In Europe we face a number of serious challenges to protect our natural heritage and to make our use of natural resources sustainable. Although we have an extensive network of protected areas, the vast majority of biodiversity is found outside them. We have seen massive declines in biodiversity and equivalent declines in the ability of ecosystems to provide the services so needed by our communities. Restoring this balance requires the active participation of all sectors of society and we have to become increasingly clever in how we integrate environmental concerns into all sectors of resource use. A critical component of this is how our natural resources are managed and we would like to present a pan-European project that is identifying the different ways in which we can sustainably manage our natural resources.

GEM-CON-BIO (Governance and ecosystems management for the conservation of biodiversity) explores the interactions between different methods for the management, ownership and use of natural resources currently employed in Europe and globally to identify which processes and institutions can best contribute to the conservation of biodiversity. GEM-CON-BIO is conducting research on a series of case studies from around Europe, which are managed in different ways (e.g. private ownership, public authority, community management etc), to compare the "success" and "failure" of different biodiversity conservation approaches. From this the project is developing recommendation and model approaches for sustainable land use. These results will then be fed into policy processes at the local, regional, national, and international level.

GEM-CON-BIO's strategic objective is to explore the interactions between governance modes and sustainable development objectives in view of identifying what governance processes and institutions can best contribute to the conservation of biodiversity.

In order to meet its strategic objective, GEM-CON-BIO has the following specific and operational objectives:

• Identify existing governance types and their modes and processes in relation to conservation of biodiversity; discuss its findings in a workshop with experts in the field.
• Identify critical ecosystem management characteristics; discuss its findings in a workshop with experts in the field.
• Develop a governance matrix linking governance types and critical ecosystem management characteristics.
• Identify and conduct research on a set of case studies (10-15 case studies) to show how different governance approaches can be exercised in different ecosystems, using the governance matrix developed above.
• Compare the "success" and "failure" of different approaches in Europe as to whether good governance practices lead to better outcomes.
• Draw lessons from the US experience, especially in the context of market-based instruments for conservation.
• Develop best practice guidelines that could be transferred to a wider context.
• Codify its recommendations in a policy guidance document aimed at policy makers and officials at all levels (local, national, regional, European).
• Establish and operate a science - policy interface with the active participation of all stakeholders since the beginning of the project, culminating in a conference and workshop at the end of the project, to guide, discuss and evaluate the applicability of the policy guidelines.
• Develop the tools to disseminate the acquired knowledge at all levels, i.e. from governments and policy makers through to local people
  
  

For more information about the GEM-CON-BIO project, click here.

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