Designing climate resilient landscapes for water

Ecosystem-based Adaptation (EbA), a Nature-based Approach to climate adaptation, tackles the challenges presented climate change by restoring the ecosystem service provisioning capacity of our landscapes. Restoring the infiltration and retention capacity of our landscapes will increase the resilience of the landscape and its water resources to the increasingly frequent drought spells and extreme rain events. Ecosystem-based Adaptation requires a new perspective for land-use planning that includes spatial objectives for the multitude of ecosystem services that need to be generated on the limited land surface available.

A participatory approach to (spatial) planning for climate adaptation measures

A participatory approach to this landscape scale planning for EbA relies on (early) engagement with all relevant stakeholders and can be obtained by following the phases described in this report:

•Understanding the catchment

•Identifying water resource risks & challenges

•Identifying & engaging stakeholders

•Ecosystem-based Adaptation targeting (vision building)

•Ecosystem Service quantification (vision building)

•Monitoring & adjustment where needed