EU 2030 Biodiversity Strategy – Bringing nature back into our lives
Author: Boris Erg, Director of the IUCN Regional Office for Eastern Europe and Central Asia The European Commission has adopted a new EU 2030 Biodiversity Strategy this May, framing it as a “comprehensive, ambitious, long-term plan for protecting nature and reversing the degradation of ecosystems.” Undoubtedly, it comes very timely. The landmark Global Assessment on Biodiversity and […]
Green bridges across roads and highways saving bears, lynxes, wolves
Infrastructure must be planned and adapted in a way to enable connectivity between areas inhabited by migrating animals. Roads and railways narrow their territories and cut their corridors, putting their population in danger. Green bridges or ecoducts for large mammals are the most effective solution to repair the damage. Such structures have been obligatory and […]
Towards greener agenda for Western Balkans
“Western Balkans hosts rich biodiversity, including many threatened, rare and endemic species, and relatively large unspoiled ecosystems. From nature we get food and water, energy and medicine, climate regulation support and disaster risk mitigation, among other benefits. Today, as we celebrate the International Day for Biological Diversity, there is a need to recognize the value […]
Interdependence of human well-being and biodiversity
How much do we know about benefits that biodiversity provides us day-to-day? Or do we only think of it when facing extraordinary circumstances? Don’t we enjoy the recently rejuvenated rivers and seas, the fresh air, striving greenery and enhanced hearing of birds’ songs in urban silence? Biodiversity is the ingredient of all of our life […]
Guidelines on ecosystem services, their assessment and evaluation in Western Balkans
Author: Nikola Stojnić, Institute for Nature Conservation of Vojvodina Province, Serbia On the occasion of International Day for Biological Diversity 2020, Nikola Stojnić from the Institute for Nature Conservation of Vojvodina Province, Serbia, reminds us of a concept of ecosystem services, which as a link between biodiversity and human wellbeing, should be included in decision-making […]
Our health depends on nature’s health – on May 22 world marks its biodiversity day
The slogan for the International Day for Biological Diversity 2020 is “Our solutions are in nature” and it will be marked only online. The emphasis is on human health and how much it depends on biodiversity, with increasing evidence that imbalances in ecosystems increase the risk of diseases like the one caused by the coronavirus. […]
Over 1.2 million people in Europe request green post-COVID-19 recovery
The European Parliament passed a resolution urging the EU’s authorities to put citizens at the heart of the revival strategy after the devastation from the coronavirus. MEPs overwhelmingly insist the upcoming budget must be in line with the European Green Deal. Ahead of the vote, more than 1.2 million people signed an environmentalist organizations’ petition […]
Preventing illegal wildlife trade helps avoid zoonotic diseases
COVID-19 is a deadly zoonotic disease and there is an urgent need to reduce the risk of similar outbreaks. Preventing illegal wildlife trade is a good place to start. “Illegal wildlife trade contributes to habitat destruction, which removes necessary buffer zones between humans and wild fauna, making it more likely that animal pathogens come into […]