Promoting Nature based Solutions for resilient, low carbon and biodiverse territorial development (SolNatura)

State of implementation/results

• Following the work plan of the three NbS clusters in the departments of Córdoba, Santander and Huila, 6 NbS research and innovation initiatives have been selected including projects on regenerative agriculture and restoration of tropical dry forests. An evaluation tool for NbS projects has been developed with cluster actors. NbS portfolios, comprising 20 initiatives to enhance territorial development, have been further strengthened in 2025 with updated zoning and contextual mapping layers.
• Fondo Acción is supporting the creation of 5 financial instruments for NbS-Projects with 11 selected entities (8 financial institutions, 2 special entities, and one economic organization). Four memorandums of understanding have been signed, alliances with regional environmental authorities are under discussion, and an activity plan with NGO Asprocig in Córdoba has been approved. Work with the dairy producer Alquería continues supporting economic flows, NbS measures, cost estimates, and manuals for a pilot fund. Two of three training modules for financial actors have been implemented with the University EAFIT. Progress on economic instruments includes two project profiles dealing with payment methods for ecosystem services, definition of intervention areas, and stakeholder mapping. In addition, the first version of a microcredit monitoring tool has been developed.-- Through SolNatura+, a financing facility designed to mobilize resources and apply blended finance over 30 years, a call for NbS proposals was launched in October 2024 at COP16 and closed in May 2025 with 119 submissions. After eligibility screening, 33 proposals were selected (Córdoba 12, Huila 7, Santander 14) and are now in a phase to further develop the concepts (August–October 2025) to strengthen capacities in monitoring, project management, and technical design.
• Key coordination efforts have integrated NbS into local governance through the Interinstitutional Climate Change Roundtable (Córdoba), the Departmental Climate Change Council (Huila), and the Santander Forest Roundtable. Huila advanced alignment of climate and biodiversity targets with strategic priorities, Córdoba progressed on its action plan and identified capacity gaps with the Green Business Committee, and Santander promoted agroforestry exchanges with a gender and youth focus. On the national level, SolNatura supported the formulation of the NbS Guide (MinAmbiente), the National NbS Strategy (DNP), and the NbS Network, contributing to knowledge management and the systematization of 15 NbS projects. A milestone was the hybrid NbS Lab, which gathered over 650 participants to exchange experiences, apply prioritization tools, and co-design projects.
• Building on the 2024 workshops, a national diagnostic of monitoring systems prioritized support for the ecological restoration and protective forest plantations module of IDEAM’s National Forest Information System (SNIF). In 2025, two technical workshops with the national restoration roundtable refined the module and advanced a common framework to improve data quality and reporting. On a regional level, a monitoring tool was identified as a priority for Córdoba and Huila to track progress on their climate change plans.
• Actors in Córdoba, Huila and Santander have enhanced their expertise in NbS, through learning initiatives: A self-paced online course on the MinAmbiente platform registered 680 participants of which 229 completed and certified. A complementary diploma on NbS project formulation is under development.

Latest Update:
12/2025

Further links

• IKI Colombia website
• In Spanich: Video on NbS approaches: urban areas
• In spanish: Video on NbS approaches: Andean wetlands
• in spanish:Video on NbS approaches: mangroves