Photo by NASA
Why a EUROPARC climate change task force ?
This Task Force is established as part of the project LIFE Natur’Adapt. It is in line with the priorities identified in the EUROPARC Strategy 2015-2021 contributing to achieve the objectives set in priority area 3.4 Climate Change in Protected Areas ( Actions 3.4a and 3.4b).
The main reason to set up this group of expert is:
– To provide advice and bring further expertise within the LIFE Natur’Adapt project;
– To contribute to raising awareness among decision makers and EU institutions about Climate Change impact on biodiversity and needs for adaptation strategies;
– To provide guidance and promote action for Climate Change Adaptation within the European network of Protected Areas.
The group was created in order to gather direct experience in the field of climate change adaptation in protected areas and a well-balanced diversity of perspectives.
New “Protected Areas and Climate Change”, White Paper
This White Paper details recommendations for better integration of climate adaptation in policy and practice for Protected Areas in Europe. It was developed within the Natur’Adapt project and calls upon European decision-makers and national authorities to facilitate the co-design of integrated, long-term and large-scale environment management and spatial planning. Within this process, Protected Areas should play an essential role. The White Paper provides four recommendations on how to make the most of our protected spaces in Climate Adaptation planning.
“Protected Areas and the European Strategies for Climate Change Adaptation and Biodiversity”, a discussion paper
This discussion paper is a modest contribution by the EUROPARC Task force on Climate Change to accelerate the transition towards a nature-inclusive and climate-resilient society. Through a couple of suggestions, it aims at kick starting a dialogue to bridge the gap between climate change adaptation and nature conservation communities. Research and experience show that Protected Areas have a central role to play in the transition towards a nature-inclusive and climate-resilient society. Well-managed Protected Areas safeguard biodiversity and natural processes that are also essential to support the adaptive capacity of ecosystems and communities outside Protected Areas. The EUROPARC Task Force on Climate Change recently released a discussion paper on “Protected Areas and the European Strategies for Climate Change Adaptation and Biodiversity”
Who’s on board?
- Ainhize Butrón, Climate Action Department, Ihobe: Environmental Agency of the Basque Country Regional Government, Spain
- Etienne Aulotte, Head of development of Nature and Agriculture, Brussels Environment, Belgium
- Lorenzo Merotto, Scientific technician, Area Marina Protetta Portofino, Italy
- Myrthe Fonck, Sr. Advisor Nature and Recreation, Puur Water en Natuur, The Netherlands
- Santtu Kareksela, Prioritization specialist, Metsähallitus (Parks & Wildlife Finland), Finland
- Emma Mitchell, Operations Officer, South, NatureScot, Scotland, UK
- [Honorary member] José Atauri Mezquida of FUNGOBE/EUROPARC-Spain who is the co-author of “Manual 13: adapting to climate change in planning and management of Protected Areas”.
- Olivier de Sadeleer, EUROPARC Federation / Partner LIFE NaturAdapt – BEL
- with the support of the ever-smiling Anne-Cerise TISSOT, Réserves Naturelles de France / Lead Partner LIFE NaturAdapt – FRA
Do you want to get involved? [Contact us]
What is the EUROPARC Climate Change Task Force?
In the framework of Natur’Adapt, we have created a task force to provide advice during the course of the project and support the emergence of a debate on climate change adaptation at a European level and within EUROPARC’s network.
The Climate Change task force will help Natur’Adapt project team to translate technical needs into a strategic vision for European and national policy makers.
The task force will also provide the baseline for a wider dissemination of results and practical actions for a successful implementation of project outcomes in other European countries.
How do we do it? [workplan]
To achieve these objectives, the Climate Change task force, a participatory expert group, will review and advise the project team at specific stages of the project development and participate to produce a number of communication tools adapted to a European audience.
Practically the task force is meeting regularly online and face-to-face once a year.
What do we do concretely? [Planned outputs & indicators]
Deliverables and schedule will be revised by the members of the group if necessary.
(Yearly) Produce and publish internally a yearly review of the project deliverables (Exact timing to be aligned with key project’s milestones.
(End 2020) Produce a draft white paper for decision makers (at EU level and local? National?) on how to support nature conservation in a changing climate in Europe, and disseminate it to EU institutions, national MEP and ministers of environment.
(June 2020 ) Participate in a seminar dialogue with European Institutions (DG Envi, DG Clima, Council of Europe)
(March 2021) Develop the structure and key features of a Climate Change Adaptation toolkit for European protected area managers. The content will be produced and published by the project team and EUROPARC.
(Ad hoc) Contribute to Technical Workshops at EUROPARC Annual Conference.
Transparency
Participation to this task force is on a voluntary basis. There is no financial compensations for the time spent and work done. Travel expenses to and from face-to-face meetings are being covered by the Federation with the support of LIFE Natur’Adapt .
This 5-year project [LIFE17 CCA/FR/000089] is developed with the support of the LIFE program, the French Agency for Biodiversity and the French Ministry for Ecological Transition. Read more about Natur’Adapt
