Ecosystem-based Adaptation and Green Recovery

Building back better from COVID-19

Friends of EbA (FEBA)

Women farmers in Guzhai village In Guzhai village in China, also in Guang Xi, indigenous women farmers have been experimenting with planting many different types of crops. Conserving and using crop biodiversity can help manage climate change impacts, such as extreme weather events. Women farmers from this village established a community farming cooperative. During the pandemic, mutual support among members helped everyone enjoy an adequate income, despite market price fluctuations. Community members who lost their jobs in the cities during the pandemic were also supported. Above, two women harvest Chayote fruits and vines to make nutritious meals for their family. To learn more about how working with nature has helped communities in China respond better to COVID-19, read IIED’s blog: www.iied.org/working-nature-build-back-better-covid-19-in... This work is supported by the China Farmers’ Seed Network: www.fsnchina.info/ Photo: Qiubi

The Challenge

The COVID-19 pandemic has reverberated around the world in 2020, resulting in over  1.47 million deaths, surpassing 63 million confirmed cases of infection  and causing unprecedented economic impacts with nearly  500 million people out of work . The most vulnerable populations have been hit the hardest: it is projected that COVID-19 could push up to  100 million people into extreme poverty , and it has increased the number of people experiencing crisis-level food insecurity to up to  265 million people – an 82% increase since the start of the pandemic  – as a result of reduced access to essential goods and services such as hygiene, nutrition, water and more. The aftershocks of COVID-19 are predicted to be felt for  decades to come . Climate change adds layers of complexity and uncertainty to these compounding threats - as well as to discussions on green recovery.

"There is no great mystery about the cause of the COVID-19 pandemic – or of any modern pandemic. The same human activities that drive climate change and biodiversity loss also drive pandemic risk through their impacts on our environment." -Dr. Peter Daszak, President of EcoHealth Alliance (IPBES, 2020)

In the Sine Saloum region of Senegal, farmers use locally sourced materials to build rain tanks and implement agroforestry farming techniques. The rain tanks ensure farmers have drinking water. The agroforestry farming methods improve the nutrient content of soils, and will provide farmers with fodder for animals, firewood, vegetables and cereals. Some of these products can be sold to provide an income. These activities helped communities to have better access to water and maintain hygiene during the COVID-19 pandemic. A local NGO, APAF-Senegal, commissioned 750 masks from a local tailor for project participant use during the pandemic.  Credit: Marine Protte-Rieg Copyright: International Rainwater Harvesting Alliance (IRHA)

Originally planned to be the “Super Year for Biodiversity”, 2020 has instead brought new global attention to the role biodiversity plays in securing human health, well-being and resilience – including how climate change, habitat degradation and land use changes both contribute to disease outbreaks and undermine our ability to respond and recover. Ultimately, both climate resilience and public health depend on strengthening the social and ecological resilience of communities. Ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) provides an integrated approach to do precisely that. With the planning of response and recovery initiatives around the world, EbA provides a key mechanism for green recovery by addressing underlying environmental and climactic drivers to support human health and livelihoods and build holistic resilience.

The experiences documented here, from communities around the world who are bearing the brunt of the impact of the pandemic, showcase the potential of EbA for building resilience to complex crises, including COVID-19. These lived, front-line experiences demonstrate the ability of EbA to both provide green work and economic recovery to communities in the short term, as well as reduce the vulnerabilities of ecosystems and communities for their health, livelihoods and well-being in the long term.

