Natural Infrastructure for Water Solutions (NIWS)
Over the next 5 years, Natural Infrastructure for Water Solutions is scaling up natural infrastructure on Canada's Prairies—for cleaner water and more resilient communities.
Working alongside stakeholders and champions from many sectors, we are:
- Making the business case for natural infrastructure, by demonstrating how impactful and cost-effective it can be
- Encouraging local municipalities to adopt more natural infrastructure projects
- Enabling access to funding for those who want to implement natural infrastructure
- Making sure that natural infrastructure is supported and championed by all levels of government.
Why Natural Infrastructure?
Natural infrastructure is a way to plan and work with nature to meet our infrastructure needs.
Imagine more wetlands (both natural and designed), green roofs, and stormwater parks, working actively to meet the needs of prairie communities. Natural infrastructure can be a preserved ecosystem (e.g., wetland), a restored ecosystem (e.g., replanted riparian area), or even a nature-based engineered feature (e.g., green roof).
The common thread? Natural infrastructure is managed to provide specific infrastructure benefits, with the potential for many other social and environmental benefits. There is increasing evidence that natural infrastructure can deliver much-needed water outcomes cost efficiently while also providing areas for recreation, habitat to support wildlife, and improving the overall resilience of our communities.
Why Us?
Here at IISD, we have been championing the benefits of natural infrastructure for decades, from deploying floating treatment wetlands at the world's freshwater laboratory to soak up harmful excess nutrients to managing a wetland at Pelly's Lake, Manitoba to protect local areas from flooding.
Now, our Natural Infrastructure for Water Solutions initiative aims to take NI from novel to normal on the Canadian Prairies, by ensuring it is backed by evidence, adopted, financed and enabled by policy.
Want to Join Us?
New from NIWS
What Does Canada's 2023 Budget Signal for the Future of Fresh Water, Adaptation, and Natural Infrastructure on the Prairies?
Canada's 2023 Budget proved to be historic, with unprecedented investments for fresh water and the clean energy transition. As the Budget Implementation Act 2023 passed the House of Commons in June, what does this budget mean for fresh water, climate change adaptation, and natural infrastructure on the Canadian Prairies?
Summary of the 2022 IISD Forum on Natural Infrastructure Performance and Metrics
Participants discussed key challenges, opportunities, and technical considerations to building a better business case for natural infrastructure across Canada's Prairies.
The State of Play of Natural Infrastructure on the Canadian Prairies
We sat down with key experts across the region and reviewed the latest literature to determine how we take natural infrastructure from novel to normal on Canada's Prairies.
OPINION: On World Water Day, a case for natural infrastructure
Dimple Roy takes to the South China Morning Post to explain why the UN 2023 Water Conference needs address the importance of natural infrastructure.
A focus on water can lessen climate change’s burn
Canadians need water infrastructure to protect us in the face of mounting risks of flooding, drought, extreme heat, and wildfires.
Want to learn more?
The Multiple Benefits of Natural Infrastructure
We explain exactly what natural infrastructure is and all the multiple benefits that it brings to humans and to the environment.
Advancing Natural Infrastructure in Canada: A forum report
The Advancing Natural Infrastructure in Canada forum convened Canadian experts to discuss how natural infrastructure can build climate-resilient cities/landscapes. This report highlights forum presentations, discussions, insights and next steps.
Mobilizing Capital for Natural Infrastructure in Canada
This report offers a template for Canadian champions and funders of natural infrastructure projects to make a business case for specific projects.
Floating Treatment Wetlands: Keeping our fresh water clean and healthy
We explain how, where and why floating treatment wetlands can be used to keep freshwater bodies clean around the world.
Advancing the Climate Resilience of Canadian Infrastructure
This report provides an overview of potential climate risks for Canada's built infrastructure and existing policies, guides, and actions to support resilience building.
An Application of the Sustainable Asset Valuation (SAVi) Methodology to Pelly's Lake and Stephenfield Reservoir, Manitoba, Canada
This report provides a valuation of the ecosystem services in Stephenfield Reservoir and Pelly's Lake in Manitoba, Canada.
Project team
Dimple Roy
Director, Water Management
Richard Grosshans
Lead II, Bioremediation
Madeline Stanley
Policy Advisor
Ashley Rawluk
Policy Advisor
Joey Simoes
Hydrologist II
Emily Kroft
Water Policy and Youth Engagement Officer, IISD-ELA
Josée Méthot
Senior Policy Specialist, Water
Petra Kiwan
Project Manager
Marina Puzyreva
Senior Policy Advisor
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