Results in Engineering (Mar 2025)
Achieving socio-economic resilience in neighborhood through nature-based solutions: A systematic review
Abstract
Neighborhoods encounter various challenges that span environmental, social, and economic dimensions, which threaten both the sustainability of these cities and the well-being of their residents. Presently, urban systems function within a linear and inefficient framework, particularly noticeable in critical sectors such as food, energy, and water. This highlights the critical need to shift towards incorporating Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) within urban neighborhoods. Implementing NBS faces challenges such as financial constraints, land scarcity, lack of technical expertise, limited community buy-in, and maintenance issues. The integration of NBS can enhance the socio-economic resilience of the city on three scales: building, street, and neighborhood. By focusing on multi-functionality, these solutions address multiple issues simultaneously, such as improving insulation, enhancing urban biodiversity, managing stormwater, and reducing the urban heat island effect. The research investigates the potential of NBS to facilitate sustainable neighborhood development, emphasizing economic strategies through closed-loop systems to rehabilitate damaged ecosystems, enhance biodiversity, and revitalize neglected and underutilized spaces that detract from a city's overall quality of life. A comprehensive review of existing literature has been undertaken to clarify the scalability potential of NBS within the housing sector, leading to more resilient, equitable, and livable urban environments. This research emphasizes innovative maintenance strategies to ensure the sustainability of NBS across various urban and socio-economic contexts. The review compiles recommendations for conceptualizing NBS for resilient neighborhoods while identifying an execution framework for NBS implementation in neighborhoods particularly those with low-income housing, by engaging communities to promote a sense of belonging and socio-economic resilience.