"Now, more than ever, the inextricable interrelationships between the health of our ecosystems and the health of human society are profoundly clear—and that, by extension, attempting to secure the latter without also addressing the former is a zero-sum game." –Dr. Jeffrey Parrish, Global Managing Director for Protect Oceans, Lands and Water at The Nature Conservancy (Parrish, 2020)

What is ecosystem-based adaptation? (Credit: UN Environment Programme)

In Gambia, the government is restoring 13,400 hectares of degraded forests, farmlands and wildlife areas to increase groundwater supplies and keep soils fertile. This is set to benefit an estimated 46,200 households. Better access to water also helps local communities have better assess to hygiene and sanitation facilities, which are especially essential during the COVID-19 pandemic. This work is part of the  Large-scale Ecosystem-based Adaptation in the Gambia: Developing a Climate-Resilient, Natural Resource-based Economy  project, supported by UN Environment Programme and funded by the Green Climate Fund.  Credit: UN Environment Programme

Ecosystem-based Adaptation and Green Recovery

Farming communities in San Francisco Las Flores have been helping to protect and monitor natural forests. This has contributed to forest regeneration and conservation which in turn improves ecosystem services, such as water. Maintaining water buffering is critical for securing an adequate supply of water for households, agricultural fields and vegetation density in times of drought. Continued government payments to community members for monitoring and conserving forests have provided them with an alternative income during the pandemic, in which other market-dependent activities have been disrupted. These activities are part of a project run by the Asociación de Organizaciones de los Cuchumatanes (ASOCUCH) and the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral Comunitario de la Zona Norte de Huehuetenango (ICOZUNDEHUE). Credit: ADIMI

Ecosystem-based adaptation (EbA) – defined as the use of biodiversity and ecosystem services as part of an overall adaptation strategy to help people to adapt to the adverse effects of climate change – has been growing in application in the past decade ( CBD, 2009 & 2010 ). The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has identified EbA as a key pathway to address the interconnectivity between climate, health, and biodiversity and ecosystem loss ( CBD/SBSTTA/21/9 ).

EbA encompasses nature-based solutions that  harness biodiversity and ecosystem services to reduce vulnerability and build resilience to climate change . Through an integrated socioecological approach, EbA strengthens human resilience to complex crises that we cannot completely understand and predict, like COVID-19. The concept of EbA is underpinned by recognising people and ecosystems as a comprehensive, integrated whole and, by design, providing co-benefits for the environment and human well-being. Integrated approaches to adaptation can  build holistic resilience  to global challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic and further compounding risks.

"A crucial ally is nature itself. We must use Nature-based Solutions, which benefit nature and people by protecting, sustainably managing, and restoring ecosystems." -Dr. Bruno Oberle, Director General of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN, 2020)

In coastal Honduras, community-led ‘no-take’ marine reserves are helping to replenish fish stocks. As a result, communities are more resilient to the impacts of overfishing, extreme weather events and rising sea levels. As COVID-19 continues to wreck global and local economies, Honduran coastal communities are finding relief in the ocean.  Small-scale fisheries have become a critical safety net  for thousands of Honduran coastal families that depend on them for daily sustenance.  Credit: Rare

In northern Colombia’s La Mojana region, farmers have been planting native heirloom seeds to mitigate adverse climate events, such as droughts. Planting these seeds helps farmers ensure a good harvest when seasonal rains are delayed or do not come, and earn additional income, which helps them endure the economic shocks of the pandemic. These practices are part of the  UNDP project Scaling up Climate Resilient Water Management Practices for Vulnerable Communities in La Mojana . Credit: UNDP Climate

Building Community Resilience

EbA approaches are people-centric, grounded in the fact that the basic needs of communities must be met in order to build community resilience. Adaptation strategies must enhance basic human rights and services – such as water, health, education, food, infrastructure and livelihoods – in order to be effective at building climate resilience in communities. The implementation of EbA can support communities in securing access to these basic needs, such as water and food security, by ensuring sustainable access to natural resources and ecosystem services and building long-term ecological resilience.

