IUCN European Regional Office

🌿 We're hiring: Regional Coordinator – Nature Restoration 🌿 Are you ready to lead impactful projects and shape nature restoration policy across Europe? Join the IUCN European Regional Office in Bonn as our new Regional Coordinator – Nature Restoration! As the world’s oldest and largest global environmental network, IUCN brings together over 1,400 member organisations and 15,000+ experts across more than 160 countries. Our European Regional Office plays a key role in accelerating the EU Green Deal and EU 2030 Biodiversity Strategy, working with governments, NGOs, scientists, and institutions to create a more nature-positive Europe. 🔍 What you’ll do: ✅ Lead a dynamic team delivering nature restoration projects ✅ Manage partnerships with donors, national authorities, and key stakeholders ✅ Oversee budgets, implementation, and reporting across a diverse project portfolio ✅ Develop knowledge and policy products focused on restoration, climate, and socio-economic aspects ✅ Represent IUCN at high-level forums and advocate for Nature-based Solutions across Europe ✅ Drive fundraising efforts and contribute to the IUCN Programme strategy We’re looking for an experienced and strategic conservation professional with strong project management skills, a collaborative mindset, and a passion for scaling up nature restoration efforts across Europe. 💡 This is a pivotal opportunity to influence policy, lead impactful programmes, and work at the heart of European environmental action. 📍 Location: Bonn, Germany | 🗓 Apply now! 🔗 Learn more and apply here: https://bit.ly/3G9DUJ6 © Albrecht Fietz

🌿 We're hiring: Junior Officer – Nature Restoration 🌿 Do you have a passion for nature conservation and policy, and want to contribute to real environmental change in Europe? Join the IUCN European Regional Office as our new Junior Officer – Nature Restoration! As the world's oldest and largest global environmental network, IUCN unites over 1,400 members and 15,000+ experts across 160+ countries. Our European Regional Office connects the dots between science, policy, and action, providing key support to governments, NGOs, and institutions working for a nature-positive Europe. 🔍 What you'll do: ✅ Support the implementation of key nature restoration projects ✅ Draft reports, briefings, and policy papers ✅ Help organise stakeholder dialogues, events, and meetings ✅ Assist in project proposal development and administrative coordination ✅ Contribute to monitoring and reporting on IUCN’s regional priorities We're looking for a motivated, organised, and enthusiastic early-career professional eager to grow within the environmental sector. 💡 This is a fantastic opportunity to work in a dynamic, international team and make an impact on biodiversity policy and restoration efforts across Europe. 📍 Location: Bonn | 🗓 Apply now! 🔗 Learn more and apply here: https://bit.ly/3GcWjow © Max

Our Circular Economy Stakeholder Dialogue on 10 April was a great success! With lively interactive discussions and interesting updates, it covered key legislative developments relating to the circular economy and bioeconomy and gave stakeholders the opportunity to ask questions and express their views. European Commission representatives briefly described key policies and their intended impact and participants pointed to issues of concern. The overall conclusion was that the circular economy is increasingly necessary in these uncertain geopolitical circumstances but that it must be a viable business case. A principle is all very well, but companies have to survive and make a profit. One key factor is the market for secondary raw materials: increasing amounts of them are available but take-up is still hesitant. The bioeconomy is another crucial issue: if biodiversity and climate are the goals, then the circular economy and bioeconomy are tools for achieving them. The recordings of the sessions will be available here shortly! 

Be part of a once-every-four-years gathering of nature #conservation experts, leaders and decision-makers from around the world Register now for the #IUCNcongress. ➡️ https://bit.ly/4iFPpGh

An introductory webinar for new IUCN Members in Europe, North and Central Asia just wrapped up, with strong participation across the two regions, bringing together both new and some of the long-standing member organisations 🙌 It was a pleasure to introduce our teams, programme, projects, and communication opportunities - and most importantly, to connect with colleagues across the network. 🤝 We look forward to working together #UnitedForNature and a sustainable future! 🌿 Eko-svest | Yerevan municipality | IUCN European Regional Office | IUCN Eastern Europe and Central Asia | #IUCNcongress

No transformation without nature. No sustainability without science. At the 2025 Forum for the Future of Agriculture, the IUCN European Regional Office called for stronger environmental safeguards and inclusive dialogue in shaping the future of Europe’s agri-food systems. We must embrace policies that restore our natural capital—soil, water, biodiversity, and pollinators, while fairly supporting farmers. To support this shift, IUCN is championing Nature-based Solutions and sharing practical guidance through recent publications: 📘 Approaches to Sustainable Agriculture (2020): https://bit.ly/3EeW2ko 📘 Assessing the Biodiversity–Agriculture Nexus (2024): https://bit.ly/4crj0RY 📘 Sustainable Agriculture and Nature-based Solutions (2024): https://bit.ly/4ljYvL3 Together, these reports offer a roadmap for aligning ecological resilience with food system sustainability. Let’s turn knowledge into action. Read more on IUCN’s participation and key takeaways: https://bit.ly/3FX2Qnh #NaturePositive #NbS #FoodSystemsTransformation #PolicyCoherence #IUCN #ForumforAg #SustainableAgriculture © David Plas Photography

