Sustainability solutions company ClimeCo announced today the launch of NatureLink, a new tool aimed at matching organizations with fully vetted, high-quality nature-based solution (NBS) projects alinged with their specific goals, budgets and priorities.

Nature-based solutions, according to International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), are “actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore natural and modified ecosystems that address societal challenges effectively and adaptively, simultaneously providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits.” The solutions are one of the key tools to help meet global decarbonization goals, with projects that are typically included in the definition encompassing those focused on redeveloping forests or wetlands, which protect or transform land, improve biodiversity, and enable nature to absorb CO2 from the environment.

Despite the potential impact and effectiveness of nature based solutions to address climate change, the acceleration of NBS projects face challenges including insufficient awareness, difficulty accounting for costs and benefits, particularly in light of the long-term nature of nature-based solutions’ impact, insufficient funding, limited knowledge and skills, and a need for more research into solutions’ effectiveness.

ClimeCo said that its new solution “will reduce confusion in an over-saturated marketplace, allowing concerned organizations to pursue their sustainability goals with confidence.”

According to CLimeCo, NatureLink includes an online questionnaire covering topics including offtake and structure, geographic and project type preferences, use of carbon credits, desired standards and labels, financial metrics, level of support, and the need for additional revenue streams. From the answers, ClimeCo NatureLink generates a list of optimal projects and partners from a robust portfolio of validated global NBS options.

Emma Cox, Executive Vice President, Commercial at ClimeCo said:

“ClimeCo understands that nature-based solutions are not a one-size-fits-all approach. By acting as a matchmaker, we are addressing an industry-wide challenge: streamlining the project procurement process and ensuring that each stakeholder’s specific needs are met to drive the most meaningful environmental and financial outcomes.”