Nature-based solutions (NBS) are increasingly popular infrastructure protection options, particularly in coastal engineering. These systems have shown the ability to provide similar coastal protection services to traditional hard schemes while providing other ecological and economic benefits, and a capacity to adapt to changing contexts. One prominent example of coastal NBS are saltmarshes: fields of flexible or semi-flexible vegetation, which have been found to significantly reduce damage to local communities under daily and storm conditions. Scientific study of these complex, multi-faceted structures is growing in volume, but there remain many knowledge gaps in the field. Numerical modelling is a powerful tool for investigating both large- and small-scale behaviours of saltmarshes. Numerical models provide a controlled, repeatable, and easily variable method for testing how a marsh impacts local hydrodynamic climates and how incident flow or wave conditions affect the behaviour of their constitutive vegetation. Small-scale plant behaviour is the focus of this thesis. Literature on the subject has been chiefly limited to greatly simplified vegetation modelling, reducing plants' behaviour to that of straightforward rigid cylinders. While this can be effective, it requires significant calibration to measured data and may not provide an accurate picture of the intricate flow dynamics surrounding an individual plant, let alone a full marsh system. Recently, numerical models capable of modelling flexible structures have been developed and used by researchers. However, studies applying these tools have focussed on replicating the more significant hydrodynamic effects of marshes, such as mixing or wave attenuation. By doing so, the calibration requirements of the rigid-type models remain, and the way the plants themselves are modelled loses physical meaning beyond their hydrodynamic impacts. The work presented in this thesis aims to expand on current flexible plant modelling research by evaluating a new numerical modelling tool in the open-source software REEF3D for replicating in situ saltmarsh plant behaviour in terms of drag force and motion response to hydrodynamic forcing. Three experimental programs were designed and conducted in order to thoroughly evaluate both aspects of the model. The first, based on a flume study performed by Paul et al. (2016), tested the drag force response to regular wave action. The second, based on the work of Tschisgale & Fröhlich (2020), further investigated the drag force response using closed- and open-channel flow, as well as solitary waves. The third, based on a flume study performed with live vegetation by Markov et al. (2023), evaluated the accuracy of the motion response to irregular waves. Consistent through all three programs was an overestimation of the examined behaviour and, in the third case, persistent model breakdown. These results demonstrate that, as tested, the evaluated tool is unsuitable for this purpose. It is suggested that this is due to the foundational assumptions of the model, namely that the material of the flexible structure is of a linearly viscoelastic type, whereas a nonlinear elastic material would be more appropriate for this application. These results highlight the difficulty of numerically modelling these systems and the need for further research developing and applying practical modelling tools for marshes.

Over the past decades, the environmental justice movement has developed growing concerns about the unequal distribution of environmental harms and the uneven access to environmental amenities. The movement rapidly became an academic field that has criticised diverse urban sustainability strategies for failing to address environmental justice issues in its three dimensions: recognition, procedure and distribution. Hence, this thesis aims to explore how this concept could be integrated into the planning of Nature-based solutions in cities through advancing conceptual and methodological contributions. Through an extensive revision of academic literature, several setbacks in the inclusion of environmental justice for urban Nature-based solutions are addressed. This information helped operationalise a distributive environmental justice index that could identify intra-urban injustices related to existing and compounding issues such as the overburdening of environmental risk for socially disadvantaged communities and a lack of access to multifunctional green space benefits. Once these injustices are identified, alternative scenarios for implementing Nature-based solutions are assessed by considering relevant urban planning and policy goals. The last part of this thesis focuses on the level of integration of environmental justice in the context of climate change adaptation and mitigation. An extensive review of Urban Climate Action Plans in Latin America reveals that environmental justice concerns are rarely translated into concrete climate actions. Moreover, the transformative potential of Nature-based solutions for ameliorating environmental justice conditions in cities is not fully explored. With these results, potential opportunities and recommendations that could enable environmental justice are discussed, especially highlighting that the integration of diverse social perspectives and realities is integral to the process of giving rise to just and sustainable urban futures.

