The article synthesizes interdisciplinary research, practical case studies and policy analyses presented in a special issue on European wetlands. Its recommendations were developed through interactive workshops at the fifth European Conference on Biodiversity and Climate Change, held in Bonn from 26 to 28 September 2023. The conference was organized by the German Federal Agency for Conservation and the European Network of Heads of Nature Conservation Agencies.

The review identifies wetlands as biodiversity hotspots that also provide ecosystem services, including food and water provision, nutrient retention, recreation and nature tourism. River floodplains can retain water during extreme events, while coastal wetlands form part of hybrid flood-defence systems. Wetlands such as floodplain forests and salt marshes also capture and store carbon. These functions link the condition of wetlands with social, economic and ecological well-being, including European Green Deal and global biodiversity, climate and sustainable-development goals.

Despite these functions, wetlands face severe pressures. Drainage, dams and hydropower infrastructure, water abstraction and flow regulation alter hydrological and hydromorphological conditions. Unsustainable land use, eutrophication and other pollution also contribute to degradation. Climate change exacerbates these anthropogenic pressures and, through changes in the hydrological cycle, has already contributed to severe losses of wetland habitats and species. The authors state that these pressures reduce ecosystem resilience and the prospects of wetlands surviving a changing climate.

The paper calls the existing scientific basis sufficient to support action. It characterizes wetland nature-based solutions as “no-regret options” for sustainable management of river basins and coasts because they can continue providing benefits under a changing climate. The review also cites a European Commission estimate that each euro invested in ecosystem restoration in the EU generates an estimated 8 to 38 euros in economic benefits from natural capital or ecosystem services. The authors note that measures such as rewetting or dam removal can have comparatively low or no maintenance costs after initial investment, although they do not provide a project-level cost-benefit analysis in this paper.

For policy-makers, the recommendations include making wetlands a political priority, aligning biodiversity, climate, water, agriculture, forestry, fisheries, renewable energy, coastal protection and infrastructure policies, and phasing out harmful subsidies in favor of nature-positive investment. The paper supports legally binding restoration targets, measurable deadlines, robust monitoring, long-term public funding and private investment with meaningful biodiversity criteria. It also calls for integrating wetland nature-based solutions into national biodiversity strategies, national adaptation plans and nationally determined contributions, while ensuring ecological and social safeguards.

For practitioners, the paper recommends long-term planning that accounts for climatic, hydrological and ecological uncertainty, source-to-sea approaches at catchment or landscape scale, and a stepwise program that combines ambitious goals with initial projects capable of demonstrating success. Suggested measures include conserving healthy wetlands, removing or modifying obsolete river barriers, reconnecting floodplains, restoring coastal sediment fluxes and managed realignment, and using passive restoration where suitable. It also emphasizes community engagement, stakeholder cooperation, workforce training, demonstration of socio-economic benefits and continuous monitoring and adaptive management.

For researchers, the priorities are to refine models of future climate impacts, reassess conservation priorities as species ranges shift, quantify the biodiversity, climate and socio-economic outcomes of particular restoration methods, and identify restoration areas using assessments of need, feasibility and co-benefits. The paper calls for standardized monitoring indicators at multiple scales, improved data comparability across Europe, accessible digital platforms and clearer communication. Citizen science may complement professional monitoring where appropriate. The review is not presented as a systematic review, meta-analysis, protocol or new causal field experiment; instead, it integrates the special issue’s studies, case studies, policy analyses and workshop deliberations, so its recommendations do not constitute a new quantitative estimate of restoration effectiveness.

The authors conclude that policy, practice and science must work together to reduce human pressures, build a business case for restoration, mobilize funding, address trade-offs, strengthen implementation capacity and expand restored habitat. They acknowledge that political priorities have shifted in the current EU legislative period and that efforts to simplify, delay or weaken environmental policy have made implementation more difficult. Despite those constraints, the review argues that protection and restoration should be scaled up because wetlands support biodiversity, climate resilience and water security, while the costs of inaction continue to increase.

Subject of Research: European policy, practice and research priorities for restoring riverine and coastal wetlands

Article Title: Restoring coasts and floodplains – Conclusions and recommendations for enabling action across science, policy, and practice

Article References: Kaden, U. S., Schmid, S., Wulf, S., Marsden, K., Klusmann, C., Bonn, A., Tockner, K., Scholz, M., & Duffield, S. (2026). Restoring coasts and floodplains – Conclusions and recommendations for enabling action across science, policy, and practice. Nature Conservation, 62, 383-391. https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.62.184559

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.3897/natureconservation.62.184559

Keywords: wetland restoration, river floodplains, coastal wetlands, European Union, nature-based solutions, biodiversity, climate adaptation, nature restoration, environmental policy, adaptive management, Restoring, coasts

Funded by the European Commission and coordinated by Radboud University, the cornerstone project NatureRestoreR: guiding nature restoration through integrated ecological modelling was officially launched on 1 September 2026. The project carries grant number 101287178 and will be implemented over a four-year period, concluding on 1 September 2030. The primary objective of NatureRestoreR is to provide publicly available ecological modelling tools and guidelines. These resources are intended to enable national and regional authorities to design restoration plans based on a scientifically sound understanding of how species, habitats, and ecosystem services respond to restoration measures in different places and under evolving climate dynamics.

