The WaterBlog

Heading towards a nature-based future

How could my country look like if we were to embrace nature-based solutions? This was the question that student teams from around the globe aimed to answer in the Nature-Based Future Challenge, organized by Wageningen University & Research. Interdisciplinary and international teams visualized a nature-based future for the delta of Bangladesh, showcasing innovative solutions to pressing environmental challenges. Chittagong Hill Tracts One of the teams, GO2V-NBF, focused on the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) with the goal of transitioning from "development at the cost of nature" to a future of "nature-based prosperity." This region in Southeast Bangladesh faces significant challenges related to climate change, biodiversity loss, and socio-economic development. The increasing intensity of extreme weather events, coupled with changing land use, exacerbates soil erosion and land degradation. The local water cycle is under pressure, leading to issues of both water scarcity and flooding at different times of the year. GO2V-NBF proposed a strategy of vertical cities on water and a harmonious… Continued