Resilient watersheds for sustainable societies

Abstract

Climate change, land-use change, environmental degradation and increasing competition for water are placing growing pressure on river basins and the communities that depend on them. Addressing these pressures requires moving beyond isolated measures towards an integrated watershed perspective that recognizes the interactions between hydrological processes, ecosystems, land use, infrastructure and governance. This paper discusses a conceptual pathway to resilience linking watershed resilience with spatial planning, green infrastructure (GI) and nature-based solutions (NBS). Watersheds are considered as social-ecological-technological systems in which natural storage, connectivity and water regulation provide the physical basis for resilience. GI and NBS can strengthen these functions across forests, agricultural areas, wetlands, floodplains, rivers and urban areas, while providing multiple hydrological, ecological and socio-economic benefits. However, their wider implementation is constrained by institutional, regulatory, political, financial and knowledge-related barriers. These barriers interact and may reinforce each other, requiring interventions that address the most influential constraints within a particular governance context. The paper therefore emphasizes the integration of NBS and GI into watershed-scale spatial planning and infrastructure development, supported by coordinated governance, technical capacity and long-term institutional commitment. Such an approach can strengthen both rural and urban resilience as it provides a link between climate adaptation, water security and sustainable development.