We are delighted that this week RSPB Scotland is hosting a working group of nature experts from BirdLife Europe and Central Asia. In this blog we explain what BirdLife is, why working in partnership to save nature across countries and regions is so important and some of the exciting things we will be doing with our international colleagues this week.
This week RSPB Scotland is hosting BirdLife Europe and Central Asia’s Nature and Climate Taskforce. We are very excited to be receiving guests from all over the region, from Spain to Georgia, Greece to Bulgaria, Germany to Latvia and many other countries, to share their expertise in tackling the nature and climate crisis.
BirdLife International is the world’s largest international partnership for nature conservation. The RSPB is proud part of this global family, making up one of over 115 national partners. We sit within the Europe and Central Asia region and work closely with partners in the region (and beyond!) to deliver a wide range of action, from policy and advocacy to conservation and science, to public-facing campaigns. Together we are the ‘power of many’!
The Nature and Climate Taskforce is a working group where BirdLife partners from our region – both within the EU and outside – come together to strategize and take joint action. We collaborate across borders, working to tackle the nature and climate crisis through our combined expertise and experience. Although the UK is no longer part of the EU, we are all still part of a shared environment and it remains absolutely vital that we work collaboratively with organisations all across the EU and further afield to save nature. We know that nature knows no borders; we must work together to save migratory species and tackle other cross-border environmental problems, like climate change and pollution. This month’s taskforce meeting is particularly important, as we’re approaching several important global and regional milestones.
This June will mark six months on from the agreement of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework at COP15– the new global plan to halt and reverse nature loss this decade. Research continues to highlight the devastating nature loss happening in the EU and UK; since 1980, 600 million breeding birds have been lost in Europe. There is no time to lose in putting the new global plan into action on the ground. Every country has committed to a national plan for biodiversity action to align with the new global targets and, as we approach six months on, it’s about time we start seeing these new plans taking shape.
One of the key targets is the so called ’30 by 30’ target to protect 30% of land and sea for nature by 2030. The EU and Scotland are both signed up to deliver this target at home. This week is a chance for us to speak to our international colleagues about what delivery of this target should really look like, and how we can collectively drive delivery in a way that will meaningfully contribute to reversing nature loss. We will also be thinking about how to improve connectivity between important nature sites to increase areas of habitats and help species to move more easily through our landscapes.
Another upcoming milestone is a set of vital votes in the European Parliament on the European Commission’s proposed ‘Nature Restoration Law’. These votes could set the direction for whether Europe’s nature is given the chance to thrive this decade or continue its perilous decline. The gathering of this Taskforce is a brilliant opportunity to hear more from our international partners about this ambitious new law and how they are approaching nature restoration in their countries.
We will also be discussing how we can all work together to tackle shared challenges, for example Avian Flu which swept through wild bird populations across the Northern Hemisphere over the last two years, and how we can collectively work to ensure that the transition to net zero is in harmony with nature.
Cairngorms Connect volunteers after a three and a half mile hike, climbing around sixteen hundred feet to Loch A'an, carrying 3,000 Montane Willow saplings.
This visit is also a chance for us to showcase some of the amazing nature restoration happening here in Scotland. Later in the week we will be taking our guests to Cairngorms Connect for two days to hear all about this pioneering partnership. For readers who aren’t familiar, Cairngorms Connect is the UK’s largest ecological restoration project, involving a 200-year vision to restore ecological processes across 60,000 hectares of land in the Cairngorms National Park. Find out more about this amazing project here.
Scotland is at a crucial moment for determining its direction on tackling the nature crisis. This year will see consultations on the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy, nature networks, and protecting 30% of Scotland’s land for nature. Next year we are expecting a new Natural Environment Bill to be brought forward with legally binding targets for nature’s recovery. These laws and policies will be vital for tackling the nature crisis and we must get them right.
The Scottish Government has a welcome commitment to keep pace with the EU on the environment, and so we are calling for the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy and the Natural Environment Bill to stay aligned with the direction and ambition in the EU. On Tuesday evening we are hosting an evening reception where MSPs, Scottish Government and other key stakeholders will get a chance to speak to our partners about their experiences of delivering nature restoration in other countries.
We are not facing these challenges alone and learning how others are tackling nature restoration and climate change can help ensure Scotland is on the pathway to delivering a Just Transition to net zero and nature positive, that will really make a difference for nature, climate and people.
Main image: Two Gannets, one of the species affected by Avian Flu over the last two years. Ben Andrew