Building Bridges 2025 – From Project Origination to Financing Nature Based Solutions 

The three day Building Bridges conference gathered project developers, investors, NGOs, academics and policy makers to ask a simple but stubborn question: why do Nature-based Solutions (NbS) still struggle to secure the financing they need? 
The final session, a fishbowl titled “From Project Origination to Financing Nature based Solutions,” turned the usual lecture format on its head. Audience members were invited to sit on the panel, forcing the conversation to move quickly from abstract ideas to the gritty details of turning a wetland restoration—or any NbS—into a bankable project. 


Voices in the Room 

The discussion drew on a wide spectrum of expertise: 

• Juraj Jurík (Director, Infrastructure and Nature - Global Infrastructure Basel Foundation (GIB) opened with a sobering remark—the lack of dedicated work and funding for Nature-based Solutions (NbS) project origination remains a key barrier to scaling up NbS implementation. 
• MarieLaure Schaufelberger (Chief Sustainability Officer, Pictet Group,) reminded everyone that ecosystem services are systematically mis priced and urged the creation of policy levers such as tax incentives and mandatory natural capital reporting. 
• David Uzsoki (Sustainable Finance Lead - International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD)) presented out come based financing, explaining how a contract that pays only when a water utility’s nitrogen levels drop turns an ecological gain into a verifiable cash flow. 
• Ilona Szabó de Carvalho (Igarapé Institute) highlighted community equity ownership as a way to align incentives and give local people a real stake in the success of a project.
• Santiago Espinosa de los Monteros Harispuru (CEO, Toronto) described a “water infiltration as a service” model sold to beverage companies, bypassing the volatility of carbon credit markets. 
• Tim Duehrkoop (Xilva) cautioned that many proposals still lack free prior informed consent (FPIC) and contain overly optimistic carbonaccounting. 
• Justin Adams OBE (Ostara)sketched emerging alternatives—indigenous sovereign funds, commons based stewardship, blockchainenabled escrow contracts—that could run alongside traditional capital. 
• Enric Arderiu Serra (@Mercuria) stressed the importance of aggregation platforms that bundle dozens of small NbS projects into a single, investable vehicle, and noted the difficulty of finding buyers for outcome based payouts without first loss guarantees from philanthropists. 
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What Emerged from the Conversation 

The fishbowl gradually revealed a coherent narrative about where the sector stands and where it needs to go. 
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First, participants recognized the classic “chicken and egg” dilemma: proof of concept is needed to attract capital, yet capital is needed to generate proof. A modest pre-feasibility study in Thessaly, Greece—showing a 28 % reduction in flood peak—illustrated how a data rich pilot can unlock larger pools of financing. 

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Second, the consensus was clear that nature’s value must become visible. Without a price tag, investors have nothing to buy. Policy tools—tax credits, mandatory natural capital reporting, and standardized impact metrics—were identified as the scaffolding required to bring ecosystem services onto balance sheets. 

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Third, the discussion moved to revenue generation. Outcome based contracts, service sale models (like water infiltration fees), and, with caution, carbon credit sales each provide a pathway to turn ecological outcomes into cash flows. The common thread is rigorous verification: a third party auditor must confirm that the promised nitrogen reduction, flood mitigation, or other KPI has actually been achieved. 
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Fourth, the need to shift power to local communities resonated strongly. When residents hold equity or profit share rights, they become gatekeepers of success, improving project durability and addressing the ethical concerns raised about external capital control. 
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Fifth, participants agreed that risk can be managed through layered, blended finance. Grants fund feasibility work; concessional loans cover construction; commercial equity fuels scaling. First loss guarantees from foundations or impact focused donors can make the whole structure palatable to banks. 
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Finally, the conversation opened the door to alternative financing pathways. Indigenous sovereign funds, commons based stewardship schemes, and blockchain escrow contracts were presented not as replacements but as complementary tracks that could enrich the overall financing ecosystem.
 
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Practical Guidance for Practitioners 

• Quantify avoided costs – Use historic loss data (e.g., flood damage in Greece, storm damage in Gran Canaria) to model the economic benefit of the NbS. 
• Secure an early off take – Lock in a corporate service contract or a pre committed carbon credit purchase before approaching banks. 
• Layer your financing – Combine grant funding for feasibility, concessional loans for construction, and commercial equity for scale; add a firstloss guarantee where possible. 
• Embed community governance from day one – Formalise FPIC, co ownership structures, and transparent benefit sharing rules. 
• Pilot an outcome based KPI – Choose a clear metric (e.g., flood peak reduction, nitrogen removal) and enlist a third party verifier; the resulting data becomes your sales pitch. 
• Seek aggregation platforms – List the project on a digital marketplace that bundles multiple NbS projects for institutional investors. 
• Monitor emerging financing models – Keep an eye on indigenous sovereign funds, commons based finance, and blockchain escrow mechanisms as complementary sources of capital. 


Closing Thought

The fishbowl was more than a clever format; it was a metaphor for the work that lies ahead. By rotating, listening, and adjusting—just as the participants did—we can ensure that every voice—engineer, investor, activist, scientist—has a seat at the table. When we succeed in making nature’s capital visible, tradable, and governed by the communities that steward it, we will have built more than a bridge across a conference hall. We will have built a bridge from project origination to lasting, scalable finance—one that can carry the weight of a healthier planet for generations to come. 

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