Written by: Tiina Ynnilä, Elina Oksanen, and Oskari Ylikoski, UEF

Visuals by: FOCUS STC

A new course on Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) was launched by the ᴇNᴀBʟS team of the University of Eastern Finland (UEF). NBS utilise nature’s own processes to address various societal challenges while promoting human well-being and biodiversity.

Focusing on the northern environment, the course offers basic knowledge about NBS. It approaches the theme from a problem-oriented point of view, using multiple real-life examples in Finland, illustrated by several videos and pictures.

Multidisciplinary cooperation in creating the course

The course was created as part of ᴇNᴀBʟS and the SECLE-funded Biodiversity Now project which ended at the end of 2024. Project coordinator of the latter and Biology Master student, Olivia Ollikainen, was responsible for the planning of the course, the collection of material and the construction of the course.

“We were able to include several experts from different disciplines in the course, but also people who are already implementing various Nature-Based Solutions” tells University Teacher Oskari Ylikoski.

The course material was collected from experts from different fields of science from the University of Eastern Finland and other Finnish universities, as well as from non-governmental organisations such as Wild Zone NGO and ProAgria Eastern Finland.

“We thank our multidisciplinary team, all teachers and researchers, for contributing to this effort. Special thanks to Olivia Ollikainen and Oskari Ylikoski, who made the most of the hard work in putting all pieces together” says University Professor Elina Oksanen.

Lots of practical NBS content

The two-credit (2 ECTS) course corresponds to a workload of approximately 54 hours. Students will learn different approaches and methodologies for NBS, such as the effects of peatland restoration on carbon sequestration, paludiculture, benefits of urban nature and green infrastructures, regenerative farming, multispecies transition and decision-making taking nature into account, and examples of engagement of local people and citizens in working with nature.

After completing the course, students will be able to define what NBS are and what criteria they must meet, recognise the significance of NBS in addressing various societal problems, identify examples of NBS implemented in Finland and around the globe, and apply their knowledge to envision what NBS could look like in their own local environment.

Figure 1: NBS course modules

The course includes the following contents:

Studying the course

The UEF team is piloting this course in spring 2025, and only UEF degree students can earn credits from it. In autumn 2025, the course will be made available to all lifelong learners through the Open University of the UEF Center for Continuous Learning.

An Open Access version of the course has also been created so that everyone interested in the topic can learn from the material.  This version excludes all course exercises and does not require an enrollment key—only access to the DigiCampus learning platform.