Urban landscapes homogenize our world at global scales. This sameness contributes to "extinction of experience", where people feel increasingly disconnected from native ecosystems and the services they provide. Numerous approaches have been proposed for combatting extinction of experience, all of which require community support to be successful. Because comparative assessments are relatively rare, however, it is difficult to say which options are most supported. We addresses this knowledge gap using human subject surveys and multi-criteria decision analysis to evaluate landscape preferences and their implications for three approaches recommended to combat extinction of experience: ecosystem conservation, turf replacement and nature-based solutions. Our study focuses on universities in Southern California, where native ecosystem remnants, nature-based solutions, lawns, and ornamental gardens co-exist, which is necessary to compare community support for transitions among them. Our results suggest that conservation of native ecosystems, particularly sage scrub (top ranked landscape overall), is well supported by campus communities, as are turf replacement programs (lawns ranked lowest overall). Support for nature-based solutions was more intermediate (and variable), which may reflect their relative newness, both on university campuses and in urban spaces more generally. Not all university populations preferred the same landscapes; preferences differed with degree of pro-environmentalism and university status (undergrad, graduate student, staff). Even so, all groups exhibited landscape preferences consistent with at least one approach for combatting extinction of experience. This suggests we have a viable set of tools for increasing native ecosystem exposure on university campuses, and ultimately, in the next generation of urban homeowners. / Master of Science / Urban areas around the world are more like one another than the natural landscapes they replace. This can make people feel more at home in a city far away than they do in the landscapes that belong in their home state. Changing urban areas to reconnect people with nature requires community support to be successful. Whether this support is available, however, is not well understood. This study focuses on evaluating community support for three actions intended to bring people closer to nature. These include 1) protection of natural landscapes, 2) replacing lawns with natural plants, and 3) using nature instead of pipes and channels to manage the water that runs off paved surfaces during storms in urban areas. The community we focus on is university students and staff because they have access to all the different landscape types involved in the three actions described above. Our approach was to survey people on four campuses in Southern California and rank their landscape preferences to determine if they are likely to support these actions. We found that people tend to be supportive of protecting native landscapes and replacing turf grass with native plants. Support for nature-based alternatives to pipes and channels was more variable. This may be because they are presently uncommon, and people don't know how they feel about them yet. Not everyone on campus preferred the same landscapes, but most people's preferences were consistent with at least one approach for connecting people with nature. This suggests that there may be strong support for changing campus landscapes in ways that bring people closer to nature.

No description available.

Bringing nature back to cities to counteract the negative impacts of rapid urbanization has resulted in a series of greening terms coined by multidisciplinary scholars to emphasize the importance of natural areas and green environment in developing cities. Green infrastructure and nature-based solutions are popular scientific terms that are used to describe planning interventions for naturalization cities, but most of their studies still focus on academic literature, lacking attention to municipal plans. This study aims to identify terms related to green infrastructure and nature-based solutions in planning, analyze how these terms are used and varied in the municipal comprehensive plans in Stockholm County, and explore if the socioeconomic factors and context of these municipalities correlate to any variation. The study used systematic mapping literature and personal communication with planners to identify the relevant terms of green infrastructure and nature-based solutions, in order to carry out quantitative and qualitative analyses of the identified terms in the comprehensive plans of the municipalities in the county using NVivo and SPSS. The quantification analyses show that the integration of these terms varies significantly among municipalities even though the number of terms grows over time; however, this variation does not follow or correlate to any socioeconomic factors that characterize the municipalities. There are also differences between municipal plans in terms of definitions, functions, and other categories of content about the use of the terms. Regional plans are found to impact narrowing these differences significantly. Thus, regional authorities are suggested to publish the core principles on these terms to ensure the consistency of understanding among municipalities. Furthermore, a diagram of these terms showing how they are currently related to each other in most of the plans is concluded as a basis for future cross-municipal and intra-regional conversations. Future studies are recommended to focus on green infrastructure and nature-based solutions in detailed plans and green plans for implementation and a deeper understanding and to have more interviews with the planners for supporting planning practices of green infrastructure and nature-based solutions in cities.

