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Nature Based Solutions And Urban Resilience

and erosion, and structures for flood control such as dams change the flow
regime of rivers and harm the water ecosystems. Such interventions on river
beds increase the risks of disasters (Adger et al, 2009; Turner et al, 2010: Ozment
et al, 2019). Moreover, gry infrastructure may not always be the best solution
when considered in terms of cost-efficiency, resilience and sustainability.
Ecosystems offer many benefits such as carbon capture and storage. Nature
and eco-systems serve as a barrier against disasters and play a critical role in
increasing climate resilience of urban systems. Conservation of ecosystems
and biodiversity, providing food and water safety, regulating local climate,
improving sources of income and providing sustainable and healthy food
systems will support the ecosystem services of critical importance and form
the basis of Sustainable Development Goals. Nature is the most efficient
insurance policy in many cases. Nature-based solutions provide opportunities
for reconciliation between nature and city.
Nature based solutions are defined as a valuable tools used to strengthen
the resilience of ecosystems, protect biodiversity and concordantly, provide
solutions to a wide range of societal challenges such as climate change
adaptation and disaster risk reduction. (IUCN, 2020). Additionally, thanks to
their flexibility in adapting to changing conditions, nature-based solutions
are more efficient and cost-effective compared to grey solutions (Feyen et al,
2020 Raymond et al, 2017).
With their contribution to decarbonization, mitigation of risks and creation
of climate-resilient societies, nature-based solutions are an important
component of the global effort to reach the goals set in the Paris Agreement.
For this reason, in order to provide a green, flexible and inclusive development
as part of the economic recovery after Covid-19, nature-based solutions have
started to be seen as a useful means (EU, 2022).
Urban systems depend on natural resources (the natural capital). Becoming
aware of the critical importance of ecosystem services offered by ecosystems
and adopting a sense of using nature as a solution to increase climate resilience
will strengthen urban systems. This study investigates the contributions of
nature-based solutions to increasing the resilience of urban systems against
climatic dangers.

1. Urban Resilience

Urban resilience refers to the ability of urban systems, and their components,
the ecological, social, economic and institutional networks to maintain their
functions, recover rapidly, and adapt to change in the face of the effects they
are exposed to (ICLEI, 2019).

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