Bibliometric and literature review of research on nature-based solutions and climate change: Implications for policy and practice

TL;DR

This paper reviews research on nature-based solutions for climate change, identifying key themes and trends to guide future studies and practices.

Contribution

The study combines bibliometric analysis and literature review to map the evolving field of nature-based solutions for climate adaptation.

Findings

Four thematic clusters were identified: urban planning, disaster risk reduction, forest, and biodiversity.

The field has grown significantly since 2009, with increasing interdisciplinary and global research efforts.

The review highlights gaps and opportunities for future research and policy development.

Abstract

Nature-based solutions to adapt to climate change have attracted increasing interest in recent years and have developed in different directions. This study aims to provide an updated overview of this growing field, its main trends, and directions for future research. To this end, we conducted several analyses. First, we selected 258 papers from the Web of Science database, published between 2009 and 2023, and presented their profiles in terms of time, journals, geography, and research areas. Second, we performed a bibliometric co-word analysis, which identified four thematic clusters: (1) urban planning, (2) disaster risk reduction, (3) forest, and (4) biodiversity, providing a holistic view of the field. Third, we supplemented the bibliometric analyses with a literature review, to help interpret the themes in each thematic cluster and identify potential avenues for future research. We hope that this review will provide valuable information as a guide for both academics and practitioners.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13280-025-02273-y.

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