This present habilitation thesis in wastewater systems explores the theoretical and practical implications of achieving sustainability through and in wastewater treatment. It herby uses the discussions on circularity, sustainability and nexus thinking while investigating their relationship amongst each other and in their relation to wastewater treatment. This thesis consists of seven main chapters. Chapter 1 provides an overview of the approach in which the present manuscript delves into the aspects of circularity, sustainability and nexus concepts and wastewater treatment. Chapter 2 to 5 contain the manuscripts that relate to (a) conceptual considerations, (b) examples of circularity, (c) sustainability assessments and (d) nexus applications. Chapter 6 provides a series of lessons learned from the collated findings. Chapter 7 holds the appendix with supplemental information from the respective manuscripts. The work is based on a variety of publications that the author and her team members produced primarily between January 2016 and October 2019 (and in part until the submission of this thesis). While they include 5 published first-author peer-reviewed publications some sections also contain further relevant co-authored publications. Water security is key for a sustainable world. Wastewater can play a critical role towards provisioning water sustainably to address water scarcity and water stress. However, wastewater treatment is currently itself not sustainable. For wastewater treatment to be put on a sustainable footing, systemic change of the sector and the way wastewater is viewed needs to occur. Wastewater treatment can provide a series of resources for circular use – with nature-based solutions offering co-benefits over grey infrastructure that extend to other nexus sectors such as food and energy. However, circularity does not necessarily equate with sustainability. Environmental components are just one of the three dimensions of sustainability, but data for indicators for social and economic aspects of wastewater treatment are scarce. Moving towards sustainable solutions may only be possible by employing tools that step away from an ever-better understanding of current systems and shifting towards modes of analysis that help generate target and transformation knowledge in inter- and transdisciplinary research and project settings. These views mandate a radical revision of current curricula of engineers and other disciplines to include courses on social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainability. Training in designing, conducting and evaluating participatory processes that include a variety of stakeholders may significantly improve future generations’ capacities to design, construct, and operate sustainable wastewater treatment systems that provide treated wastewater as a sustainable source of water in a water secure world.:ABSTRACT vii ZUSAMMENFASSUNG (ABSTRACT in German) ix ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi 1 Introduction 2 1.1 Scope 2 1.2 The structure of this work 8 1.3 References 10 2 Conceptual explorations 14 2.1 Learning from Integrated Management Approaches to Implement the Nexus 15 2.1.1 Introduction 16 2.1.2 Methods 19 2.1.3 Results 21 2.1.4 Discussion 26 2.1.5 Conclusion 27 2.1.6 References 29 2.2 Making the Water–Soil–Waste Nexus Work: Framing the Boundaries of Resource Flows 33 2.2.1 Introduction 34 2.2.2 An Overview of Integrated Approaches Related to the WSW Nexus 36 2.2.3 The System Boundaries of Integrated Environmental Management Approaches 38 2.2.4 What Is Different This Time?—The Boundary of the Water–Soil–Waste Nexus System 41 2.2.5 Illustrating the Boundaries of the WSW Nexus System—Case Studies 43 2.2.6 Conclusions 48 2.2.7 References and Notes 50 3 Examples of circularity 56 3.1 The Role of Constructed Wetlands for Biomass Production within the Water-Soil-Waste Nexus 59 3.1.1 Introduction 60 3.1.2 Methods 63 3.1.3 Results and discussion 63 3.1.4 Conclusions 68 3.1.5 References 70 3.2 Constructed Wetlands for Resource Recovery in Developing Countries 73 3.2.1 Introduction 74 3.2.2 Methods 76 3.2.3 Results 80 3.2.4 Discussion 91 3.2.5 Conclusions 99 3.2.6 References 102 4 Assessing sustainability of wastewater systems 110 4.1 Assessing Sustainability of Wastewater Management Systems in a Multi-Scalar, Transdisciplinary Manner in Latin America 113 4.1.1 Introduction 114 4.1.2 Materials and Methods 116 4.1.3 Results 124 4.1.4 Discussion 129 4.1.5 Conclusion 132 4.1.6 References 134 4.2 Selecting Sustainable Sewage Sludge Reuse Options through