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Inspiration Card
Governance Actions |
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Policies
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G11 Review of the existing policy framework around NBS
| Knowledge & Awarness | Political Commitment | Organisation | Perceived Costs & Benefits | Social & Environmental Justice |
| ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
NBS as such are often not explicitly targeted through local regulations and incentives. Still, as an integral and highly cross-sectoral part in the urban system, they are both supported and inhibited by various policies from different areas. An important step in developing a coherent policy framework is to identify potential synergies and bottle-necks to a desired development trajectory. E.g. do incentives and regulations exist that steer in an undesired direction and how can these be reconfigured to encourage a desired development path? A targeted review and evaluation of the existing policy framework could help to achieve this.
- The involvement of various stakeholders and actors in the review process
- Achieving a good balance of regulations (command-and-control mechanisms) and incentives (market-based instruments)
- Reduction of bureaucracy through removal of redundant rules and regulations
- Streamlining of national, regional, and local policies to better realise the overarching goals and targets.
UNaLab Stories: Eindhoven Green Space Policy
The city of Eindhoven has a Green Space Policy Plan which is updated every 10 years. It describes the green history of the city, the local value of urban green, Eindhoven’s ambitions for the future, and the supporting political policy framework. It thus represents the overarching green strategy and guiding principles for green developments in the city, whilst at the same time being used to inspire and inform local stakeholders and citizens. Several local initiatives such as “Trefpunt Groen” (integrator of local environmental NGOs) and the University of Wageningen have been involved in the review and updating process to respect local citizen and NGO perspectives, as well as up-to-date scientific advice. In the plan, NBS are explicitly mentioned as means to achieve the outlined goals and vision. In terms of policies, the Green Space Policy Plan provides an overview of all relevant laws and strategies at the national, regional and local levels and lists the main policy instruments which have been introduced or are currently being developed in this area.
The Green Space Policy Plan is freely available on the city’s website. https://www.eindhoven.nl/sites/default/files/2017-06/LR_16112016_groenbeleidsplan_interactief_100dpi.pdf