 3 revived in Kilwa District. The project capacitated these local mangrove management institutions to develop and enforce mangrove management plans, establish nurseries, and launch restoration and monitoring efforts to recover degraded mangrove zones and address drivers of loss. While VNRCs and CoFMAs are now leading mangrove conservation and management in their areas, two and three mangrove CBOs were established in Pemba and Kilwa, respectively, and are now operational. This scalable solution shows that when laws move from paper to practice, blue forests and coastal livelihoods thrive together.

The Green Project in Gashora Sector, Bugesera District, Eastern Rwanda, transformed the country’s driest agro-ecological zone through regenerative, farmer-led land restoration. Facing severe land degradation, poor soil fertility, and widespread poverty, the project implemented agroforestry-based conservation agriculture using shrub-tree hedgerows, rotation cropping, and organic mulching. Designed as a low-cost, inclusive and replicable model, the project improved soil health, enhanced biodiversity, increased yields, and diversified household incomes. Starting with just six farmers, it now engages over 1,000. The intervention shows how Nature-based Solutions (NbS) tailored to local conditions can reverse degradation, boost resilience, and uplift rural livelihoods.

The Smart DESERT project was funded by the French Development Agency (AFD) with a total budget of EUR 10 million and implemented by a consortium of organisations led by IUCN ROWA, targeting the area of the North-East Badia highlands in Jordan. The project was designed to achieve two key objectives: (1) increased year-round income and (2) improved work conditions, with an overarching goal of economic empowerment of Syrian refugees and vulnerable Jordanians in the agricultural sector.

The project addresses key challenges such as water scarcity, land degradation, rural unemployment, and limited market access. By introducing water harvesting systems, regenerative agriculture practices, and digital tools, Smart DESERT helps farmers improve productivity, conserve natural resources, and build climate resilience. It also supports the creation of home-based agribusinesses and facilitates connections to markets and finance.

Unplanned visitation often causes environmental impacts, biodiversity loss, and reduced visitor satisfaction. At the same time, tourism holds strong potential to generate income, strengthen community resilience, and support conservation financing. The Solution applies the National Park Method for Ecotourism & Visitor Management, a practical method inspired by best practices in national parks planning, into private areas management. It has 3 principles: preserving nature, enchanting visitors, and generating income. In practice, the approach guides how to develop the Visitor Management Plan. Positive results include better organization of visitation, reduced environmental impacts, greater community income from ecotourism services, and improved visitor experiences. By combining technical planning with a strong focus on people and nature, the Solution demonstrates how tourism can be a driver of both conservation and sustainable developmen

This project empowered communities in Burkina Faso’s Centre-East and Centre-South regions to transition toward sustainable agriculture and landscape restoration. With support from the IKEA Foundation, UNCCD Global Mechanism, and the Italian Ministry of Environment and Energy Security, the project reached 300,000 people (50% women, 50% youth). It increased agro-sylvo-pastoral production, restored over 54,000 ha, and strengthened local associations and governance. Through inclusive participation, communities adopted legal texts protecting 37,500 ha of ecological corridors. The intervention improved food security, incomes, biodiversity, and local decision-making capacity while aligning with Nature-based Solutions standards. Its successful co-production approach and restoration-business linkage offer high potential for replication across the Sahel.

Sierra del Abra Tanchipa Biosphere Reserve is a relevant corridor connecting tropical forest relicts of the Sierra Madre Oriental, a world hotspot of biodiversity. It plays a crucial role in connecting human communities. Due to extreme weather events related to climate change, CONANP is implementing an integrated, socio-environmental adaptation strategy, involving training and promotion of sustainable productive activities; and ecosystem restoration and maintenance,  aimed to develop adaptive capacities within the human and wildlife communities to increase  resilience.

In 2010, the Mexican Fund for the Conservation of Nature (FMCN) and the Summit Foundation launched the Mesoamerican Reef Leadership Program to accelerate the conservation of the Mesoamerican Reef system (MAR) by supporting high impact conservation projects and strengthening the capacities and leadership skills of young conservationists in Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, and Honduras. To date, MAR Leadership has trained 71 fellows from different backgrounds and sectors who now apply skills from this proggram in numerous marine conservation projects in the MAR region.

The Asociación Defensores del Chaco Pyporé [Association to Protect Chaco Pyporé], in Paraguay, is committed to the conservation of protected wildlife areas and the empowerment of youth in Paraguay. As part of their work, they lead the Volunteer Park Ranger initiative, and the #IamaParkRanger.

The initiative’s main objective is to recognize the work of conservation heroes and involve civil society in nature conservation with an emphasis on youth.

This initiative was created in 2017 and to date, it has attracted a total of 200 volunteer park rangers.

Young people in the rural areas of El Triunfo do not have real opportunities for development, and most of them migrate or start a family at an early age. These communities, as they are located within a biosphere reserve, are visited by environmental education groups, generally from the city of Tuxtla, with high transportation and logistics costs. The YAXCABÁ Group is an alternative to the two challenges mentioned; on the one hand, it is a local group of young people who, through puppet theatre, produce environmental education works and bring conservation stories to children and adults in the El Triunfo Biosphere Reserve in an efficient and effective way; and on the other hand, they provide a development alternative for creative young people in the region.

Yaxcabá is a clear example of how a group of young people have succeeded in transforming themselves, overcoming obstacles, and through theatre and entertainment, mobilizing people and changing behaviour to preserve one of the most biodiverse regions on earth.

An informal network of small holder farmers cultivate high quality organic products in an area of mixed agriculture and forestry in Sweden. Cold winters, recurring dry spells and diseases affect their agricultural production. Ecosystem-based measures are used by these farmers to adaptively respond to climate variability and change to reduce crop damage and failure. Ecological information is transmitted through the network ensuring a reservoir of old and new knowledge for farming practices that enhances their resilience.

The project used a combination of ecosystem-based measures (re-vegetation and ecosystem protection) and grey infrastructure (rehabilitation of a water retention structure) to increase food security in the face of drought and flash floods, while strengthening environmental governance at the local level. Using a green-grey hybrid approach is probably the most appropriate approach in the dryland context of Sudan.

The project took an ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction (Eco-DRR) approach working within a framework of hazards (drought and flash floods), vulnerability (due to conflict zone and unsustainable practices) to reduce disaster risk (e.g. famine). However, drought and erratic rainfall is increasing due to climate change and thus the ecosystem-based measures undertaken also enable adaptation (thus are also EbA).