"EbA measures can provide a cost-effective way to build community resilience to a changing climate, while also delivering a range of other societal benefits and preserving traditional knowledge and culture." -Dr. Valerie Kapos, Head of Programme, Climate Change and Biodiversity at UNEP-WCMC (Kapos, 2020)

Ecosystem Management for Human Health

Community resilience, human and animal health, and natural habitats are all interconnected. Healthy ecosystems support human well-being, livelihoods, and resilience – as well as public health (as made explicit in the  One Health approach ). Almost every major emerging  zoonotic disease pandemic  over the past couple of decades — including COVID-19 — has jumped to people from wildlife, often starting in communities enduring extreme strain on natural resources. Land-use changes that drive human communities, livestock, and wild animals closer together increase the rate of  “spill over” of viruses  and  facilitate the emergence of new infectious diseases  such as COVID-19. Approximately  60% of new emerging diseases are zoonotic in origin, and approximately one-third of those have been directly attributed to ecosystem degradation and human land use changes .  Climate change contributes to further ecosystem degradation while also driving community land use change, disrupting ecosystem services that underpin societal resilience and contributing to increased exposure of pathogens between wildlife, vectors, livestock and humans.  By restoring, protecting, and promoting the sustainable use of ecosystems, EbA strategies also have the potential to reduce future emerging disease risk at both a local and global scale.

"The fact that human activity has been able to so fundamentally change our natural environment need not always be a negative outcome. It also provides convincing proof of our power to drive the change needed to reduce the risk of future pandemics – while simultaneously benefiting conservation and reducing climate change." –Dr. Peter Daszak, President of EcoHealth Alliance (IPBES, 2020)

Livestock farming is an important source of income for communities living in Namaqualand, South Africa, an arid area that is experiencing prolonged drought.  Conservation South Africa  (CSA) has been supporting farmers to maintain livestock productivity despite the drought. Their support has included improving livestock health and rangeland management to prevent erosion and retain moisture in the soil. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these communities have been able to maintain their income from sustainable livestock rearing. Credit: Conservation South Africa

Recommendations

Global, national and local policymakers have a responsibility now more than ever before to increase intersectoral collaboration in addressing the interlinkages between community resilience, human health, and functioning ecosystems, thereby protecting the ecosystem services that safeguard human health and societal resilience.  Integrated approaches to adaptation , including prioritising nature-based solutions in  development planning processes , are critical to address community vulnerabilities holistically by addressing interlinked societal challenges.

"We must develop policies that tackle biodiversity loss, climate change, and land degradation as one issue." –Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, Executive Secretary of the Secretariat on the CBD (Maruma Mrema, 2020)

In the Eastern Region of Uganda, a  community-run tree nursery is helping to supply planting material  for restoring tree cover along riverbanks and on farmlands. Stabilising riverbanks has been critical for helping to control extreme flooding and for preventing erosion on agricultural lands downstream. These practices have had a direct impact on improving local food security. During the COVID-19 lockdown, disrupted supply chains caused the cost of food in regional markets to double. Natural flood control practices helped to provide local communities with a local source of affordable and nutritious food. Above, children help their parents pot tree saplings.  Credit: IUCN Uganda

When responding to COVID-19, climate resilience and ecosystem health must be a part of the solution to foster long-term resilience and prevent outbreaks and other health emergencies upstream. We have the opportunity to build back better with a  green  and  blue  recovery: for  economic recovery  to not only improve livelihoods for people around the world but also to build more climate-resilient, sustainable and inclusive economies. At minimum, economic investments in recovery must ensure they do not come at the cost of further driving carbon emissions, ecosystem degradation and biodiversity loss. In particular, the health and economic costs of disease risk should be captured in land use planning decisions to ensure costs and benefits are adequately assessed and ecosystem services that protect human health are safeguarded. Countries should take this opportunity to align their recovery with global goals including, but not limited to, the  Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Paris Agreement  and the  UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration , and ensure that EbA strategies are mainstreamed into multi-sectoral health security investments.

