Conflict-Sensitive Nature-based Solutions: Promoting resilience, nature, and peace

The guide defines conflict-sensitive Nature-based Solutions (NbS) as adaptation activities designed to increase the resilience of ecosystems and communities while accounting for the causes, actors, and dynamics of conflict. It warns that NbS can inadvertently exacerbate tensions by introducing economic burdens, restricting livelihood access, or creating perceived inequalities in benefit distribution. To mitigate these risks, the document advocates for a participatory process involving women and underrepresented groups to ensure co-design and ownership. The proposed framework for conflict-sensitive NbS follows a cycle of assessment, design, implementation, and monitoring, requiring a conflict analysis alongside traditional climate vulnerability and risk assessments to identify potential triggers and peacebuilding opportunities.

• Nature-based Solutions (NbS) for adaptation can inadvertently create or worsen conflicts if the broader context is ignored, specifically through the introduction of new economic risks, the restriction of access to livelihoods, or perceived inequalities in how adaptation benefits are distributed.
• Conflict-sensitive NbS for adaptation are defined as activities that consider the causes, actors, dynamics, and impacts of conflict to increase climate resilience, aiming at minimum to avoid contributing to tensions and ideally to promote trust-building and peace.
• Effective integration of conflict sensitivity requires a participatory design process that includes women and underrepresented groups to account for differing levels of power and agency among local actors.
• The operational framework for conflict-sensitive NbS requires a dual assessment approach, combining standard climate vulnerability and risk assessments with a specific conflict analysis to identify threats and peacebuilding entry points.

APA

International Institute for Sustainable Development (2025). Conflict-Sensitive Nature-based Solutions: Promoting resilience, nature, and peace. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2025-10/conflict-sensitive-nature-based-solutions.pdf

Chicago

International Institute for Sustainable Development. Conflict-Sensitive Nature-based Solutions: Promoting resilience, nature, and peace. 2025. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2025-10/conflict-sensitive-nature-based-solutions.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=International Institute for Sustainable Development |title=Conflict-Sensitive Nature-based Solutions: Promoting resilience, nature, and peace |date=2025 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2025-10/conflict-sensitive-nature-based-solutions.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{internationalinstituteforsustainabledevelopment2025conflictsensitive, author = {{International Institute for Sustainable Development}}, title = {{Conflict-Sensitive Nature-based Solutions: Promoting resilience, nature, and peace}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2025}, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/2025-10/conflict-sensitive-nature-based-solutions.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }