BIODIVERSITY
&
ECOSYSTEMS

This project aims to further explore the evidence related to biodiversity loss and ecosystem destruction in partner countries. It wants to understand why these forms of environmental degradation continue, and what approaches, methodologies and tools can enable us to move forward with conservation goals and sustainable management alternatives that are inclusive, just and matching the needs of the different communities and institutions in partner countries.

The commitment to biodiversity conservation and ecosystems involves a range of actions to protect the variety of all life forms on Earth, including animal, plant and microscopic species, and the ecosystems to which they belong. This diversity is essential to human survival and well-being because they provide multiple ecosystem services. However, human activities such as pollution, destruction of natural habitats, climate change and overexploitation of natural resources have a severe negative impact on biodiversity and ecosystems. This can compromise their ability to provide vital services and lead to serious consequences, including reduced food production, the spread of diseases, water pollution and water stress, among other disruptions of ecosystems.

Establishing nature reserves for biodiversity conservation and sustainable management, implementing sustainable agricultural practices and agroforestry, regulating hunting, and fishing, and promoting sustainable and environmentally friendly lifestyles are measures to reduce the negative effects of human activities on natural habitats and species. Through policy analysis and case study research in our partner countries, we will examine the challenge of biodiversity loss, including missed opportunities for biodiversity conservation, from a socio-ecological, multi-actor and multi-scalar perspective that combines an analysis of the agency and practices of communities on the ground with an understanding of the institutions, economic forces and policies that enable or disable biodiversity conservation efforts. Among others, we will reflect on the tensions, trade-offs and opportunities contained in the complex linking the goals of biodiversity conservation, sustainable management/use of ecosystems, and socio-economic development. As a result of this, our consortium will generate knowledge on how policy programmes can support (i) a better alignment between the practices, socio-economic needs and interests of local communities and the existing (inter)national conservation targets and regulations; (ii) a more equitable and socially sustainable interplay between communities living in biodiversity rich territories and those powerful economic actors and interests precipitating biodiversity loss and unsustainable extraction of natural resources (Busscher et al., 2020).

We are currently experiencing an unprecedented dynamic in which human presence has become a driving factor in the geological evolution of the planet, biodiversity, and ecosystems (Biermann et al., 2016). The Anthropocene is pushing researchers and policy makers to reflect on: (i) the consequences of human action on nature (Malm, 2017); (ii) how our conceptions of nature lead to its degradation (Angus, 2016), and (ii) the modalities of ecological transition now seen as both a political and ethical requirement (Robbins and Moore, 2013). Global initiatives to combat environmental degradation have accelerated since the early 2000s. They aim to take action in biodiversity conservation and ecosystem protection to limit the negative effects of the Anthropocene. Since 2015, these initiatives have focused on the SDGs, which (beyond SDGs 13, 14, and 15) serve as a global benchmark focused on sustainable development (Siegel et al., 2020), built around the concepts of green growth, human development, and resilience (Agbedahin, 2019). The SDG benchmark has been translated into policy recommendations and educational programs focused on building sustainability skills (Demssie et al., 2020). We will use case studies to examine progress in partner countries based on national reports and available scientific information. We aim to understand the reasons and logic behind the achievements and persistent gaps. This will allow us to develop new approaches to address the remaining challenges.

We will use case studies to understand how local experiences and understandings of the Anthropocene are present in certain local communities and what is the relationship between this ”local Anthropocene” and the vernacular modalities of the ”ecological transition” that are experienced by these communities (Armitage et al., 2020). Such a perspective is fundamental to generating knowledge about (i) how environmental degradation is experienced and felt locally by local communities; (ii) how these communities think about and practice the transition to sustainability and what challenges they face; and (iii) what role their worldviews, local ecological knowledge and practices can play in redefining the ecological transition mechanisms included in national and global frameworks on sustainable development (Castro-Arce et al., 2019).