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Infrastructures
Special Issues
Nature-Based Solutions and Resilience of Infrastructure Systems
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Nature-Based Solutions and Resilience of Infrastructure Systems

A special issue of Infrastructures (ISSN 2412-3811).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 July 2026 | Viewed by 1129

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Alfred Strauss

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Structural Engineering, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Peter-Jordan-Straße 82, 1190 Vienna, Austria
Interests: infrastructures; reliability engineering; life-cycle analysis; monitoring
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Rosemarie Stangl

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Soil Bioengineering and Landscape Construction, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Peter-Jordan-Straße 82/III, 1190 Vienna, Austria
Interests: soil and water bioengineering; erosion control; landscape construction; nature-based solutions; green infrastructure; bioshading performance; green/blue rain water management
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Johannes Hübl

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Institute of Structural Engineering, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Peter-Jordan-Straße 82, 1190 Vienna, Austria
Interests: early warning systems; debris flow studies; torrent control; torrent science; afforestation in subalpine areas; extreme events; debris flows; monitoring; structure; rainfall
Prof. Dr. Mosbeh R. Kaloop

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Public Works Engineering, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt
2. DIGINNOCENT S.R.O. (DIC), PIC 884060135, MATOUSOVA 48/4, 460 07 Liberec, Czech Republic
Interests: structural health monitoring; infrastructure resilience; machine learning; sustainability; life cycle assessment

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In an era marked by intensifying climate disruption, the resilience of European infrastructure has never been more paramount—extreme weather conditions, shifting landscapes and ecological changes threaten the assets that underpin economic flows, human well-being and social stability across the continent. This raises the challenge and opportunity of harmonising critical infrastructure integration with nature itself to build resilience to disasters and climate change impacts thus the reducing risk of natural hazards.

In this Special Issue, we solicit high-quality original research articles focused on the state-of-the-art techniques and methods employed in the creation, validation, upscaling, and sustainability of nature-based solutions (NbS) for climate resilience/proofing of vulnerable infrastructure. We welcome both theoretical and application articles of a high technical standard across a range of disciplines, thus facilitating awareness of techniques and methods in one area that may be applicable to other areas. We seek high-quality submissions of original research articles, as well as review articles on all aspects related to nature-based solutions that have the potential for practical application.

Areas of interest include, but are not limited to, the following topics:

  • Relevant NbS for the protection of infrastructures;
  • Parameterised solutions for direct integration in digital tools;
  • NbS approaches to quantify adaptation pathways and risk reduction potentials;
  • Characterisation of system dynamics and cascading effects to optimise and prioritise NbS portfolios;
  • Identification and implementation of comprehensive suites of NbS for green, blue, and hybrid green-grey infrastructure green, blue, and hybrid NbS;
  • Monitoring techniques and data for advanced observation networks;
  • Assessment of NbS interactions and system-wide resilience impacts.

Prof. Dr. Alfred Strauss
Prof. Dr. Rosemarie Stangl
Prof. Dr. Johannes Hübl
Prof. Dr. Mosbeh R. Kaloop
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Infrastructures is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nature-based solutions
  • natural hazards
  • climate adaptation
  • critical infrastructure
  • resilience
  • sustainability

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1783 KB  
Article
Embankment Fires on Railways—Where and How to Mitigate?
by Lars Symmank, Shahriar Mohammadzadeh and Sonja Szymczak
Infrastructures 2025, 10(12), 337; https://doi.org/10.3390/infrastructures10120337 - 8 Dec 2025
Viewed by 159
Abstract
As climate change increases the frequency and unpredictability of natural hazards, adapting critical infrastructure is crucial for long-term resilience. Among these hazards, embankment fires pose a growing threat to railway systems, particularly under rising temperatures and prolonged drought conditions. As part of the [...] Read more.
As climate change increases the frequency and unpredictability of natural hazards, adapting critical infrastructure is crucial for long-term resilience. Among these hazards, embankment fires pose a growing threat to railway systems, particularly under rising temperatures and prolonged drought conditions. As part of the Horizon Europe project NATURE-DEMO, this study helps identify fire-prone rail segments and explore nature-based solutions, such as vegetation barriers, that can reduce ignition risk and enhance infrastructure resilience. In a case study, we analysed the risk of embankment fires for a section of the German railway network in detail. Based on an embankment-fire hazard indication map available for the entire German railway network, five hotspots within the study area were identified. Embankments with high fire susceptibility occur in both rural and urban areas, covering 1.1% of the study area. On the basis of published research on technical and nature-based solutions for reducing embankment fire susceptibility, we derived site-specific recommendations for the appropriate implementation of mitigation measures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nature-Based Solutions and Resilience of Infrastructure Systems)
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28 pages, 1785 KB  
Article
A Systematic Framework for Assessing the Temporally Variable Protective Capacity of Nature-Based Solutions Against Natural Hazards
by Erik Kuschel, Michael Obriejetan, Tamara Kuzmanić, Matjaž Mikoš, Lukas Seifert, Slaven Conevski, Maria Wirth, Eriona Canga, Sérgio Fernandes, Johannes Hübl and Rosemarie Stangl
Infrastructures 2025, 10(12), 318; https://doi.org/10.3390/infrastructures10120318 - 22 Nov 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 405
Abstract
Natural hazards pose an increasing threat to infrastructures, lives, and livelihoods in alpine regions due to climate change and the growing demand for settlement space. While grey protective structures are commonly deployed to provide immediate safety, their sustainability, and thus protective function, is [...] Read more.
Natural hazards pose an increasing threat to infrastructures, lives, and livelihoods in alpine regions due to climate change and the growing demand for settlement space. While grey protective structures are commonly deployed to provide immediate safety, their sustainability, and thus protective function, is limited by cost-intensive maintenance. Nature-based solutions (NbS) can alleviate these shortcomings by offering cost-effective, adaptive protection that strengthens over time, making their deployment a key factor in building resilience to climate-induced hazards. This paper introduces a systematic methodology for the strategic deployment of NbS to enhance climate resilience. It integrates a three-level hazard classification system with an expert-led assessment rating 74 NbS against 29 hazards. A subsequent Principal Component Analysis (PCA) synthesises these into six functional groupings based on their shared mitigation characteristics. The core of this framework introduces two key innovations: a novel Mitigation Score and a Hazard Mitigation Profile. Together, they evaluate NbS effectiveness dynamically through the different phases of natural hazards, surpassing traditional static ratings by evaluating NbS performance across the hazard management cycle—from predisposition to post-event recovery. Significant variation in mitigation scoring was observed for individual hazard classes and types. Erosion processes (e.g., sheet, rill, and gully erosion) achieved the highest mitigation scores (1.90), as they can be addressed by many highly effective NbS (21–33 types). Conversely, flood-related hazards, such as fluvial and pluvial floods, showed moderate scores (1.64–1.66) with a balanced mix of mitigative and supportive NbS, while options for mitigating impact floods and coastal floods were far more limited (1.00–1.42). The resulting methodology provides a crucial, practical link between specific climate-related threats and viable, nature-based responses, serving as a robust framework to guide the decisions of planners, engineers, and policymakers. By enabling a more strategic and temporally aware deployment of NbS, our findings inform the development of adaptive management strategies to ensure their long-term effectiveness. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nature-Based Solutions and Resilience of Infrastructure Systems)
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