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Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
Our work supports the EU's objective of halting the loss of biodiversity and the degradation of ecosystem services by 2020. This includes assessing the costs and socio-economic benefits of conserving biodiversity and associated ecosystem services, and developing evidence-based polices that help implement and finance EU biodiversity conservation measures.
IEEP has extensive experience of biodiversity-related policy analysis in agricultural, freshwater and marine ecosystems and has pioneered measures to tackle invasive alien species and the impacts of climate change on biodiversity.
We primarily work on policy analysis and development projects for the European Commission, but also contribute to the biodiversity conservation work of national governments, NGOs and other international governmental organisations.
The EU has a relatively well-established biodiversity conservation policy framework, now formalised in the 2010 EU Biodiversity Strategy, at the heart of which are the Habitats Directive and Birds Directive, which have created the Natura 2000 network – the largest network of protected areas in the world. These Directives include legislative measures that require Member States to conserve and restore EU threatened habitats and species, both within Natura 2000 sites but also where necessary in the wider environment. The Biodiversity Strategy also includes targets that aim to restore ecosystems and their services, support the biodiversity conservation measures in agricultural, forest and marine ecosystems, address alien invasive species and reduce the EU’s external impacts on global biodiversity.
Despite this impressive framework ecosystems continue to be degraded and biodiversity is still being lost. This is due to slow, incomplete or inappropriate implementation, including weak enforcement, a lack of funding, and some important policy gaps.
A fundamental problem continues to be the undervaluation of biodiversity and its limited capture in economic systems. Therefore a key area of our work is demonstrating the value of biodiversity and ecosystem services to clearly show that biodiversity is worthy of protection, for its own sake and for its contribution to human well-being. This understanding is the basis for the development of policies that aim to support the conservation and restoration of biodiversity, for example through better regulations, cost-effective public funding (such as agri-environment schemes and other EU funds) and innovative market-based instruments (such as payments for ecosystem services and biodiversity offsets).
The following analysis looks at the problem areas identified in the latest State of the Environment Report and assesses how well the Green Deal’s policy proposals address the targets and objectives deemed unlikely to be met by 2020.
The contribution and value of nature to human welfare and well-being – our natural capital – tends to be overlooked in many policy decisions and business choices. As a result, ecosystems are being degraded and natural resources are being used in an unsustainable way.
Despite the alarming scale of biodiversity loss, the EU has not yet fully recognised the disastrous consequences that the scenario would have in the functioning of our ecosystems – not when it comes to political action, at least.
IEEP organised a special session at the Natural Capital Initiative 2019 summit to discuss the socio-economic benefits that marine protected areas can provide to local communities, and the management and governance strategies required to realise them.
This policy brief intends to inform business and biodiversity professionals about innovative examples in the EU and Mexico that can help to transform the economics of nature conservation, resulting in increased finance for biodiversity.
Today we celebrate the International Day for Biological Diversity aiming at increasing understanding of the diversity of life on the planet and awareness of its importance for human development. IEEP takes the opportunity to share some key positive lessons from recent EU biodiversity action and identify key remaining challenges towards 2030.
World Bee Day marks the vital role wild bees play for our ecosystems and food. The EU Pollinators Initiative is promoting actions across the EU to address pollinator decline.
IEEP has published a new report that presents success stories relating to habitats and species that are the focus of the EU nature directives and provides key lessons on effective approaches that can be shared to achieve better overall results. The study focuses on supporting EU action through better knowledge and evidence, and provides an important contribution to the current discussions on the EU and global biodiversity policy regime for the post-2020 era.
IEEP has published a new report that presents success stories relating to habitats and species that are the focus of the EU nature directives and provides key lessons on effective approaches that can be shared to achieve better overall results. The study focuses on supporting EU action through better knowledge and evidence, and provides an important contribution to the current discussions on the EU and global biodiversity policy regime for the post-2020 era.
IEEP’s Mia Pantzar attended the 10th edition of the Monaco Blue Initiative held in Monaco at the Oceanographic Museum on 24th and 25th March to discuss the next steps for Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and ecosystem services in the blue economy.
With the 2030 benchmark in the horizon, the EU needs to step up the contribution of its trade policy to biodiversity and sustainable development. IEEP identifies concrete opportunities how improving the integration of protected areas into EU trade agreements will help to support global biodiversity conservation as well as multiple sustainable development goals (SDGs).
The status quo is no longer an option. The CAP must deliver greater ambition for the environment and climate or we risk undermining the long-term viability of our agricultural and forest systems.
Leading up to IEEP's Think 2030 conference, experts express their views on Europe's most pressing sustainability issues in the Think 2030 blog series, Pathways to 2030.
The eighth edition of Pathways to 2030 features Gustavo Becerra, Erik Gerritsen and Marianne Kettunen, policy analysts for IEEP, who discuss lessons learnt from the EU current biodiversity policy framework and its challenges for the next decade.
IEEP Lead of Global Challenges and SDGs Programme, Marianne Kettunen, co-authored the UNDP call for action to safeguard nature in order to secure water-related services and to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
New study by IVM and IEEP concludes that the existing approach to assessing impacts of EU trade on biodiversity is inadequate. A more comprehensive approach building on more systematic use of biodiversity indicators and synchronized, fit-for-purpose use of different methods is needed.
Pollinators are increasingly under threat by human activity. IEEP surveyed national and regional initiatives that help pollinators in ten EU Member States, outlining strategies, successes and gaps.
The EU contributes to halting the global loss of biodiversity through conservation efforts within its own territory as well as at the global level. IEEP’s Marianne Kettunen explores the EU’s external biodiversity policy, arguing the need for a more coherent framework and effective implementation – and making the policy integral to EU’s action on SDGs at the global level.
In environmental terms there are at least two ways of looking at the prospects for 2018. Viewed through the rather sober lens of EU process, it has the look of a project completion and tidying up period with limited long term impetus to the last full year of the current European Parliament and Commission.
