Incorporating stakeholders’ preferences into a multi-criteria framework for planning large-scale Nature-Based Solutions

This study aims to develop a methodology to select NbS measures by integrating a preliminary selection tool with a multi-criteria analysis framework for different scales (i.e. urban area, river basin, coastal area) and hazard types (i.e. pluvial floods, fluvial floods, flash flood, coastal floods drought and landslides. This methodology incorporates stakeholders’ preferences into a multi-criteria analysis framework, as part of a tool for selecting risk mitigation measures. The results of the study highlight the importance of involving stakeholders in the early stages of projects in order to achieve successful implementation of NBSs. The methodology can assist decision-makers in formulating desirable benefits and co-benefits and can enable a systematic and transparent NBSs planning process.