a Systematic Assessment Framework: Methodology and Case Study in Latin America 137 4.2.1 Introduction 138 4.2.2 Methods 139 4.2.3 Results and discussion 141 4.2.4 Conclusion 154 4.2.5 References 156 5 Applying the Nexus 160 5.1 Considering Resources Beyond Water: Irrigation and Drainage Management in the Context of the Water–Energy–Food Nexus 161 5.1.1 Introduction 163 5.1.2 Integrating resource management through Nexus thinking 165 5.1.3 Assessing the negative and positive environmental effects of irrigation, and the provision of ecosystem services 169 5.1.4 The role of stakeholders in governing irrigation 171 5.1.5 Conclusion 173 5.1.6 References 175 5.2 Co-generating knowledge in nexus research for sustainable wastewater management 177 5.2.1 Introduction 178 5.2.2 Material and Methods 180 5.2.3 Results 184 5.2.4 Discussion 202 5.2.5 Conclusions 204 5.2.6 References 206 6 Lessons learned and outlook 210 6.1 Increased circularity does not equate in increased sustainability. 212 6.2 Data scarcity hampers quantitative knowledge generation. 214 6.3 Moving from systems’ understanding to comprehensive knowledge generation for systemic change. 217 6.4 Participation and inclusion of stakeholders is important and should not be an afterthought. 218 6.5 References 221 7 Supplemental Information (SI)/Supplemental Material (SM) 226 7.1 SI for 4.1 ‘Assessing Sustainability of Wastewater Management Systems in a Multi-Scalar, Transdisciplinary Manner in Latin America’ 226 Appendix A 226 Appendix B 233 Appendix C 240 Appendix D 241 Appendix E 243 Appendix F 251 7.2 SI for 4.2 ‘Selecting Sustainable Sewage Sludge Reuse Options through a Systematic Assessment Framework: Methodology and Case Study in Latin America’ 256 7.3 SI for 5.1 ‘Co-generating knowledge in nexus research for sustainable wastewater management’ 261 7.3.1 SM1: Expert interview questionnaire assessing information on stakeholder’s perspectives. 261 7.3.2 SM2: Wickedness Analysis questions 264 7.3.3 SM3: Detailed results of the stakeholder perspective of wastewater treatment in each case 265 7.3.4 SM4: Detailed responses to the workshop/training evaluations 272 8 Contribution of the author in collaborative publications 283 9 Eidesstattliche Versicherung 285 / Diese Habilitationsschrift untersucht die theoretischen und praktischen Implikationen der Erreichung von Nachhaltigkeit durch und in der Abwasserbehandlung. Sie nutzt die Diskussionen über Kreislaufwirtschaft, Nachhaltigkeit und Nexus-Denken und untersucht deren Beziehung untereinander und in ihrem Verhältnis zur Abwasserbehandlung. Dieses Manuskript besteht aus sieben Hauptkapiteln. Kapitel 1 gibt einen Überblick über den Ansatz, in dem das vorliegende Manuskript die Aspekte der Kreislaufwirtschaft, Nachhaltigkeit und Nexus-Konzepte und Abwasserbehandlung untersucht. Kapitel 2 bis 5 enthält die Manuskripte, die sich auf (a) konzeptionelle Überlegungen, (b) Beispiele für Kreislaufwirtschaft, c) Nachhaltigkeitsbewertungen und (d) Nexusanwendungen beziehen. Kapitel 6 enthält eine Reihe von Einsichten, die aus den gesammelten Erkenntnissen gezogen wurden. Das letzte Kapitel enthält die Zusatzdaten und -informationen einiger der Artikel. Die Arbeit basiert auf einer Vielzahl von Publikationen, die die Autorin und ihre Teammitglieder hauptsächlich zwischen Januar 2016 und Oktober 2019 (und teilweise bis zur Einreichung dieser Arbeit) erstellt haben. Während sie 5 veröffentlichte Erstautoren-Peer-Review-Publikationen umfassen, enthalten manche Abschnitte auch weitere relevante, mitverfasste Veröffentlichungen. Wassersicherheit ist unumgänglich für eine nachhaltige Welt. Abwasser kann eine Schlüsselrolle bei der Bereitstellung einer nachhaltigen Wasserquelle spielen, um Wasserknappheit und Wasserstress zu bewältigen. Die Abwasserbehandlung selbst ist jedoch derzeit nicht nachhaltig. Damit die Abwasserbehandlung auf eine nachhaltige Grundlage gestellt werden kann, müssen die Sektoren und die Art und Weise, wie Abwasser betrachtet wird, verändert werden. Die Abwasserbehandlung kann eine Reihe von Ressourcen für die Kreislaufwirtschaft bereitstellen – naturbasierte Lösungen bieten weitere Vorteile gegenüber grauer Infrastruktur, die sich auf andere Nexus-Sektoren wie Nahrung und Energie erstrecken. Kreislaufwirtschaft ist jedoch nicht unbedingt gleichbedeutend mit Nachhaltigkeit. Umweltkomponenten sind nur eine der drei Dimensionen der Nachhaltigkeit, aber Daten für Indikatoren für soziale und wirtschaftliche Aspekte der Abwasserbehandlung sind rar. Der Übergang zu nachhaltigen Lösungen ist möglicherweise nur möglich, wenn Instrumente eingesetzt werden, die sich von einem immer besseren Verständnis aktueller Systeme entfernen und sich in Richtung Analysemodi bewegen, die dazu beitragen, Ziel- und Transformationswissen in inter- und transdisziplinären Forschungs- und Projektumgebungen zu generieren. Diese Ergebnisse schreiben eine radikale Überarbeitung der aktuellen Lehrpläne von Ingenieuren und anderen Disziplinen vor, um Kurse über soziale, wirtschaftliche und ökologische Dimensionen der Nachhaltigkeit aufzunehmen. Schulungen in der Konzeption, Durchführung und Bewertung partizipatorischer Prozesse, die eine Vielzahl von Akteuren einbeziehen, können