The Vice-President and Minister for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Teresa Ribera, today chaired the meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Biodiversity Foundation, at which its Action Plan for 2021 was approved. These actions include calls for aid and subsidies, with an amount of 62.8 million euros, a significant part of which will be allocated to transformative and innovative projects that contribute to promoting an ecological and fair transition, linked to the objectives set out in the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan.
Also noteworthy are various initiatives co-financed with European funds, such as the recently approved LIFE “Restoration of wetlands for the Marbled Teal”, the LIFE “Bears with a future”, or the LIFE IP INTEMARES, the largest marine conservation project in Europe. Its work as an intermediate management body for the Structural Funds will be intensified through the Empleaverde programmes of the European Social Fund and Pleamar of the European and Maritime Fisheries Fund.
STRATEGY 2021-2023
The meeting discussed the bases of what will be the lines of action of the Biodiversity Foundation for the period 2021-23, which aim to contribute to the construction of a new economic and lifestyle model, respectful of nature, decarbonised, resilient and inclusive. To this end, within the framework of a green recovery, the Foundation will work to integrate biodiversity in all territories and in all areas of the economy and society, including the work of naturalisation of urban environments, the bioeconomy or the promotion of cultural and lifestyle change necessary to develop an ecological and fair transition.
Likewise, it will also promote the link between science and the practical execution of actions in the field of biodiversity conservation through the development of a specific biodiversity and science strategy and the creation of a line of financing for the development of new priorities linked to this matter.
In addition, it will promote calls for aid and subsidies that are committed to large-scale transformative projects with a positive impact on biodiversity, with the innovative participation of all areas (technological, social, methodological or management), and that integrate the approach of nature-based solutions to address the challenges arising from the ecological transition and green reconstruction.
Likewise, during this period, the Biodiversity Foundation will continue to establish strategic alliances and work with regular partners of its projects such as associations and foundations, NGOs, public administrations, companies and media, academia and research centres.
To achieve these objectives, the Foundation’s work will be organised around six priority lines of action: knowledge generation and management; marine ecosystems: conservation, recovery and blue employment; terrestrial ecosystems: conservation, recovery and green employment; urban ecosystems: conservation, recovery and resilience; climate change and other drivers of biodiversity loss; Promoting private sector participation in the ecological transition. Likewise, work will be done on cross-cutting aspects such as climate change, demographic challenge, gender, awareness and communication.
