Blog, Nature-based solutions

The first phase of CLEARING HOUSE sets the stage for research and innovation in the project, and an important aspect of this work is the compilation of existing knowledge in a reference-recorded knowledge repository to find answers to questions such as this one.

“What are greening actions in Europe and Eastern Asia?”

One element to find answers to our questions is a structured and systematic interpretation of academic literature. This rapid review has the goal to collate evidence on the intended outcomes and on the unintended impacts of Urban Forests as Nature-Based Solutions (UF-NBS), relating to manifold societal and environmental challenges in cities. Those challenges range from the protection and regeneration of ecosystems and the improvement of human health to psychological restoration or supporting sustainable development, decision-making and planning.

How will the dashboard help the NBS community?

The dashboard will allow interested stakeholders to access findings of CLEARING HOUSE easily, and more immediately. Dashboards like these, e.g., due to their interactivity, are much more engaging than “traditional” reports. Second, within certain limits, there is no “fixed” entry point. You can approach the data from different perspectives – be it socio-environmental challenges, actions, or distinct tree species. This, hopefully, caters to the different backgrounds and needs of stakeholders. And third, the exciting thing is that consequently, every stakeholder can create their own “view” on the data, ask their own questions. This is where the greatest benefit lies – that every user can look for available evidence in regard to their own, individual problem at hand.

“What UF-NBS actions were taken to support recreation, increase amenity values, and regulate air quality and air temperature to improve public health?”

To provide insights into the project’s findings, CLEARING HOUSE has developed a web-based dashboard. Such data dashboards are commonly used information management tools that allow interested parties to view, summarize, and visualise data. The dashboard by CLEARING HOUSE follows these principles by providing researchers, decision-makers, urban planners, and the wider public easy access to knowledge on UF-NBS through interactive charts, summaries of key indicators and downloadable reports. The CLEARING HOUSE dashboard can from now on be accessed at http://review.clearinghouseproject.eu.