Good governance for biodiversity

The economic development in Europe in the past century put an enormous burden on biodiversity. ‘Despite ambitious targets, Europe continues to lose biodiversity at an alarming rate’: as a result of human activity, 60 % of species and 77 % of habitats show predominantly unfavourable conservation status. Pressures are coming from sectors such as agriculture, industry, and fishing. These often lead to irreversible consequences such as biodiversity loss, fragmentation and degradation of natural habitats, and overexploitation of natural resources. Climate change additionally aggravates the situation.

At the same time, the significance of biodiversity and nature is outstanding. Besides being vital for life and human health, according to the new Biodiversity Strategy 2030, biodiversity and nature are important economic factors with over half of global GDP depending on ecosystem services.

Good governance is a catalyst and an enabling condition for the implementation and enforcement of biodiversity protection and conservation policy. In addition to the EU level perspective, good governance is also important for regions and cities when they undertake actions on Natura 2000 management, nature-based solutions, green infrastructure, or ecosystem services.

The policy brief analyses good governance in biodiversity preservation with a focus on protected areas. It aims to provide inspiration and input to regional and local authorities for managing and planning the next generation of Regional Funds and for the use of the new recovery instrument.