📍 Online, via Microsoft Teams
📅 Thursday 26th March 2026 | 11:00 – 12:00
Overview
The Blue Green Infrastructure training programme is a West Yorkshire Flood Innovation Programme (FLIP) project that addresses an urgent need for stronger skills in flood risk management and climate resilience across Yorkshire.
There is a critical gap in capacity and skills, which is a risk to the delivery of flood reduction and resilience benefits in the region. The work is funded by the Yorkshire Regional Flood and Coastal Committee (YRFCC) and will deliver a pilot training programme administered by iCASP and water@leeds at the University of Leeds. For more information on the work of the West Yorkshire Flood Innovation Programme, please click here.
Event Description
Nature-based solutions (NBS) use lessons and features from the natural world to protect, manage, and restore ecosystems while providing benefits for both society and nature. For example, Natural Flood Management can prevent or slow the flow of flooding, and Peatland Management can have flood, carbon, water quality and ecology benefits. However, hard engineering solutions (such as flood defences) are often prioritised over NBS.
This session presents the results of a research project where we worked with people working across different types of NBS, regions and types of organisations to understand the main policy challenges to implementing NBS projects in England. We identified many successful examples of NBS that were assisted by local communities, volunteers, landowners, and evidence of good practice and research. However, we found that NBS could be implemented more successfully if the UK Government supported it with a bold vision and resources to address policy issues in four key areas: funding, evidence, planning processes and governance, underpinned by a national-level NBS advisory body.
In the session, we will present the project results and are keen to gather a wide range of views on how to improve the effectiveness and uptake of different types of NBS.
Learning Outcomes
- Have a background knowledge/introduction to different types of Nature-Based Solutions
- Be able to understand policy barriers in England identified by practitioners
- Be in a position to consider policy barriers from your own perspective, and what should be done
Who can attend
This event is aimed at those working in local government teams with a responsibility for flood risk management or teams looking to upskill in the area. Teams within the Environment Agency and Yorkshire Water can also access this training. Due to the nature of our funding, attendees must be working in the Yorkshire region.
Capacity will be reserved for employees or volunteers with local Rivers Trusts or Yorkshire Wildlife Trust. Please contact [email protected] for further information on place availability.