Presentation of the E_SfN

The E_SfN (School of Nature-Based Solutions) aims to develop cross-disciplinary and practical skills to address contemporary environmental and societal challenges. It trains students and professionals in systems thinking and fosters a broader understanding of the interactions between human societies, biodiversity, and ecosystems.

Concept development, creativity, project management, innovation management, and multidisciplinary teamwork: the E_SfN was created to break down barriers between fields of knowledge, bridge the gap between research, education, and practice, and promote transdisciplinarity in the field of Nature-based Solutions.

Based in Lyon and coordinated by Cristina Vieira and Grégory Cornu (Claude Bernard Lyon 1 University), the E_SfN is part of a national initiative to improve skills in Nature-based Solutions, bringing together higher education institutions, research organizations, institutional stakeholders, and socio-economic partners.

With a budget of €2.2 million over 7 years, the project is organized into 7 work packages and involves 5 major academic partners:

• Claude Bernard Lyon 1 University
• Montpellier University
• Aix-Marseille University
• National Museum of Natural History
• Grenoble Alps University

The E_SfN’s ambition is to become a leading institution dedicated to Nature-Based Solutions, capable of offering innovative, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary training programs tailored to regional needs and grounded in the latest scientific advancements.

Training on Nature-Based Solutions

Nature-based Solutions are actions that rely on ecosystems to address the challenges posed by global changes, such as climate change, natural hazard management, environmental health, water supply, and food security.

Ecosystems that are preserved, restored, or managed sustainably – and that are resilient and functional – support biodiversity and provide ecosystem services that are essential to human societies.

According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), Nature-based Solutions are:

actions aimed at protecting, sustainably managing, and restoring natural or modified ecosystems to directly address societal challenges in an effective and adaptive manner, while ensuring human well-being and generating benefits for biodiversity

These solutions are based on three main types of actions, which often complement civil engineering:

• the preservation of functional ecosystems,
• the sustainable management of ecosystems,
• the restoration or creation of ecosystems.

A transdisciplinary educational approach

The E_SfN offers training in transdisciplinarity through hands-on experience, building on existing disciplinary expertise while fostering dialogue among environmental sciences, engineering, the humanities and social sciences, urban planning, economics, and public policy.

It develops an integrated approach to understanding the complexity of socio-ecosystems – from ecological functioning to territorial dynamics – in order to design, implement, and evaluate Nature-based Solutions tailored to local contexts.

The goal is to train a new generation of professionals, researchers, and decision-makers capable of designing sustainable, science-based solutions that are developed in collaboration with local communities and focused on taking action.

The E_SfN is divided into 7 research areas, each comprising 7 major work packages. Each has its own roadmap, supported by the expertise of the partner universities:

Work Package (WP)	Title	Objective	Key Actions	Leading partner
WP # 0	Creation of a network on Nature-based Solutions (NBS)	Establish a national network that brings together all available solutions from both academic and private sectors	Make an inventory and create a website	Lyon 1 University
WP #1	University Degree in Nature-based Solutions	Develop a degree program to train professionals in biodiversity management and the application of NbS	An interdisciplinary approach, concrete case studies from living labs, and adaptation to regional and university-specific needs	Lyon 1 University, University of Montpellier
WP #2	NbS course in the BEE Master’s program	Create a specialized course for NbS students in the “Biodiversity, Ecology, Evolution” (BEE) Master’s program	Incorporate NbS content into existing courses; compile a inventory of relevant content to update the program.	University Aix-Marseille
WP #3	Professional skill modules	Develop competency modules focused on practical skills in NbS for various sectors	Develop flexible modules for training programs in environmental management, urban planning, and public policy implementation	Lyon 1 University, University of Montpellier
WP #4	Interdisciplinary Awareness Module on NbS	Raise awareness of the NbS among various academic disciplines and train faculty members to teach this module	Create basic training materials and a “train-the-trainer” program for implementation in fields such as law or economics	MNHN, Grenoble Alps University
WP #5	MOOC on Nature-based Solutions	Provide accessible online training on NbS for a diverse audience	Design a flexible MOOC drawing on the expertise of Aix-Marseille University; align it with existing resources such as the French Biodiversity Agency MOOC	Aix-Marseille University
WP #6	Knowledge Brokerage	Create a platform to collect and disseminate knowledge on NbS and bridge the gap between science and practice	Publish reports, videos, and results from living labs; engage stakeholders through workshops, conferences, and open houses	Grenoble Alps University, MNHN

What makes E_SfN unique:

• training through real projects
• engagement with local communities
• structured interdisciplinarity
• action-research link
• national network of universities

The E_SfN is intended for:

• to master’s and doctoral students
• to teacher-researchers
• to local communities
• to engineering firms and companies
• to natural area managers

The School of Nature-Based Solutions relies on national-level regional projects, including Living Labs, to bridge the gap between education, research, and action.