Fostering Nature-Based Solutions in Urban Planning: Results from a Systematic Literature Review

Although there are multiple literature reviews on Nature Based Solu-tions (NBS), their effectiveness in solving major societal challenges is not always measured in order to support and promote their implementation in urban planning. This contribution concerns a review process aimed at filling this gap, through a sys-tematic review of the scientific literature. The workflow followed for the selection of the academic studies included in the final study sample follows the interna-tionally recognized PRISMA protocol. The examined studies, related to urban planning, were discussed with respect to the main research questions underly-ing the entire work, concerning the types of NBS most treated, the spatial scale of investigation, benefits and costs associated with the implementation of NBS, methodologies adopted for the evaluation of the proposed NBS, tools or soft-ware used to facilitate the application of the methodologies presented. The results obtained show that there are still few studies that adopt quantitative approaches to the evaluation of the NBS potential benefits and even less of the costs associated with them, suggesting that more efforts are needed in this regard. The integration of such quantitative knowledge is key to strengthening the planned inclusion of NBS in urban areas.