Some of the insights from the qualitative work undertaken within the Naturvation project are coming together in a Special Issue dedicated to the governance and politics of nature-based solutions. As a way of stirring creative data-exploration and analysis, members of the project joined in Barcelona in May 22-24 to discuss, adjust and importantly - complete intriguing papers dealing with i) the building of a diagnosis, or thick analysis, of the present approaches to NBS deployment in the city, while examining the politics and social ramifications of urban NBS deployment, and this through diverse theoretical approaches; and ii) making a prognosis, searching for, or imagining ‘a potential future of NBS governance’, in which green interventions can unfold their true potential in the urban environment, while contributing to environmental justice. Using the ‘natural’ environment of the heavily ‘touristified’ and ‘touristifying’ Barcelona beach always serves as an intellectual trigger.