Discussions were lively among participants at the international conference “Joint Action for the Alps – Conserve, Connect, Restore” which took place from 12 to 14 June.
It consisted of two parts: on the first day, the Slovenian Presidency of the Alpine Convention organised the Alpine Biodiversity Conference. The ForumAlpinum 2024, organised by the International Scientific Committee on Research in the Alps (ISCAR), followed from 13 to 14 June and celebrated 30 years of interdisciplinary Alpine research. The joint conference offered many insights and ideas for the future of biodiversity governance in the Alps!
Around one hundred participants from diverse areas including research, policymaking, and NGOs, and coming from all over the Alps, gathered in Kranjska Gora, Slovenia to explore and discuss biodiversity in the Alps. A central aim of the Alpine Biodiversity Conference was to gather input for the Alpine Convention's Policy Brief on Alpine biodiversity, which will be submitted to the Alpine Conference in January 2025 and pave the way for the development of an Alpine Biodiversity Action Plan. In addition to inputs from guest speakers from the Alps and beyond, the conference comprised interactive parallel sessions on the three main aspects of biodiversity: conservation, connectivity, and restoration.
“This conference was a milestone on the path to finding solutions to best implement the global biodiversity targets by safeguarding the biodiversity of the Alps. It will help us converge on transnational policy recommendations for preserving our exceptional natural heritage – thank you to everyone who has contributed!” said Secretary General of the Alpine Convention, Alenka Smerkolj after the conference.
The main results of the conference are available here.
The ForumAlpinum, organised by Alpine Convention Observer ISCAR, is a recurring scientific conference that promotes international research cooperation on topics of relevance across the Alpine region, as well as offering a space for exchange and dialogue between the scientific community and policymakers. The current edition was dedicated to the theme “The Alps – a Refuge of Bio- and Geodiversity!?” and focused on the threats to biodiversity and geodiversity. The proceedings of the ForumAlpinum can be found here.
The ForumAlpinum 2024 particularly emphasised how technologies for use in biodiversity monitoring have improved (such as AI and drone images) but that there is a continued need for human experts in the field. It was further pointed out that common Alpine-wide regulations (e.g. for spatial planning or hunting) are needed to better manage and protect biodiversity and geodiversity in regional, national, and international contexts. Connecting both topics at this conference showed that geodiversity indeed is a foundation for life!