Green Week 2016 in Brussels – the large annual conference on European environmental policy – was accompanied by the third EU-level workshop of our HERCULES project. This workshop explored ideas of labelling for sustainable landscape management. In particular it seeks to elaborate how labelling can be applied for the conservation of natural and cultural heritage in landscapes – and what can be learnt for respective governance processes. Together with around 30 participants from the European institutions, government agencies, NGOs, businesses, and academia, we explored characteristics of labelling initiatives in Europe and their contributions as governance innovations to sustainable land management. So what did we learn? Here are some random thoughts from the workshop:
Read more »Forests provide crucial services for human well-being and economic development. They provide food, freshwater and fuel, support soil formation, regulate floods, climate and diseases, and can fill educational, medicinal, aesthetic and spiritual needs. They stabilize ecosystems, play an integral part in the carbon cycle, support livelihoods, and supply other goods and services that drive sustainable growth. Yet, forests are under stress from overexploitation, pollution, population pressure and the expansion and intensification of agricultural practices. With the additional impacts of climate change, forests are further threatened, and these adverse events may further impact land quality – leading to biodiversity loss, food insecurity, increased pests, reduced availability of clean water and increased vulnerability to environmental changes.
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