"The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of science and expertise to inform policy and decision-making." –Dr. Anne Larigauderie of IPBES (IPBES, 2020)

The community of San Juan de Iris is located in the Rímac watershed, which is the main water source for Lima. Here, an ancient water infiltration canal is being recovered, called Amuna. This amuna intervention helps to regulate water in the basin, especially into the subsoil and into the aquifer so that the communities have more water during the dry season and receive additional income, in the face of the health and economic crisis related to COVID-19.  Credit: The Nature Conservancy

Governments should provide long-term investment to strengthen local organisations to ensure the COVID-19 response can reach and support the most vulnerable and reduce disease risks in a way that creates synergies for biodiversity and health. Local and grassroots organisations, focusing their time and effort on the ground to create change within communities, are indispensable in responding to crises like COVID-19, and are essential in helping communities adapt to and mitigate a variety of risks and build back better. These local and collective organisations are important to  mobilising communities to work with nature at scale  to help build communities’ long-term resilience. Given their local knowledge and strong relationships with community members, local and grassroots organisations are uniquely positioned to spur transformative change in the most vulnerable communities around the globe.

"Climate adaptation work can’t take a back seat while the world is preoccupied with the pandemic: the two crises have to be tackled together. … Investing in resilience in the most vulnerable places is more cost-effective than to accept continued increases in the cost of humanitarian response, and contributes to a safer, more prosperous and sustainable world for everyone." –Jagan Chapagain, Secretary General of the IFRC (IFRC, 2020)

In 11 villages in the Rayagada district of Odisha, India, community members have been cultivating kitchen gardens. A total of 700 kitchen gardens provide thousands of people with a local source of fresh, organic fruits and vegetables that play an important role in filling gaps in nutritional needs. The surplus of produce helps to sustain livelihoods through income generation. During the COVID-19 crisis, these kitchen gardens have played an essential role in local food and nutrition security, particularly during lockdowns.  These activities are part of climate resilient agriculture initiatives by The Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR). Under the Climate-SDG Integration project, WOTR and TMG Research have been studying the socio-economic and environmental effectiveness of this project from an ecosystem-based adaptation perspective.  Credit: The Watershed Organisation Trust

Conclusions

Recent health emergencies such as the Ebola and Zika virus epidemics and the current COVID-19 pandemic have caused turmoil, upended livelihoods and shown how global crises of human health, biodiversity loss and climate change are interlinked. In order to move forward and begin to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and address threats on the horizon, there is an urgent need to build back better and greener – including through the integration of ecosystem-based adaptation approaches in development planning systems. Healthy, functioning ecosystems support long-term community resilience, improved human health and well-being, ecosystem health and the reduced risk of future pandemics. An effective response to COVID-19 will build long-term resilience in order to ensure that communities are ready to face future global pandemic threats, climate and environmental risks and other societal challenges.

Post-COVID-19 recovery plans, policies and allocation of financial resources should prioritise integrating nature-based solutions as an approach to both securing short-term economic recovery for communities and investing in measures to address climate change long term.

"We simply cannot return to where we were before COVID-19 struck, with societies unnecessarily vulnerable to crisis. We need to build a better world." –António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nation (UN, 2020)

01 / 14

Acknowledgements

Special thanks to Amber Bjerre.

FEBA is part of the  International Climate Initiative  (IKI). The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) supports this initiative on the basis of a decision adopted by the German Bundestag.

FEBA members that contributed multimedia to this story include:

Any errors are our own.

In the Sine Saloum region of Senegal, farmers use locally sourced materials to build rain tanks and implement agroforestry farming techniques. The rain tanks ensure farmers have drinking water. The agroforestry farming methods improve the nutrient content of soils, and will provide farmers with fodder for animals, firewood, vegetables and cereals. Some of these products can be sold to provide an income. These activities helped communities to have better access to water and maintain hygiene during the COVID-19 pandemic. A local NGO, APAF-Senegal, commissioned 750 masks from a local tailor for project participant use during the pandemic.  Credit: Marine Protte-Rieg Copyright: International Rainwater Harvesting Alliance (IRHA)