die Kapazitäten der zukünftigen Generation zur Planung, Konstruktion und zum Betrieb nachhaltiger Abwasserbehandlungssysteme, die behandeltes Abwasser als nachhaltige Wasserquelle in einer wassersicheren Welt bereitstellen, erheblich verbessern.:ABSTRACT vii ZUSAMMENFASSUNG (ABSTRACT in German) ix ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xi 1 Introduction 2 1.1 Scope 2 1.2 The structure of this work 8 1.3 References 10 2 Conceptual explorations 14 2.1 Learning from Integrated Management Approaches to Implement the Nexus 15 2.1.1 Introduction 16 2.1.2 Methods 19 2.1.3 Results 21 2.1.4 Discussion 26 2.1.5 Conclusion 27 2.1.6 References 29 2.2 Making the Water–Soil–Waste Nexus Work: Framing the Boundaries of Resource Flows 33 2.2.1 Introduction 34 2.2.2 An Overview of Integrated Approaches Related to the WSW Nexus 36 2.2.3 The System Boundaries of Integrated Environmental Management Approaches 38 2.2.4 What Is Different This Time?—The Boundary of the Water–Soil–Waste Nexus System 41 2.2.5 Illustrating the Boundaries of the WSW Nexus System—Case Studies 43 2.2.6 Conclusions 48 2.2.7 References and Notes 50 3 Examples of circularity 56 3.1 The Role of Constructed Wetlands for Biomass Production within the Water-Soil-Waste Nexus 59 3.1.1 Introduction 60 3.1.2 Methods 63 3.1.3 Results and discussion 63 3.1.4 Conclusions 68 3.1.5 References 70 3.2 Constructed Wetlands for Resource Recovery in Developing Countries 73 3.2.1 Introduction 74 3.2.2 Methods 76 3.2.3 Results 80 3.2.4 Discussion 91 3.2.5 Conclusions 99 3.2.6 References 102 4 Assessing sustainability of wastewater systems 110 4.1 Assessing Sustainability of Wastewater Management Systems in a Multi-Scalar, Transdisciplinary Manner in Latin America 113 4.1.1 Introduction 114 4.1.2 Materials and Methods 116 4.1.3 Results 124 4.1.4 Discussion 129 4.1.5 Conclusion 132 4.1.6 References 134 4.2 Selecting Sustainable Sewage Sludge Reuse Options through a Systematic Assessment Framework: Methodology and Case Study in Latin America 137 4.2.1 Introduction 138 4.2.2 Methods 139 4.2.3 Results and discussion 141 4.2.4 Conclusion 154 4.2.5 References 156 5 Applying the Nexus 160 5.1 Considering Resources Beyond Water: Irrigation and Drainage Management in the Context of the Water–Energy–Food Nexus 161 5.1.1 Introduction 163 5.1.2 Integrating resource management through Nexus thinking 165 5.1.3 Assessing the negative and positive environmental effects of irrigation, and the provision of ecosystem services 169 5.1.4 The role of stakeholders in governing irrigation 171 5.1.5 Conclusion 173 5.1.6 References 175 5.2 Co-generating knowledge in nexus research for sustainable wastewater management 177 5.2.1 Introduction 178 5.2.2 Material and Methods 180 5.2.3 Results 184 5.2.4 Discussion 202 5.2.5 Conclusions 204 5.2.6 References 206 6 Lessons learned and outlook 210 6.1 Increased circularity does not equate in increased sustainability. 212 6.2 Data scarcity hampers quantitative knowledge generation. 214 6.3 Moving from systems’ understanding to comprehensive knowledge generation for systemic change. 217 6.4 Participation and inclusion of stakeholders is important and should not be an afterthought. 218 6.5 References 221 7 Supplemental Information (SI)/Supplemental Material (SM) 226 7.1 SI for 4.1 ‘Assessing Sustainability of Wastewater Management Systems in a Multi-Scalar, Transdisciplinary Manner in Latin America’ 226 Appendix A 226 Appendix B 233 Appendix C 240 Appendix D 241 Appendix E 243 Appendix F 251 7.2 SI for 4.2 ‘Selecting Sustainable Sewage Sludge Reuse Options through a Systematic Assessment Framework: Methodology and Case Study in Latin America’ 256 7.3 SI for 5.1 ‘Co-generating knowledge in nexus research for sustainable wastewater management’ 261 7.3.1 SM1: Expert interview questionnaire assessing information on stakeholder’s perspectives. 261 7.3.2 SM2: Wickedness Analysis questions 264 7.3.3 SM3: Detailed results of the stakeholder perspective of wastewater treatment in each case 265 7.3.4 SM4: Detailed responses to the workshop/training evaluations 272 8 Contribution of the author in collaborative publications 283 9 Eidesstattliche Versicherung 285

What are ecosystem services, what are the possibilities to use them as a solution to remediate environmental problems, and how can they be increased in an industrial area such as Rönnskärsverken? The aim of this master thesis was to investigate the potential and the incentive for increasing ecosystem services in Rönnskärsverken’s industrial area through green areas and nature based stormwater management solutions on the site.  