On the 31st of March, the IUCN European Regional Office co-organised together with the European Landowners' Organization and the Forum for the Future of Agriculture, the final event of the SOILGUARD project — bringing together voices from science, policy, and practice to discuss how soil biodiversity can support more resilient and sustainable land management practices. As part of the event, the IUCN European Regional Office led the policy-focused session, which explored how scientific findings on soil health and biodiversity can inform EU policies, and in particular the Soil Monitoring and Resilience Directive currently undergoing trilogue discussions. Elodie Champseix from our team moderated a dynamic panel that included insights from the European Commission, NABU e.V. and the European Landowners' Organization. The discussions showed the importance of connecting field-based evidence with practical policy solutions that support both nature and farmers. Many thanks to our partners and speakers for contributing to such a rich exchange. Missed the event? Watch the full recording here: https://lnkd.in/evH7aHUJ #SOILGUARD #SoilBiodiversity #ClimateResilience #SoilScience #SustainableFuture #SOILGUARD #SoilBiodiversity #SoilHealth #SustainableAgriculture Facundo Odriozola Ranya Chehhar Martin Hartmann Tassos Haniotis Giulia Bongiorno Pablo Sánchez Cueto Els Dhiedt Max Meister Geo Manassakis Institut für ökologische Wirtschaftsforschung (IÖW) UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) Diedrich de Ghellinck Nataliya Zinych Tamás Krisztin Ana Rocha Mirco Barbero Alberto Arroyo Schnell LAMASUS HoliSoils project SOILL Soils for Europe SoilCare Project SoildiverAgro InBestSoil Soil Health Benchmarks SoilValues Soilwise PREPSOIL - Preparing for the "Soil Deal for Europe" Mission EJP Credible BIOservicES IUCN Food and Agricultural Systems © FFA

💡 March 31, 2025,  a culmination of 4 years of research and a launch point for future action! 🌱 🗨️ At the SOILGUARD Final conference in Brussels, we gathered researchers from reNature and the LAMASUS project, policy representatives from #DGAgri and #DGEnvi, Land managers, the environmental NGO NABU e.V. , and John Deere on stage. We reflected on the results of our collaborative efforts, which highlighted scientific findings and initiated exchanges on how to translate them into practice and policy. Which key research messages did SOILGUARD convey ? - 📍 Local context and soil management are highly relevant: There is a high variability in soil biodiversity depending on region’s climate, soil’s properties and geographical location. - 🌡️ Climate is the primary driver of cropland biodiversity with high temperatures in warm seasons and aridity potentially linked to biodiversity loss. - 🪱 Soil biodiversity can go hand in hand with both soil multifunctionality and crop yields. - 👩💼 The perceptions of soil contributions to human well-being vary significantly across regions. - 📱 The SoilGuardians App is an innovative tool developed during the project. It serves as a decision-support platform to help farmers evaluate the impacts of their management practices on soil biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. How do we link the knowledge on Soil monitoring and Climate change resilience to Policy? - There is a need to facilitate the collaboration and cooperation between the existing EU networks and different stakeholders to scale up the success of soil health initiatives. - There is a need to ensure a strong science-to-policy interface, where knowledge and insights are shared and transformed into actionable information for both farmers and policymakers. -There is a general undervaluation of long-term impacts in both farming and policymaking. Find out more about our results on the SOILGUARD website: https://lnkd.in/ec6S8a4B The knowledge generated in SOILGUARD will continue to inform policy and conservation strategies moving forward. Notably, the results are fully integrated into the SoilGuardians App, enabling broader access and practical use on the ground. The conversation does not end here ➡️ We will be having a webinar “SOILGUARD’s Network of Knowledge: the Outcomes and Impacts of a Collaborative Journey” on May 9, 2025! Martin Hartmann Pablo Sánchez Cueto Giulia Bongiorno Salvador Lladó Fernández Gabriele Sacchettini Francesc Castro Els Dhiedt Geo Manassakis Alexandra Dehnhardt Max Meister Tassos Haniotis Sophie Helaine Diedrich de Ghellinck Geert Magona van der Meer Tamás Krisztin Nataliya Zinych Ana Rocha Elodie Champseix

Nature conservation and agriculture have the same goal, the preservation of our ecosystems services and natural assets for food production.  Alberto Arroyo Schnell, Head of Programme and Policy at the European Regional Office of IUCN, shared practical examples and ways to leverage them.

BREAKING NEWS: First 1,000 #fungi on IUCN Red List reveal growing threats - IUCN Red List.   The number of fungi species on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species™ has surpassed 1,000, confirming that deforestation, agricultural expansion and urban development are driving these species to decline worldwide.   Fungi form the very foundation of healthy ecosystems but are often overlooked. The loss of #fungi impacts the life above ground that depends on them and the #ecosystem services and resilience they provide such as drought resistance and carbon storage.   Discover more about the status of fungi in today’s IUCN Red List update: https://rb.gy/9yhfs8 #IUCNRedList #Conservation #Biodiversity