RENATURE – Resilience to Climate Change through Nature-based Solutions

Project No.: 2025-1-IT01-KA220-VET-000358118
Programme: Erasmus+ KA220-VET
Implementation period: 11-11-2025 - 31-05-2028

Project Description

RENATURE is a European cooperation project aimed at strengthening human and ecosystem resilience to climate change through the understanding, application, and co-management of Nature-based Solutions (NbS). The project addresses a key gap in current education systems by developing structured and practice-oriented learning pathways that connect sustainability knowledge with concrete skills for the green transition and youth employment.

NbS are increasingly recognised as effective, low-engineered, and cost-effective solutions for climate change mitigation and adaptation, capable of generating multiple environmental, economic, and social co-benefits. Their accessibility and ease of co-management also make them particularly suitable for inclusive and bottom-up development processes. RENATURE builds on this potential by designing educational resources that not only explain how NbS work, but also how they can be applied in real contexts to improve the resilience of territories and communities.

The project adopts an integrated approach combining research, education, and digital innovation. It is implemented by a partnership of universities, inter-university consortia, and technology parks across six European countries (Italy, Spain, Greece, Germany, Lithuania, and Finland), representing the main European biogeographical regions (Mediterranean, Continental, Atlantic, and Boreal). This ensures that the project outputs are both scientifically robust and representative of diverse environmental and socio-economic contexts.

RENATURE places particular emphasis on participatory co-management approaches (such as CDD, CBNRM, and ICDP), highlighting how NbS can be implemented through inclusive governance models. At the same time, it supports the development of competences aligned with the GreenComp framework and key competences for lifelong learning, enabling learners to acquire both theoretical understanding and practical skills for operating in the sustainability sector.

All project outputs are developed as Open Educational Resources (OERs) in digital format, ensuring accessibility, adaptability, and scalability across VET, higher education, and lifelong learning contexts. The project is designed not only to transfer knowledge, but also to support learners in building coherent professional pathways in the field of sustainability, including access to green jobs and opportunities for self-employment.

Expected Results
RENATURE will achieve its objectives through the following key results:

• A comparative report on the state of the art of NbS in the partner countries, analysing best practices, criticalities, and development trends across environmental, economic, and social dimensions.
• An introductory educational programme on NbS, providing foundational knowledge on their role in climate change mitigation and adaptation.
• An advanced educational programme, focused on the practical application, co-management, and professional use of NbS in natural, semi-natural, and urban systems.
• A digital application enabling interactive exercises, self-assessment, and the development of personalised competence profiles aligned with GreenComp.
• A comprehensive RENATURE e-book, including methodological guidelines, testing results, good practices, and recommendations for the replication and upscaling of the project approach.

All results will be produced in digital format and made openly accessible to support dissemination, long-term sustainability, and the transferability of the RENATURE methodology across Europe.

Partnership

An international partnership of eight organisations implements RENATURE:

• Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection – National Research Council (ISAFoM-CNR), Italy – Project Coordinator
• University for Foreigners of Perugia (UNISTRAPG), Italy
• National Institute of Biostructures and Biosystems (INBB), Italy
• Kaunas Science and Technology Park (Tech-Park Kaunas), Lithuania
• AllWeb, Greece
• University of Salamanca – General Foundation (FUNGUSAL), Spain
• Hochschule Darmstadt – University of Applied Sciences, Germany
• Vaasa University of Applied Sciences (VAMK), Finland

The partnership is further supported by a network of 30 Associated Partners, primarily composed of public bodies and Third Sector organisations engaged in VET training, lifelong learning for employability, and civic participation on sustainability issues.

Project website: renatureproject.eu

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/renature-nature-based-solutions-education/

Contact person for the RENATURE project:

Benas Balandis

Email: benas.balandis@techpark.lt

Results:

• 20–21 November 2025 – First Project Partners Meeting held in Salamanca, Spain.
• 27 May 2026 – Second Project Partners Meeting held in Kaunas, Lithuania.
• 28 May 2026 – First Project Multiplier Event held in Kaunas, Lithuania.