The successful proposals should:

• Demonstrate innovative, systemic and locally attuned NBS (as single interventions or as a combination of them), for the management of catchment water resources and the reduction of extreme drought risks, in areas that are heavily impacted by temporary or lasting water scarcity and areas that are being increasingly exposed to this risk with the deepening of climate change.
• Be incorporated into an integrated design concept for land and water management at the appropriate scales (preferably at landscape level, integrating water, soil and ecosystems as a whole), in accordance with WFD objectives, considering longitudinal connectivity of water flows, lateral connectivity with floodplains and adjacent grounds, and connections between surface- and groundwater.
• Plan, co-design and co-deploy solutions in a transdisciplinary multi-stakeholder and participatory context with due consideration and integration of social and cultural aspects and climate change effects.
• Building on the work of Horizon 2020 projects and their taskforces, develop an advanced monitoring programme for the demonstrated solutions and test and further develop as needed the EU Impact Evaluation Framework for NBS to assess the economic, social and ecological benefits of NBS and provide quantitative evidence, including positive and negative synergies, and analysis of trade-offs, for higher performance.
• Identify and assess barriers related to: functional conflicts in land-use; NBS technical, commercial, social and cultural acceptance (e.g., farmers perceptions and values, the role of private landowners); and policy regulatory frameworks (e.g., the role of the common agriculture policy, urban, rural and regional development plans) – and propose ways to overcome them (for example through new business cases and governance approaches).
• To provide a long-term evidence as ambitious as possible, new interventions should be complemented with the analysis of established NBS. In this respect, opportunities to build up from relevant initiatives should be explored (e.g., LIFE, INTERREG, national funded projects, etc).
• Develop protocols and standards for the design, operation and maintenance of NBS, building on existing work, considering:
• The best solutions for different soil characteristics (as these determine the type and impact of droughts) and soil health, relief and geo-morphological conditions, including urban conditions;
• The resilience of NBS, considering present and future climatic conditions and water regimes;
• The ecological performance and resilience of NBS, to deal with both natural and human-induced hazards, such as extreme weather events, desertification, forest fires, plant- and animal diseases (pests), other human activities and socio-political approaches that could have an impact on land-use;
• The long-term maintenance of NBS: also in relation to the adequate management of biomass, synergies with other approaches that affect the management of ecosystems like agroforestry, etc.

Because of the substantial investments that might be necessary for implementing the NBS, additional or follow-up funding (private or public) should be sought, considering the EU taxonomy, including from relevant regional/national schemes under the Recovery and Resilience Fund, the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF), or other relevant funds.

Social innovation is recommended when the solution is at the socio-technical interface and requires social change, new social practices, social ownership or market uptake.