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Funding Program: Horizon Europe
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Call: HORIZON-CL6-2024-GOVERNANCE-01-11
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Grant Agreement No.: 101182942
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Project: Farmer-focused Biodiversity and Agricultural Knowledge Network (FarmBioNet)
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Type of action: CSA
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Duration: 2025-2027
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EC Funding: € 2.713.753,72
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Consortium: 19 partners from 13 countries
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Coordinator: Teagasc
Protecting Farmland Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the variety of all life on Earth.
It provides us with clean air, fresh water, good quality soil and pollination. It helps us fight climate change and adapt to it as well as reducing the impact of natural hazards. Despite the many benefits of biodiversity it is being lost. It is estimated that one million species out of a total of eight million, are threatened with extinction. Changes in land use (e.g. deforestation, intensive mono-culture, urbanisation), direct exploitation such as hunting and over-fishing, climate change, pollution, and invasive alien species are considered the main direct drivers of biodiversity loss.
Farmland is the dominant land use in Europe, and the way it is managed is important for biodiversity conservation. Farmers and farmland have the opportunity to play a key role in halting biodiversity loss.
Maintain, enhance, diversify, and connect existing habitats.
What Are Biodiversity-Friendly Farming (BFF) Practices?
BFF practices support nature by making agricultural landscapes more diverse and connected. They include actions that protect and enhance farmland biodiversity, help combat and mitigate against climate change, and help to maintain healthy ecosystems while producing food, feed, fiber, and fuel. These practices can be adapted to different farming systems, including foresty across Europe. Examples include managing native hay meadows, maintaining native flowering hedgerows or field margins, planting native trees and hedgerows, reducing pesticide use, digging a pond, and creating nesting sites for solitary bees.
Closing Knowledge Gaps
We will create a clear research approach to better understand BFF practices, combining data from surveys with project partners and other research methods to assess their benefits. By collaborating with researchers and practitioners, we will validate best practices and identify knowledge gaps. A cross-cultural survey will assess the needs of farmers and advisors, exploring factors influencing BFF adoption to inform our implementation strategies.
Building Farming and Biodiversity Networks
We will establish 12 farming and biodiversity national networks (FaB NNs) and an EU-wide thematic network to connect farmers, foresters, researchers, advisors and other Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems (AKIS) actors. We will provide training and knowledge-sharing opportunities through workshops and farm visits. Through multi-actor engagement and the development of practical tools, we will help practitioners adopt, expand and share BFF practices. We will also ensure that our insights reach farmers and foresters through education, outreach, and advocacy to drive real impact.
Understanding the Landscape
We will analyse current biodiversity-friendly farming practices, incentives, and policies to identify barriers and solutions for biodiversity protection and climate adaptation.
We will present 12 inspirational case studies focusing on farmers’ perspectives of managing agricultural and/or forested land within Natura 2000 sites. What is Natura 2000? Natura 2000 is the world’s largest network of protected areas, spanning all 27 EU countries and covering over 27,000 sites, which include vital habitats for rare species and unique ecosystems, protecting over 18% of the EU’s land and 9% of its marine areas.
Providing Practical Tools
We will create 2 easy-to-use digital tools to help farmers make informed decisions:
- Navigator: An online platform showcasing BFF incentives: With the Navigator, farmers can easily find the most suitable funding opportunities in their region that reward their efforts in implementing biodiversity-friendly practices.
- Calculator: A cost-benefit analysis tool for evaluating BFF practices: With the Calculator, farmers can quickly assess how different BFF practices can benefit their farm while also saving money.
Spreading the Message
We are committed to knowledge-sharing with a diverse audience to facilitate the flow of information and resources. Through workshops, training materials, and digital tools, we aim to empower communities and promote practices that contribute to biodiversity conservation and climate resilience.
