Community Framework Programmes RESEARCH ON BIODIVERSITY AND ECOSYSTEMS

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Community Framework ProgrammesRESEARCH ON
BIODIVERSITY AND ECOSYSTEMS
Hartmut BARTH - Pierre MATHY
EVOLTREE Kick-Off Meeting
Bordeaux, 26 April 2006
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BUILDING A EUROPEAN BIODIVERSITY AREA

• Between 1984 and now, research on biodiversity,
  ecosystems, landscapes, has been part of
  Community Framework Programmes, often in the
  broader frame of Global Change/Ecosystems
• Research with the objective of
• Networking European RTD potential
• Improving its efficiency (fragmentation)
• Helping to bridge the gaps between scientists
  and policy-makers

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In FP6 further Integration/Structuration of EU
RTD potential is expected from the use of
Networks of Excellence Long-term cooperation
between research institutions, in innovative
research areas, e.g. EVOLTREE Integrated
Projects Putting together critical mass of
resources to achieve ambitious research
and technological objectives (research
institutions including industry) ERA-Net
Coordination / integration of national
research programmes
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Examples of selected projects are
NoE ALTER-Net Building up a European long-term
research facility for Terrestrial
Biodiversity IP ALARM Integrated long-scale
assessment of the risk to Biodiversity
Ecosystems NoE MARBEF European long-term
research facility for Marine Biodiversity IP
SENSOR European Land-use research
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Examples of selected projects are
NoE EUROCEANS Understanding and forecasting
Pelagic Ecosystems (GLOBEC / IMBER) NoE
EVOLTREE Understanding, monitoring
predicting genetic diversity,
ecosystems structures, dynamics and
processes NoE EDIT Re-organising European
Taxonomy Systematics and providing
integrated access to distributed specimen
species data
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NETWORK OF EXCELLENCE (NoE) OBJECTIVES

• Strengthen Europes excellence
• Integrate the critical mass of expertise needed
  to provide European leadership and be a world
  force around a joint programme of activity
• Reduce the fragmentation of European research
• Attain durable re-structuring of European
  research
• Spread excellence beyond its partners

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BIOTAUNDERSTANDING BIODIVERSITY
BIOTA project links ALARM ALTER-Net BABE BioAsses
s BIOECON BioHab BIOFORUM BIOMAN BioPlatform BIORH
IZ BioScene BIOSTRESS
Research carried out within the BIOTA cluster is
the European scientific response to the
Convention on Biological Diversity, WEHAB and the
European Biodiversity Strategy, and aims to
determine and promote strategic approaches to
biodiversity conservation and management in Europe
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BIOTAUNDERSTANDING BIODIVERSITY
BIOTA project links contd. CASCADE Coast Bird
Diversity CONSIDER CRAYNET DAISIE ENBI EuMon Euro
Med PlantBase EuroCat Fauna Europea Fossilva FRAP

• Projects in the BIOTA cluster
• Assess and predict the impact of major drivers
  of biodiversity
• Are developing tools, such as biodiversity
  indicators, to promote the conservation and
  sustainable use of biodiversity
• Seek to identify and resolve conflicts between
  society, economy and biodiversity
• Support the conservation of biodiversity by
  creating databases on the taxonomy, biology and
  ecology of Europes plants and animals.

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BIOTAUNDERSTANDING BIODIVERSITY
BIOTA project links contd. FRAXIGEN Giant
Alien GLOCHAMORE IMEX IntraBioDiv LACOPE LEDA
Traitbase MacMan Metabird MIDI-CHIP PASCALIS PGR
Forum

• All projects are co-funded by the European
  Community, most of them under the FP6 Global
  Change and Ecosystems and under the FP5 Global
  Change, Climate and Biodiversity Key Action of
  the Energy, Environment and Sustainable
  Development Programme

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BIOTAUNDERSTANDING BIODIVERSITY
BIOTA project links contd. Plant
Dispersal RECIPE REGHAB SoBio TLinks TRANSPLANT
European Commission contact pointKarin
Zaunberger, Scientific Officer, Biodiversity and
Ecosystems, European Commission Office CDMA
03/163, 21 Rue du Champ de Mars, B 1049
Brussels, Belgium.E-mail karin.zaunberger_at_cec.eu
.int Website coordinatorJuliette Young Centre
for Ecology and HydrologyHill of
BrathensBanchory A31 4BW, UKE-mail
j.young_at_ceh.ac.uk
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FINANCIAL SUPPORT UNDER FP6
EU Financial support to Biodiversity Ecosystem
Research amounts to 135 M (20 of total
Programme Budget).
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Building the Europe of Knowledge
The 7th Research Framework Programme 2007 - 2013
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Specific Programme Proposals

• Are being discussed with Member States and the
  European Parliament. Decisions expected by the
  end of 2006
• A detailed Work Programme to be worked out
• First Call for proposals late 2006 / 2007 ?

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Why research on biodiversity and ecosystems ?

• Research on biodiversity and ecosystems is
• essential, if we want to
• maintain life as we know it
• preserve or restore the living environment
• become and remain economically competitive
• The economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the
  environment. All economic activity is dependent
  upon the environment The economy, in reality, is
  just a subset of the ecological system.
  
