Which action best builds urban resilience and environmental co-benefits through nature-based solutions?

• A. Stricter emissions standards
• B. Shift to renewable energy
• C. Deploy green infrastructure
• D. Expand transit and EVs

Answer: (C)

Nature-based solutions in cities aim to use living systems to boost resilience while delivering multiple environmental co-benefits. Deploying green infrastructure—such as green roofs, urban trees and forests, bioswales, rain gardens, permeable pavements, and restored wetlands—puts this into action. These features manage stormwater by absorbing and slowly releasing runoff, which reduces flood risk and helps clean pollutants from water. They cool urban areas through shade and evapotranspiration, lowering heat island effects. They also improve air quality, sequester carbon, and create habitats for urban wildlife, supporting biodiversity and residents’ well-being.

This approach directly links adaptation with mitigation and public health benefits by weaving nature into the urban fabric. The other actions—stricter emissions standards, shifting to renewable energy, and expanding transit and electric vehicles—are crucial for reducing pollution and emissions, but they don’t inherently provide the same integrated, nature-based resilience and co-benefits that come from deploying green infrastructure.