Climate change is one of the pressing issues of our contemporary society with great implications for sustainability and diverse social groups. Moreover, climate change is intensifying risks across interconnected ecological and social systems, creating cascading, yet differentiated impacts that challenge conventional approaches to disaster risk reduction and adaptation. Nature-based and community-led strategies are increasingly recognized as promising pathways, offering opportunities to mitigate hazards such as floods, droughts, heatwaves, and erosion while simultaneously enhancing biodiversity, ecosystem services, and local livelihoods. By grounding adaptation in socio-ecological systems and empowering community leadership, these strategies can deliver solutions that are equitable, context-specific, scalable, and sustainable.

This session invites contributions that critically examine the role of nature-based and community-led approaches in advancing disaster risk reduction and adaptation across diverse ecological and socio-economic settings. We particularly welcome research that:
- Assesses the effectiveness of nature-based and community-led strategies in reducing disaster risk and enhancing climate resilience
- Examines socio-ecological trade-offs and synergies, including impacts on biodiversity and livelihoods
- Evaluates long-term resilience outcomes across varied ecological and socio-economic contexts
- Investigates governance challenges, enabling conditions, and structural barriers to implementation and scaling
- Bridges ecological and social science perspectives to foster integrated, systems-based approaches
- Engages with Indigenous and local knowledge systems, emphasizing culturally grounded and community-driven solutions
- Explores inclusive governance frameworks that promote equity, participation, and sustainability in adaptation planning
- Investigates the synergies and trade-offs of nature-based approaches and non-nature-based/conventional measures
- Explores how AI can complement or optimise nature-based and community-led strategies

This session is supported by the RISK-KAN Working Group “Nature Based and Community Led Climate Risk Strategies“, which promotes interdisciplinary dialogue and exchange across contexts to advance socio-ecological resilience and bridge the science–practice gap in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation.