Second ARCADIA Festival of Transformative Nature-based Solutions (NbS)
How can regions move from promising Nature-based Solution pilots to wider, system-level climate resilience?
On 28 August 2026, the Second ARCADIA Festival of Transformative Nature-Based Solutions will take place at Klimafolkemødet in Middelfart, Funen, Denmark. The festival will bring together policymakers, researchers, practitioners, regional actors and communities for a full day of debate, exchange and practical learning on how Nature-based Solutions can support climate adaptation across Europe.
ARCADIA is a European project working with eight Model and Fellow regions to demonstrate how Nature-based Solutions can strengthen climate resilience at continental scale. This year’s festival focuses on regional transformation and upscaling pathways: how to move from local pilots to wider change, and how policy, science and communities can support that transition together.
As part of Climate KIC’s involvement in ARCADIA, colleagues are contributing to the wider project gathering in Denmark, including support for Climathon-related activities connected to the festival. The Climathon element will create space for participants to explore climate adaptation challenges collaboratively and develop ideas grounded in regional needs and local experience.
The festival programme will explore several dimensions of transformative adaptation, including political leadership, community-led climate solutions, the value of nature, agricultural landscapes and cross-regional learning.
Sessions include:
- Who takes the lead on EU Adaptation?
A political debate asking whether nature-based adaptation is truly a political priority in Europe, and how EU frameworks, funding and leadership can respond to climate risks that affect regions unevenly. - NbS in our hands
A community-driven conversation exploring what climate adaptation looks like when communities lead it, drawing on examples from Tuscany, Zealand and Middelfart. - Giving value to Nature
A science presentation introducing Gross Ecosystem Product, an approach for estimating the economic value of natural capital and ecosystem benefits such as carbon sequestration, water purification and soil erosion protection. - Nature-based Solutions in Agriculture
A workshop on how local and regional authorities can work with farmers and rural landowners to implement Nature-based Solutions that benefit climate, biodiversity and sustainable land use. - Building resilience: Austria meets Denmark
An interactive workshop exploring how Austrian regions and communities are putting climate adaptation into practice, and what their experience can offer to Denmark and other European regions.
The day will also include ARCADIA Lounge activities, informal networking and opportunities for exchange across Europe’s Nature-based Solutions and climate adaptation communities.