Message from the organisers announcement (December 2022):

“At this very moment COP15 is being held in Montreal, Canada where world leaders and other delegates will try to stop further biodiversity loss. In his opening speech UN chair Antonio Guterres said that humanity is ‘wagin war at nature” and “treats nature like a toilet”. We know this to be especially true for European peatlands that have been drained, mined and ploughed for centuries. 50% of the original peatlands are severely affected or have disappeared altogether. Yet, we know these peatlands supply essential ecosystem services for climate, hydrology and biodiversity. Luckily, the tide seems to be turning. The UN has declared this decade as the decade on ecosystem restoration and works together with the Global Peatland Initiative on restoring peatlands worldwide. Also the European Commission has proposed a Nature Restoration Law in which they want to restore large surfaces of now drained peatlands. To achieve these goals will require much research, management and policy initiatives. That is why we organise a conference in September 2023 where we will bring together scientists, managers and policy makers. In other words: you!

At this conference we will hear where we stand now with our knowledge, how it is applied in practice, what are the results of the policies applied and where are problems that need to be solved. We will also discuss research priorities, management strategies and ways to improve policies for conservation and restoration.

SER Europe is a partner to the organizers of this Conference.

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