Systemic approach to green infrastructure and nature-based solutions uptake: Insights from the Polish cities

Cities face many environmental, social, and economic challenges. Green infrastructure (GI) and nature-based solutions (NBS) are the tools that contribute to tackling them and improving the quality of life of urban citizens. To strengthen the competencies of cities in achieving sustainable development, the Polish Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy led, in collaboration with the World Bank, a flagship project of the National Urban Policy 2030-the Cities' Partnership Initiative (CPI) 2021-2023. Within CPI, ten Polish cities participated in the Green Network Group. Based on Green Network's work results, we aim to: 1. Reveal contemporary key urban challenges that the GI and NBS can address; 2. Indicate barriers in the planning, design, execution, and maintenance of GI or NBS that hinder their systemic development (legal, organizational, substantive, financial); 3. Propose improvements to the GI and NBS systemic development from the perspective of practitioners reperesenting cities. The findings result from a series of workshops and Municipal Action Plans developed by participants to address city-specific challenges. The results showed that urban challenges are multidimensional, and GI and NBS are recognized as multi-beneficial solutions. Municipalities struggle with legal, organizational, substantial, and financial shortages, but at the same time, they indicate various improvements that are needed to strengthen the systemic approach to GI and NBS uptake.