ECONATURES is a Horizon Europe research project coordinated by CMCC  and involving 8 additional partner institutions across Europe. The project aims to develop Europe’s most comprehensive modeling framework for assessing the socio-economic impacts of nature restoration over short, medium, and long terms. It integrates economic, ecological, environmental, and social methodologies into a unified assessment system that captures restoration benefits, costs, and distributional impacts from EU to local scales, directly supporting the EU Nature Restoration Regulation and the Biodiversity Strategy for 2030.

General Objectives

The project is structured around three strategic goals:

1. Comprehensive methodological frameworks for socio-economic assessment (WP1, WP6, WP7): Develop standardized approaches to assess restoration measures, advance ecosystem service valuation, and integrate biodiversity into large-scale economic models (CGE, ABM, IAM).
2. Integrated ecological-economic modeling (WP2, WP3, WP4, WP5): Enhance ecological modeling capacity, create linkages among ecological and economic models, and implement AI-enhanced approaches for restoration planning.
3. Policy-relevant tools and evidence (WP7, WP8, WP9): Assess the distributional and employment effects of restoration policies, demonstrate methodologies through case studies, develop decision-support tools for policymakers and investors, and enable staged implementation assessment for targets between 2030 and 2050.

ECONATURES is structured into twelve work packages across two phases. The first phase (M1–18) establishes methodological foundations: WP1 develops the conceptual framework for economic assessment of restoration integrating multiple values of nature; WP2 quantifies biophysical responses of biodiversity, ecosystem services, and agricultural productivity to restoration measures; and WP4 (led by CMCC) traces bidirectional links between ecosystems and the economy, advancing coupled ecology-economy modelling.

The second phase (M19–42) delivers integrated tools and policy outputs. WP3 assesses restoration impacts across EU member states, evaluating National Restoration Plans. WP5 develops AI-enhanced decision support tools and the ECONATURES Online Ecosystem platform. WP6 produces theory-based valuation and benefit transfer methodologies. WP7 co-designs policy scenarios with stakeholders and runs comprehensive market and non-market impact assessments.

Running throughout, WP8 implements five case studies across Europe — in Italy (CMCC, Venetian plain soil restoration), the UK, the Netherlands, Germany, and Greece — applying project tools to specific local contexts through participatory stakeholder engagement. WP9–10 manage dissemination, communication, and capacity building. WP11–12 (both led by CMCC) ensure scientific and administrative coordination, quality control, ethics, and risk management.

Expected Results

ECONATURES delivers nine key results. Three scientific outputs form the core: an Integrated Ecological-Economic Assessment Framework quantifying the full spectrum of restoration impacts across regions and timescales; an Integrated Modelling Toolbox linking CGE, IAM, agent-based, and ecological models for scenario-based assessments of biodiversity, GDP, employment, and trade; and AI-enhanced modelling methods enabling real-time, multi-objective scenario analysis.

A Valuation and Transfer Toolkit provides standardized guidelines for scaling restoration benefit estimates across space, time, and socio-economic contexts, supporting cost-benefit analysis across European member states.

On the policy side, Interactive Decision-Support Tools offer web-based dashboards allowing policymakers, investors, and practitioners to explore restoration scenarios without specialist expertise. Restoration Pathways and Scenarios deliver pre-calculated, country-level roadmaps aligning biodiversity, socio-economic, and climate objectives with the 2030 and 2050 targets. A Business Model Builder translates restoration benefits into investment cases for private sector actors and public authorities.

Finally, a Knowledge and Skills Accelerator programme — webinars, summer schools, and an open-access library — builds practical capacity among stakeholders. Evidence-based Policy Recommendations translate project findings into actionable guidance for EU, national, and regional authorities implementing the Nature Restoration Regulation and Biodiversity Strategy.