• Gaylord Nelson

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Many gaps to bridge
Dispersion
Modelling
genetic engineering
Biocomputing
Goods and services
Bacteriology
Mycology
Monetary
Option
genomics
Viability
Spiritual
Horticulture
Populations
Virology
Ethical
Protisology
Computer science
genetics
Biogeography
proteomics
Botany
Economic
Mountains
Marine
Cultural
Ecology
Natural science
Dry lands
Taxon-based science
Ritual
Ecosystem science
ichthyology
Wetlands
Tiny biased sample of the -ologies
Speciation
Rainforest
Values
Zoology
Ornithology
Ethology
Evolution
Entomology
Extinction
primatology
Conservation
Taxonomy
Intrinsic
lepidoptery
Biodiversity
Aesthetic
Teaching Methods
Behaviour
Forestry
Aquaculture
Higher Education
Agriculture
Demography
Finance
Education
Sociology
Fisheries
Economics
Industry and Commerce
Ethnography
Policy
Accountancy
Ethnology
Business
Anthropology
Social science
equity
Tourism
Management
Law
intellectual property regime
Urbanisation
Nature conservation
Transport
Government and Public Administration
Politics
foresters
International Relations
Philosophy
traditional knowledge
livelihoods
Geography
Ethics
conservationists
Psychology
healing
Logic
Other stakeholders
Metaphysics
ethnobotany
farmers
Political Geography
Social Psychology
Women's Studies
ethnozoology
administrations
Economic Geography
sustainable use of biodiversity
Social Welfare
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MECHANISM FOR WORK PROGRAMME DEVELOPMENT

• Legal basis Specific Programme
• Commission Advisory Group
• Programme Committee
• External scientific advice

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GOAL OF THE WORK PROGRAMME

• Establish the scientific basis for actions
  needed to measure and enhance the sustainability
  of the human use of ecosystems and their
  components, to ensure their long-term
  productivity.
• Develop advanced models and tools needed for the
  sustainable management of resources, having in
  mind
• UN Convention on Biological Diversity
• EU 6th Environmental Action Plan
• Objectives of the World Summit on 5 December 2002

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SUPPORT TO IMPLEMENTING THE NATURA 2000 NETWORK
The work programme will contribute to the
research underpinning the Natura 2000 networks,
and more generally, to assessments, foresight and
services related to natural resources and their
use.
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SCIENTIFIC MONITORING
To achieve sufficient knowledge, work on
sustainable use requires scientific monitoring of
the processes and components of biodiversity
concerned. It involves issues of conservation,
protection and management of biodiversity, soils,
seabeds and coastal areas, data management and
information services and assessment and foresight
relating to natural processes.
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DATA MANAGEMENT

• Projects should develop open, distributed,
  inter-operable data management and information
  systems, and include plans for the maintenance,
  integration, mapping, and sharing of the digital
  biodiversity data generated, both during and
  after the end of the project.
• Data on species and specimens and associated
  metadata generated within the project should be
  made publicly available after completion of the
  research, through mechanisms cooperating with
  GBIF, within a period specified in the proposal.

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BIODIVERSITY IN FP7 POSSIBLE TOPICS

• Understanding how biological diversity
  contributes to ecosystem services and to
  livelihoods. Work should contribute to greater
  understanding of the values of and human
  dependence on biodiversity, the implications of
  change, and an evaluation of the costs and social
  and environmental consequences of not halting
  biodiversity loss.

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BIODIVERSITY IN FP7 POSSIBLE TOPICS

• Improve understanding of how the use of natural
  resources affects biodiversity, ecosystem goods
  and services and the resilience of
  ecological-economic systems, and develop or
  improve methods to measure and value biodiversity
  and ecosystem resilience and detect when
  ecosystems are approaching the limits of their
  natural functioning or productive capacity.

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BIODIVERSITY IN FP7 POSSIBLE TOPICS

• How trade and tourism, agriculture and forestry
  affect biodiversity develop methods to evaluate
  and improve high nature value farming systems and
  sustainable forest management. The research
  should examine how biodiversity is used in all 4
  sectors, and what the implications for
  sustainability are of biodiversity change in
  these sectors.

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BIODIVERSITY IN FP7 POSSIBLE TOPICS

• Provide evidence-based methods, including
  indicators, to manage renewable resources by
  sustaining ecosystem integrity and ecosystem
  services while taking into account probable
  climate change. Develop methods to analyse the
  ecological coherence of protected area networks
  such as Natura 2000. Develop incentives and
  policies that encourage the restoration and
  enhancement of biodiversity and ecosystem
  services.

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BIODIVERSITY IN FP7 POSSIBLE TOPICS

• Contribute to the Tree of Life, and advance the
  development of methods for the analysis, display
  and manipulation of data related to taxonomy,
  systematics, distribution, trends and the
  physical and social environment. Improve the
  knowledge on distribution, status and trends of
  biodiversity and biotic resources across the
  enlarged EU, especially in key functional groups
  and species and habitats of Community interest.

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BIODIVERSITY IN FP7 POSSIBLE TOPICS

• Initiate or intensify long-term and
  comprehensive biodiversity monitoring and
  assessment programmes. Improve understanding of
  ecosystem structure and function, and increase
  knowledge of the component species and their role
  in the ecosystem. The work will integrate
  historical data and comparisons across time and
  space. The programmes will be coherent with other
  large scale observation and forecasting systems
  elsewhere in the world and contribute to the
  GEOSS.