H2020 BiodivERsA3 Project: Consolidating the European Research Area on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

Pushing the boundaries of transnational biodiversity research Biodiversity—the variability of life on Earth—is fundamental to ecosystems and human well-being. Biodiversity loss and change therefore pose significant scientific and societal challenges. Addressing biodiversity challenges and providing scientific support requires coordinated interdisciplinary research at national, regional, and international levels. BiodivERsA, an EU network of national and local ministries and agencies, supports this effort by programming and funding research on biodiversity and nature-based solutions.

Building on the previous experiences of BiodivERsA1 and 2 and NetBiome, the BiodivERsA3 project is an ERA-NET co-funded by the EU's Horizon 2020 programme, bringing together 36 organizations from 23 European countries. As Dr. Xavier Le Roux, project coordinator, explains, "The objective of this network is to strengthen cooperation between biodiversity research programmers and funders to achieve synergies and resource efficiency, with strong integration at the local, national, and transnational levels." From biodiversity research mapping to strategic programming, BiodivERsA has identified existing biodiversity research projects and their funding across Europe by collecting and analyzing information in a public database, which references more than 11,500 projects. The partners then developed a Strategic Research Agenda, which presents the network's shared vision of biodiversity research needs and priority actions in European countries.

BiodivERsA partners from the Overseas Regions and Outermost Countries and Territories have also ensured that this agenda meets their research needs. To accommodate the expansion of the network and the diversification of its activities, BiodivERsA has enhanced its governance with two Vice-Presidents and an Advisory Board that includes leading scientists and diverse stakeholders. BiodivERsA3 benefits from a successful track record of collaboration among European Research Area (ERA) countries since 2005, established and consolidated in the first two editions of the network. This ERA-NET has informed ambitious funding calls on biodiversity, ecosystem services, and nature-based solutions, notably the 2015 call on "Blue and Green Infrastructures" and the 2018 call on "Biodiversity and Health."

Among its main achievements is the efficient mobilization of local, national, and EU resources for the implementation of these calls, which amounted to €44 million in cash. An additional €28 million was secured through the COFUND BiodivScen initiative, between BiodivERsA and the Belmont Forum. Stakeholder engagement is fundamental to the success of BiodivERsA3. Through various interaction activities between science and society, science and business, and science and policy, the network promotes the participation of public and private actors, ensuring that the knowledge generated is readily available and useful for formulating policy recommendations and actions.

The future of the BiodivERsA network: BiodivERsA promotes environmentally responsible research (ERA) in the field of biodiversity, ecosystem services, and nature-based solutions through the continuous alignment of research programs at the national and European levels. The goal is a common and forward-looking vision to overcome the fragmentation of research in this field. “BiodivERsA3 significantly contributed to transforming the way biodiversity research is conceived and supported, by addressing the need to explore and support new solutions and opportunities for biodiversity and the humans who shape it,” says Dr. Le Roux. Undoubtedly, increasing anthropogenic pressures and emerging global challenges, such as climate change, pose significant challenges to biodiversity and directly affect human societies.

To address these emerging challenges, BiodivERsA partners strongly believe that biodiversity research must have a prominent place in Horizon Europe, with a strengthened link between the national and European levels. BiodivERsA seeks to address this by funding excellent transnational, multidisciplinary, and interdisciplinary research on biodiversity-related topics. The unprecedented knowledge and novel nature-based solutions generated during these projects will contribute to preserving biodiversity, ecosystem services, and human activities.