A critical challenge in guiding ecosystem restoration efforts is that there is no single approach to restoring nature. Species and habitats may respond differently to a given restoration measure depending on local environmental conditions. Furthermore, climate change can affect the long-term outcomes of restoration efforts. Consequently, authorities need robust scientific evidence to understand how species and ecosystems are likely to respond to restoration under specific circumstances. They also need to identify where interventions can create synergies or trade-offs. NatureRestoreR seeks to address this challenge by convening existing data, scientific knowledge, and modelling approaches to develop an innovative suite of adaptive and easy-to-use ecological modelling tools.

These modelling tools will enable evidence-based prospective assessment of restoration measures. Specifically, they will model the potential impacts on species’ habitats, the extent and condition of habitats protected under the EU Nature Directives, and the provision of ecosystem services. By providing these insights, the project aims to help decision-makers make more informed choices about where and how to allocate restoration resources. This approach is designed to ensure that restoration efforts are not only ecologically sound but also practically feasible for national and regional authorities.

The development of these modelling tools will be a collaborative effort, co-developed and tested through a co-creation process involving researchers and implementation partners. The project will use information from the initial and final revised National Restoration Plans of five EU Member States: Austria, Italy, France, Estonia, and the Netherlands. This collaborative approach will enable the project partners to assess how these plans contribute to the objective of the EU Biodiversity Strategy and the Nature Restoration Regulation. By working with these specific national plans, the project ensures that the tools are relevant to real-world policy contexts and can be adapted to different national circumstances.

Reflecting on the project’s long-term vision, Aafke Schipper, a member of the coordination team at Radboud University, emphasized the importance of the partnership structure. Schipper noted that NatureRestoreR relies on a unique co-creation partnership between ecological researchers and national authorities responsible for or involved in the implementation of the Nature Restoration Regulation. Through this partnership, the project ensures that it meets the needs of decision-makers and practitioners who are implementing and monitoring the regulation. This focus on user needs is central to the project’s design, aiming to create tools that are not only scientifically rigorous but also practical for those on the ground.

NatureRestoreR’s transdisciplinary partnership brings together ecological modelling experts and national agencies with deep knowledge of the EU Nature Directives and National Restoration Plans. Working together, these partners aim to strengthen the relation between ecological knowledge and the decisions shaping Europe’s landscape. The project recognizes that effective restoration requires a close link between scientific understanding and policy implementation. By integrating these two areas, NatureRestoreR hopes to create a more cohesive approach to ecosystem restoration across the continent. This integration is seen as essential for achieving the ambitious targets set by the EU.

Throughout the project, NatureRestoreR will engage with researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and other stakeholders interested in advancing effective, evidence-informed ecosystem restoration across Europe. This broad engagement is intended to ensure that the project’s outputs are widely accessible and useful to a diverse range of actors involved in nature restoration. The project team encourages stakeholders to follow NatureRestoreR on LinkedIn to stay up to date with the project’s latest news, activities, and results. This ongoing communication is part of the project’s strategy to build a community of practice around evidence-based restoration.

The launch of NatureRestoreR represents a significant step forward in the effort to make nature restoration smarter and more effective in Europe. By providing the tools and evidence needed to design and refine restoration plans, the project aims to support the implementation of the EU Nature Restoration Regulation. The focus on co-creation and transdisciplinary collaboration is expected to ensure that the project’s outputs are relevant and useful to those responsible for implementing restoration measures. As the project progresses over the next four years, it will provide valuable insights into how ecological modelling can be used to guide restoration efforts in a changing climate. The ultimate goal is to contribute to the restoration of Europe’s ecosystems and the achievement of the EU’s biodiversity targets.

Subject of Research: Environmental Policy and Ecology

Article Title: NatureRestoreR launches to support Europe in making nature restoration smarter and more effective

Article References: NatureRestoreR launches to support Europe in making nature restoration smarter and more effective. (n.d.). Original publication

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: Not provided

Keywords: Nature Restoration, EU Policy, Ecological Modelling, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Radboud University, European Commission, NatureRestoreR, launches, support, Europe, making