Ecosystem services is a concept that was put on the political agenda in the UN in 2005 in order to create a common definition and valuation to raise awareness of the values that nature provides to human beings. In recent years it has become an important part when it comes to environmental work and sustainable development in many parts of the world. As cities grow and more areas are exploited it is important to acknowledge what's lost in its place, and find out how we can minimise our impact on the environment and help the ecosystems and biodiversity. The mining company Boliden AB has a smelter located outside Skellefteå in north of Sweden, on an island called Rönnskär. The industrial area has been expanded with artificial means since its inception in 1930 where the focus has then been on industrial function. This has led to few green areas and many impervious surfaces on the site, which in turn has led to problems with stormwater flows, diffuse dusting, noises from the industry, unfavourable wind conditions and a generally less pleasant environment. Boliden AB wants to investigate the possibilities of developing and benefiting ecosystem services of  the industrial site of Rönnskär, and wants knowledge about potential values and benefits. Information has been gathered and compilations and conclusions have been made through literature studies, a survey, a field visit and conversations with employees and expert staff. A digital GIS modelling was planned but not implemented, which is why there is a good basis with criteria in a table in the appendix for further investigation of placement of proposed solutions. In the report, 7 different environmental challenges are identified and addressed; stormwater management, diffuse dusting, noise, biodiversity, lack of green areas, outdoor environment and ground pollution. They have then been linked to 6 different measures using ecosystem services, whereupon stormwater management is further explored in a separate chapter (7). All proposals presented in the report are nature based to demonstrate the use of ecosystem services as tools and aids for the purpose.  The conclusion is that it is possible to use nature based solutions that benefit ecosystem services to remediate the environmental challenges Rönnskär is facing and at the same time also increase other aspects such as well-being, health and environment. For specific implementation further investigations need to be made. Close cooperation with the environmental department on Rönnskär is needed to investigate which measures are most important and to invest in first. Measures need to be taken, and it can clearly be seen that it would benefit the industrial site to invest in maintenance and expansion of green areas to reduce the environmental challenges they face. / Vad är ekosystemtjänster, hur ser möjligheterna ut för att använda dem som lösning för att åtgärda miljöproblem och hur kan de utökas i ett industriområde som Rönnskärsverken? Syftet med detta examensarbete var att undersöka potentialen och incitamentet för att öka ekosystemtjänsterna i Rönnskärsverkens industriområde genom grönområden och naturbaserade dagvattenhanteringslösningar på platsen. Ekosystemtjänster är ett begrepp som sattes upp på den politiska agendan i FN 2005 för att skapa en gemensam definition och värdering för att öka medvetenheten om de värden som naturen ger människor. På senare år har det blivit en viktig del när det gäller miljöarbete och hållbar utveckling på många håll i världen. När städer växer och fler områden exploateras är det viktigt att uppmärksamma vad som har gått förlorat i dess ställe, och ta reda på hur vi kan minimera vår påverkan på miljön, hjälpa ekosystemen och den biologiska mångfalden.  Gruvbolaget Boliden AB har ett smältverk beläget utanför Skellefteå i norra Sverige, på en ö som heter Rönnskär. Industriområdet har byggts ut med konstgjorda medel sedan starten 1930 där fokus legat på industriell funktion. Detta har lett till få grönområden och många ogenomträngliga ytor på platsen, vilket i sin tur lett till problem med dagvattenflöden, diffus damning, buller från industrin, ogynnsamma vindförhållanden och en generellt sett mindre behaglig miljö. Boliden AB vill undersöka möjligheterna att utveckla och dra nytta av ekosystemtjänsterna på industriområdet Rönnskär och vill ha kunskap om potentiella värden och nytta.  Information har samlats och sammanställningar samt slutsatser har gjorts genom litteraturstudier, en enkätundersökning, ett fältbesök och samtal med anställda och sakkunnig personal. En digital GIS-modellering var planerad men ej genomförd, varför det finns en god grund med kriterier i en tabell i appendix för vidare undersökning av placering av föreslagna lösningar.  I rapporten identifieras och behandlas 7 olika miljöutmaningar; dagvattenhantering, diffus damning, buller, biologisk mångfald, brist på grönområden, utemiljö och markföroreningar. De har sedan kopplats till 6 olika åtgärder med hjälp av ekosystemtjänster, varpå dagvattenhanteringen utforskas ytterligare i ett separat kapitel (7). Alla förslag som presenteras i rapporten är naturbaserade för att visa användningen av ekosystemtjänster som verktyg och hjälpmedel för ändamålet.  Slutsatsen är att det är möjligt att använda naturbaserade lösningar som gynnar ekosystemtjänster för att åtgärda de miljöutmaningar Rönnskär står inför och samtidigt också öka andra aspekter som välbefinnande, hälsa och miljö. För specifik implementering behöver ytterligare undersökningar göras. Det behövs ett nära samarbete med miljöavdelningen på Rönnskär för att utreda vilka åtgärder som är viktigast och att satsa på först. Åtgärder behöver vidtas och man kan tydligt se att det skulle gynna industriområdet att investera i underhåll och utbyggnad av grönområden för att minska de miljöutmaningar de står inför.

