The Cities Festival at the Nature-based Solutions International Congress
The Climate Academy, 2 Pl. Baudoyer 75004 - Paris France
The Cities Festival, taking place during the NetworkNature week, will be hosted by UNP+, NetworkNature, and the City of Paris. The event will foster peer2peer exchange among cities. This event will serve as the final UNP+ symposium, and will support other cities in understanding and implementing Urban Nature Plans.
Our hands-on workshop sessions will explore how governments protect, restore, and work with nature; how governments engage in inclusive decision-making and inform policy with practice in order to improve the health and quality of life for everyone.
Each session will focus on practice and meaningfully include (or be led by) a representative(s) from a local or regional government. Join us in Paris this November to connect with cities, share your own learnings, and see the urban nature work Paris has accomplished first hand. The activities of the day are most relevant for local decision makers and technical experts from local and regional governments. Bringing together more than 200 participants, the Cities Festival will be open to everyone, giving preference to representatives from local and regional governments. You can find more information about the Congress below.
Nature-based Solutions International Congress
2 – 6 November 2026
Sorbonne University, 4 Place Jussieu, 75005 Paris
At a time when urgent transformative change is needed to address the intertwined crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, the Nature-based Solutions International Congress will aim to shape a resilient future for people and nature through knowledge and action.
From November 2 to 6, 2026, in Paris, France, it will bring together researchers, policymakers, practitioners, local and regional representatives, national and transnational public authorities, businesses, investors, and civil society from around the world, and serve as a global meeting point for those working around nature and people.
Built as a dialogue across sectors and disciplines, and organised by the French National Research Program on Nature-based Solutions (SOLU-BIOD) and NetworkNature, in collaboration with UNP+, Biodiversa+, Sorbonne University, and the City of Paris, the Congress will seek to create a decisive moment for nature, strengthening synergies, bridging communities, and amplifying the international impact of NbS.
A Strategic Moment
Climate change and biodiversity loss are no longer future risks. Their combined impacts are shaping a new reality, directly threatening societies and ecosystems, putting at risk food and water security, public health, social justice, and economic stability. These crises are unfolding within a complex landscape of social inequality, shifting policy priorities, and geopolitical uncertainty.
Past decades have demonstrated that reliance on conventional solutions to current challenges is often insufficient. Evidence increasingly shows that such approaches can exacerbate long-term vulnerabilities and risks by failing to account for ecological and social dynamics.
Nature-based Solutions (NbS) are increasingly recognised across science, policy, and practice as essential to strengthening economic, societal, and environmental resilience.
In this context, the Congress offers an important moment to bring together the communities shaping the future of NbS. It provides a space for exchange and alignment between the scientific, policy, and practitioner communities working to advance NbS worldwide.
A Multidimensional Structure
The Congress is organised as two parallel and interconnected programmes. This design reflects a shared ambition: to build strong knowledge-to-action and action-to-knowledge pathways, enabling a two-way exchange between science, policy, and practice, and ensuring that each community informs and strengthens the others.
Events
The NetworkNature Week (2 to 5 November)
The week will bring together researchers, policymakers, practitioners, local and regional authorities, national and European representatives, businesses, investors, and civil society actors from around the world. They will explore how public authorities can shape and drive a resilient future for people and nature through knowledge and action. The week, organised by NetworkNature, will be structured around three key events:
2 November | The NN Science Policy Dialogue, organised by NetworkNature
3 November | The NetworkNature Annual Event 2026 “Futures with Nature”, organised by NetworkNature
4 November | The Cities Festival, organised by UNP+ in collaboration with NetworkNature and with the support of the City of Paris
5 November | NetworkNature Task Forces Cluster Meeting (only for Task Force members)
Do you want to contribute? Our Futures with Nature call is open!
The NetworkNature Week is open access, while some events will require registration upon approval. Please visit the Nature-based Solutions International Congress website for more information.
Scientific Conference (3 to 6 November)
This dedicated forum, organised by the French National Research Program on Nature-based Solutions (SOLU-BIOD), Sorbonne University, and Biodiversa+, will fill a critical gap by providing a space to present and discuss fundamental, interdisciplinary, participatory, and action-oriented research on the design, implementation, and evaluation of NbS, while fostering dialogue across disciplines and sectors.
The conference will be structured around thematic sessions, co-designed with the international NbS community to reflect the diversity, innovation, and transformative potential of NbS research across continents. By bringing together perspectives from the natural, human, and social sciences, these sessions will foster genuine transdisciplinary dialogue.
Firmly grounded in science yet open beyond academia, the conference recognises that transformative change requires the convergence of knowledge, governance, and practice. Practitioners, businesses, policymakers, investors, and civil society actors are warmly invited to share their experience, contribute their perspectives, and join cross-sectoral dialogues.
A registration fee will apply to participants attending the Scientific Conference.