Global Plans to Restore Biodiversity – The Time is Now!
As agriculture expands to feed the world, why is farmland the place where biodiversity struggles to keep pace?
Hedgerows that once crisscrossed fields are disappearing, pollinators are in decline, and soils are losing their natural fertility. The consequences are spreading: less productive soil, weaker resilience to climate change, poorer ecosystem services like pollination and water regulation. It’s not only Europe. In many developing countries, land degradation threatens livelihoods and food security.
Fortunately, global initiatives are stepping in to restore degraded lands – for biodiversity and for people alike. These efforts do more than increase species counts; they aim to reconnect people, food and nature in ways that could shape the coming decades.
EU Biodiversity Strategy
The strategy sets out a plan to restore Europe’s biodiversity by 2030 through concrete actions and commitments. It forms the EU’s proposal for the upcoming international negotiations on the global post-2020 biodiversity framework and is a central part of the European Green Deal, supporting a green recovery in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its goal is to put Europe’s biodiversity on a path to recovery for the benefit of people, the climate, and the planet. It also aims to strengthen resilience against future challenges such as climate change, forest fires, food insecurity, disease outbreaks, and illegal wildlife trade.
European Union’s Nature Restoration Law
In late 2023, the EU adopted the Nature Restoration Law, aiming to restore at least 20% of the EU’s land and sea areas by 2030, with all ecosystems requiring restoration targeted by 2050. It establishes clear, legally binding targets and obligations for nature recovery across a range of ecosystems, including agricultural land, forests, marine and freshwater habitats, and urban environments. For farmland, this means legally binding targets to improve indicators such as:
- The share of agricultural land with high-diversity landscape features (e.g. hedgerows, flower strips)
- Increasing organic carbon in mineral soils
- Reversing the decline of pollinators and farmland birds
This law also requires EU member countries to draw up national restoration plans.
Global Plans to Restore Biodiversity
The UN Decade of Ecosystem Restoration (2021–2030), spearheaded by the FAO and the UN Environment Programme, is a global initiative calling for large-scale efforts to protect and revive ecosystems – from mountain forests and lakes to coastal regions. According to the World Resource Institute, over two billion hectares of deforested and degraded land worldwide have the potential for restoration. Reviving these ecosystems not only boosts biodiversity and restores productivity but also creates jobs, strengthens livelihoods, enhances food security, and contributes to climate change mitigation and adaptation.
Similarly, AFR100 (African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative) unites African nations, donors, businesses, technical organisations, and local communities, with the goal of restoring over 100 million hectares of land in Africa by 2030. The initiative seeks to enhance food security, alleviate poverty, and reduce the impacts of climate change across the continent. AFR100 is also part of the broader Bonn Challenge, which aims to restore 150 million hectares by 2020 and 350 million hectares by 2030. As of 29 November 2021, participating countries had pledged 127.77% of the target, representing commitments from 31 African nations.
The Bonn Challenge is a global initiative aiming to restore 150 million hectares of degraded and deforested land by 2020 and 350 million hectares by 2030. It was launched in Bonn on 2 September 2011 by Germany and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), in partnership with the Global Partnership on Forest/Landscape Restoration, supporting the goals of the Rio Conventions and other outcomes of the 1992 Earth Summit. By 2013, over 20 million hectares had already been pledged for restoration by countries including Brazil, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Rwanda, and the United States. Nations such as South Korea, Costa Rica, Pakistan, China, Rwanda, and Brazil have since implemented successful landscape restoration programs.
How These Plans Translate on the Ground
Setting targets is one thing; transforming farms is another. Restoring landscape features (hedgerows, ponds, flower strips, and buffer zones) protects pollinators and other wildlife while supporting natural pest control. Improving soil health through cover cropping, crop rotation, agroforestry, and reduced tillage rebuilds soil organic carbon and strengthens the foundation of productive farmland.
In the EU, rewetting and restoring peatlands and wetlands is a cornerstone of the restoration law. Wetlands provide unique habitats, store carbon, and filter water. Meanwhile, agroecology blends traditional knowledge with ecological principles, encouraging mixed cropping, integrating trees or shrubs into fields, and maintaining biodiversity in non-crop areas to mimic natural ecosystems. Together, these practices aim to make farmland both productive and alive with nature.
What Is the Role of the FarmBioNet Project?
While global and EU-level initiatives provide the framework and targets for biodiversity restoration, turning these plans into action requires networks, knowledge sharing, and local engagement. Protecting Europe’s biodiversity demands a fundamental shift in how we produce food, manage land, and use natural resources. Recognising the pivotal role that farmers and foresters play, the FarmBioNet project focuses on identifying effective biodiversity-friendly farming (BFF) practices and supporting farmers and foresters in creating habitats that sustain wildlife on their land.
Going further, FarmBioNet connects researchers, policymakers, and other stakeholders across Europe, fostering the exchange of best practices and innovative approaches, and ensuring that practical strategies are successfully implemented in the field.
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