Evaluation of nature-based solutions’ contributions to the sustainable development goals

• A novel framework using expert scoring of multi-indicators and causal relations is proposed for NbS ∼ SDG linkages. • Governance, gender equality, and education require to be included in NbS monitoring frameworks. • Current NbS interventions primarily contribute to either environmental, social, or economic rather than accounting for the multidimensional benefits. • Sectoral silos and trade-offs among environmental, social, and economic benefits emphasize the need to implement complementary NbS for sustainable development. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are key metric to evaluate the multifaceted outcomes of Nature-based Solutions (NbS). However, existing frameworks for analyzing the NbS contributions largely focus on environmental and societal domain, undermining all the associated contributions to the SDGs, and fail to account for their broader national impact. The present study applied a novel mixed-method approach to assess contributions of NbS to the SDGs, by considering the NbS implemented in Central India. The analyzed 87 number of articles, selected through a systematic review, classified 39 identified NbS into 11 broader categories, claiming contribution to all the 17 SDGs. However, further analysis revealed discrepancies between such theoretical claims and real-world implementation. An expert panel of fourteen stakeholders from diverse disciplines scored 39 NbS interventions against their contributions toward the 17 SDGs. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) identified underlying patterns in expert perceptions on NbS contributions revealing four distinct groups, indicating that most of the NbS interventions primarily contribute to one or two sustainability dimensions i.e. environmental, social, or economic, rather than delivering the multidimensional benefits. Subsequently, the relationships observed between NbS and their contributions to SDGs through Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) reinforced PCA findings by revealing non-significant interactions among the four defined aspects of sustainability: ‘environmental’, ‘social’, ‘economic’, and the ‘other’. The results highlight persistent sectoral silos in intervention implementation strategies and potential trade-offs that hinder the intended cross-sectoral benefits of NbS. Effective acceleration of SDG achievement requires stronger integration of local NbS interventions with active community participation. The multi-pronged methodology provided an informative and cost-effective assessment. Future research should prioritize multi-stakeholder assessment and empirical impact evaluations to guide metric-based policy adoption for socio-economic and environmental sustainability through NbS.