Bringing nature back into our lives

On 20 May 2020, the European Commission adopted an ambitious Communication on a new Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, aimed at ‘bringing nature back into our lives’ as part of a larger agenda of sustainability. As President von der Leyen said: ‘Making nature healthy again is key to our physical and mental wellbeing and is an ally in the fight against climate change and disease outbreaks. It is at the heart of our growth strategy, the European Green Deal, and is part of a European recovery that gives more back to the planet than it takes away.’

From a EUR 20 billion plan for nature to measures on all drivers of biodiversity loss, the new EU Biodiversity Strategy carries a high level of ambition for conservation, sustainable use and restoration of biodiversity. The wildlife and biodiversity economy are considered a pillar of the transition to a green economy through promoting sustainable use of natural resources, enhanced ecosystems services and nature-based solutions, and ensuring that all sectors better reflect the real importance and value of nature.

The strategy sets some important targets to achieve by 2030, with at least 30 % of the EU’s land and sea areas respectively protected; and a third of the EU’s protected areas, including primary and old growth forests, safeguarded. It also targets by that term to reverse the decline in pollinators, reduce the risk and use of chemical pesticides by 50 % and the use of more hazardous pesticides by 50 %. Three billion new trees are expected to be planted in the EU.

EU external action, development cooperation and partnerships will play a key role in ensuring EU leadership and impact at global scale. The biodiversity strategy aims to contribute actively to the adoption of an ambitious global biodiversity framework (at the UN Biodiversity Convention, scheduled for May 2021) to halt biodiversity loss and fight environmental crime in Europe and worldwide, and step up mainstreaming actions for biodiversity in all sectors, in particular forestry, agriculture, infrastructure, sustainable energy, green cities and education. Better links between climate and the environment should be established through investing in nature-based solutions (for land, forests, oceans and water), as these provide over a third of climate change mitigation and are crucial for adaptation and disaster risk prevention.

EU development cooperation will use all instruments at its disposal to mobilise more resources in favour of ecosystems, in particular from sectors with the most impacts on biodiversity and potential benefits for nature. The new NaturAfrica initiative, for example, will provide a framework for interventions to protect wildlife and ecosystems in Africa while offering opportunities in green sectors for local populations. Similar initiatives will be developed for other regions that benefit from development cooperation.

The Commission is now engaged in outreach with all stakeholders on the biodiversity strategy and has begun internal discussions on a more detailed action plan for implementation. We invite you to consult future editions for updates, or contact EUROPEAID-C2@ec.europa.eu for further ideas on how to move this agenda forward.