In Gambia, the government is restoring 13,400 hectares of degraded forests, farmlands and wildlife areas to increase groundwater supplies and keep soils fertile. This is set to benefit an estimated 46,200 households. Better access to water also helps local communities have better assess to hygiene and sanitation facilities, which are especially essential during the COVID-19 pandemic. This work is part of the  Large-scale Ecosystem-based Adaptation in the Gambia: Developing a Climate-Resilient, Natural Resource-based Economy  project, supported by UN Environment Programme and funded by the Green Climate Fund.  Credit: UN Environment Programme

Farming communities in San Francisco Las Flores have been helping to protect and monitor natural forests. This has contributed to forest regeneration and conservation which in turn improves ecosystem services, such as water. Maintaining water buffering is critical for securing an adequate supply of water for households, agricultural fields and vegetation density in times of drought. Continued government payments to community members for monitoring and conserving forests have provided them with an alternative income during the pandemic, in which other market-dependent activities have been disrupted. These activities are part of a project run by the Asociación de Organizaciones de los Cuchumatanes (ASOCUCH) and the Asociación de Desarrollo Integral Comunitario de la Zona Norte de Huehuetenango (ICOZUNDEHUE). Credit: ADIMI

In coastal Honduras, community-led ‘no-take’ marine reserves are helping to replenish fish stocks. As a result, communities are more resilient to the impacts of overfishing, extreme weather events and rising sea levels. As COVID-19 continues to wreck global and local economies, Honduran coastal communities are finding relief in the ocean.  Small-scale fisheries have become a critical safety net  for thousands of Honduran coastal families that depend on them for daily sustenance.  Credit: Rare

In northern Colombia’s La Mojana region, farmers have been planting native heirloom seeds to mitigate adverse climate events, such as droughts. Planting these seeds helps farmers ensure a good harvest when seasonal rains are delayed or do not come, and earn additional income, which helps them endure the economic shocks of the pandemic. These practices are part of the  UNDP project Scaling up Climate Resilient Water Management Practices for Vulnerable Communities in La Mojana . Credit: UNDP Climate

Livestock farming is an important source of income for communities living in Namaqualand, South Africa, an arid area that is experiencing prolonged drought.  Conservation South Africa  (CSA) has been supporting farmers to maintain livestock productivity despite the drought. Their support has included improving livestock health and rangeland management to prevent erosion and retain moisture in the soil. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these communities have been able to maintain their income from sustainable livestock rearing. Credit: Conservation South Africa

In the Eastern Region of Uganda, a  community-run tree nursery is helping to supply planting material  for restoring tree cover along riverbanks and on farmlands. Stabilising riverbanks has been critical for helping to control extreme flooding and for preventing erosion on agricultural lands downstream. These practices have had a direct impact on improving local food security. During the COVID-19 lockdown, disrupted supply chains caused the cost of food in regional markets to double. Natural flood control practices helped to provide local communities with a local source of affordable and nutritious food. Above, children help their parents pot tree saplings.  Credit: IUCN Uganda

The community of San Juan de Iris is located in the Rímac watershed, which is the main water source for Lima. Here, an ancient water infiltration canal is being recovered, called Amuna. This amuna intervention helps to regulate water in the basin, especially into the subsoil and into the aquifer so that the communities have more water during the dry season and receive additional income, in the face of the health and economic crisis related to COVID-19.  Credit: The Nature Conservancy

In 11 villages in the Rayagada district of Odisha, India, community members have been cultivating kitchen gardens. A total of 700 kitchen gardens provide thousands of people with a local source of fresh, organic fruits and vegetables that play an important role in filling gaps in nutritional needs. The surplus of produce helps to sustain livelihoods through income generation. During the COVID-19 crisis, these kitchen gardens have played an essential role in local food and nutrition security, particularly during lockdowns.  These activities are part of climate resilient agriculture initiatives by The Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR). Under the Climate-SDG Integration project, WOTR and TMG Research have been studying the socio-economic and environmental effectiveness of this project from an ecosystem-based adaptation perspective.  Credit: The Watershed Organisation Trust