Mangrove forests are highly productive ecosystems widespread in tropical and subtropical coastlines, with a coverage of 75% of the world’s tropical shorelines. Mangrove plants developed specific physiological and morphological adaptation to thrive in such unique environments. Together with plant adaptations, mangroves develop a tight partnership with microorganisms, mainly bacteria and fungi, that form the so-called mangrove-microbiome. Plant-associated microorganisms are generally recruited by the root system (root tissues and rhizosphere) and the colonization process starts with the release of root-related exudates detected by the surrounding edaphic microorganisms that are attracted in the rhizosphere zone. Then, root surface selects those microorganisms that can enter the tissues as endophytes. The microorganisms recruited belowground can migrate through the plant tissues by using the plant vessels and may colonize the aboveground compartments of the plant. Here, I aimed to evaluate the environmental origin and compartmentalization of the mangrove microbiome. To do this, I sampled bulk sediments, sea water, and mangrove plant compartments (root rhizosphere and endosphere, pneumatophores, shoot, leaves, flowers and propagules) of 20 gray mangrove trees (Avicennia marina L.) across two sites on the Red Sea coast of the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia. By high-throughput sequencing of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene, I showed that the bacterial assembly in A. marina plant compartments follows a clear niche partition process in which bacterial communities are actively recruited from the surrounding ecosystem (sediment and sea water) by the root system, and further distributed across the different plant organ and compartments. Moreover, the composition of microbiome detected had many similitudes with others previously described around the world, suggesting that certain bacteria represent a mangrove “core microbiome”. The conservation of microbiome composition, mainly driven by environmental and host selection, that beneficial bacteria provide to the plant and contribute to its growth and fitness by several mechanisms. Thus, the characterization and identification of mangrove microbiome can meliorate our knowledge regarding plant–microbe interactions, as well as put the bases for the development of Nature-based Solution (NBS) to enhance reforestation and rehabilitation of mangrove ecosystems

With a growing density in the cities, we are building more and more compact with fewer space for green areas. At the same time, the biodiversity has been going through extensive changes due to humans’ impact on the planet. Nature-based solutions (NbS) is one of the important tools to cope with climate change and other important challenges of the community. The aim of this study is to create a deeper understanding of what possibilities and limitations there is for Nature-based solution for the Swedish circumstances. This is a qualitative study based upon a literature study and interviews, that unravels what NbS implies, what the project process looks like and how it overlaps with the plan and building law in Sweden. The study shows how to implement NbS to the plan and building process, there are many possibilities to implement but few means to control the outcome through the process. Today the sustainability work is mostly built on minimum requirements, society impacts and on good will. To better implement NbS the study shows that though the environmental impact assessment the work is the most equivalent compared to NbS project process and also has the authority to regulate different protection measures.

Global urbanization and climate change impacts have exacerbated the urban water crisis. Nature-based solutions (NbS) are promoted globally as ‘just’ and equitable strategies to build sustainable and resilient cities for environmental risks and societal challenges. However, there is still a gap in synchronizing socio-spatial perspectives to understand the cumulative impacts of environmental risks and evolve strategies accordingly. It is also envisaged that future urbanization will be led by small and medium-sized cities from Global South which are more vulnerable due to limited infrastructure, economic and institutional capacity, yet they offer easier management and better stakeholder coordination to integrate resilient strategies. This study attempts to evolve nature-based solutions for urban water security in the fast-emerging medium-sized city of Dehradun in India while bringing socio-spatial perspectives to examine the risks. The evolving research paradigm in urban water security and NbS point towards community-oriented scholarship to promote inclusive urbanism. The research was designed to empirically embed socio-spatial perspective in resilience framework through external and internal biophysical and social factors of hydrometeorological risks, built-environment, socio-economic demographics, perceptions, attitudes participation and representation for these risks. The study employed a multi-level socio-spatial exploratory and explanatory methodology, examining integrated spatial patterns of drought and flooding risks at city level to generate hotspots. It gathered social perspectives on the risks in a critical hotspot and also recorded the preferences for NbS through a semi-structured questionnaire from 452 respondents at neighbourhood-level. The parameters helped identify the key socio-spatial determinants for urban water security to contextualize NbS. Household income, education, and size; dwelling unit plot size and structure were the critical internal socio-spatial determinants for urban water security. Results show very little percentage of participation and representation in the study area, yet, the role of participatory process was a crucial external social factor in determining urban water security. Suitable strategies were considered based on identified socio-spatial determinants, NbS preferences and participation interest of the respondents. The preferences for various types of NbS were collated with their social, environmental, and economic benefits as well as spatial scale of implementation. A close synergy between the socio-economic demography and the built-environment was observed. This influences the cost and scale of NbS which subsequently determine the prospects of benefits. Effective participation and representation can enhance water security but its absence can adversely impact the livelihood, health or property of different groups even within one community which can lead to inequity and injustice. From the overall results it can be inferred that small-scale NbS had better synergies with the social determinants as compared to large-scale solutions. Hence, to maximize the benefits with equitable and ‘just’ measures, small-scale NbS need to be upscaled by replication. This also offers a unique opportunity for emerging cities which can embed them locally and replicate them in new neighbourhoods as the cities grows. Since these cities often have a strong sense of local identity, engagement with the community and enabling actors is also crucial for the successful contextualization of NbS. Thus, socio-spatial perspective becomes decisive for the multiple benefits sought from NbS while playing a significant role in equitable social inclusion to achieve urban water security.:1 Introduction 1.1 Global Urbanization Prospects 1.2 Sustainable Development Goals & the New Urban Agenda-III 1.3 The Growing Urban Water Crisis 1.4 Research Rationale 1.5 Structure of the Dissertation 2 Theoretical Background 2.1 Inclusive Urbanism 2.1.1 What is Inclusive Urbanism? Why is it needed? 2.1.2 Three dimensions for inclusion 2.1.3 Equity, Justice and Participation 2.2 Urban Water Security: Evolving Definitions & Parameters 2.3 Nature-based Solutions 2.3.1 Definitions and Implications 2.3.2 NbS Environmental, Social, Economic and Spatial Aspects 2.4 Inclusive Urbanism for Urban Water Security & NbS in Socio-spatial Perspective 3 State-of-the-art Literature Review 3.1 Literature Search and Analysis Criteria 3.2 Codes and Coding 3.3 Emergent Themes and Trends 3.4 Evidences of NbS for Urban Water Flooding & Drought 3.5 Evidences on Scale of Implementation of NbS 3.6 Evidences of NbS for Social, Environmental and Economic Aspects 3.7 Methodological Evidences for Social Inclusion in NbS 3.8 Gaps and Opportunities: Formulation of Research Questions 4 Research Design 4.1 Conceptual Framework 4.1.1 The Lens of Resilience 4.1.2 Enabling Social Inclusion in Urban Resilience 4.2 Operationalizing the Conceptual Framework Epistemological and Ontological Considerations 4.3 Methodological and Analytical Framework 4.3.1 Research Objectives 4.3.2 Case Study Selection 4.3.3 Spatial Assessment - Parameters, Methods & Tools 4.3.4 Social Assessment - Parameters, Methods & Tools 4.4 Scope and Limitations of the Study 5 Spatial Perspectives on Urban Water Security 5.1 Case Study Profile: Dehradun City 5.2 Demographics and Urbanization Trends 5.3 Climate and Seasonal Trends 5.4 LPA Precipitation Trends and Spatial Pattern 5.5 Groundwater Trends and Spatial Pattern 5.6 Urban Flooding Spatial Pattern 5.7 Study Area Selection 5.7.1 Hotspots Identification 5.7.2 Validation and Selection of Study Area 5.7.3 Study Area 6 Social Perspectives on Urban Water Security 6.1 Respondents’ Profile 6.2 Multi Factor Analysis 6.3 MFA Model 6.3.1 MFA Analysis Steps 6.3.2 Dimensions, Contributions & Selection 6.4 Ordinal Exploration of Significant Parameters 6.4.1 Perception and Attitudes towards Biophysical Environment 6.4.2 Role of Participatory Processes in Water Security 6.4.3 Summary of Results 6.5 Categorical Association of Significant Parameters 6.5.1 Association of Socio-economic Demographics with Water Security 6.5.2 Association of Built-environment with Water Security 6.5.3 Summary of Results 6.6 Urban Water Security in Socio-Spatial Perspective 7 Synthesizing NbS for Urban Water Security 7.1 Considerations for NbS from Socio-spatial Perspectives 7.2 NbS Awareness and Preferences from Surveys 7.3 NbS Preferences in Social Environmental and Economic Aspects 7.4 Spatial Aspects in NbS Preferences 7.5 Evolving NbS in Socio-spatial Context: Synergies & Trade-offs 7.6 NbS Prospects in Urban Planning, Policy and Practice 7.6.1 From ‘S.E.E.’ to ‘S.E.E.S.’ 7.6.2 Enabling via Participation 7.6.3 Enabling via Policy and Regulations 7.6.4 Contextualizing NbS via Practice 7.7 Ensuring Equity and Justice through NbS 8 Conclusion: Contribution and Way Forward 8.1 Revisiting Research Questions, Aims & Objectives 8.2 Contributions of this Research 8.2.1 Research Contributions 8.2.2 Policy and Practice Contributions 8.3 Implications for Small and Medium-sized Cities 8.4 Limitations and Further Scope 8.5 NbS as Driver of Inclusive Urbanism for Urban Water Security 8.6 Achieving Sustainable Development Goals 8.7 A Note on Open Science Practice in the Thesis Annexure-1 Papers selected for state-of-the-art literature review Annexure-2 Spatial Assessment Tables Annexure-3 Social Survey Questionnaire Annexure-4 Multi Factor Analysis Test and Supplementary Tables Annexure-5 Code Scripts Bibliography