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LIFE grant gives a boost to EFNCP activities in 2015

The European Commission has confirmed an operating grant for EFNCP's 2015 work programme, under the LIFE scheme for NGOs. We last received this grant in 2012. Thanks to the LIFE funding, we have many new collaborative projects with EFNCP member organisations and a busy year of policy work, events, practical action and networking. We are also employing new staff, with a particular focus on creating a more dynamic EFNCP network and engaging more closely with our members around Europe.

Our LIFE work programme is focused on improving the implementation and development of EU environment policies, especially for nature conservation; and on ensuring that policies for agriculture and rural development are coherent with environmental goals and contribute effectively to achieving the EU Biodiversity Strategy Targets, as they are meant to do.

As part of our 2015 work programme, we will produce short videos from several European countries showing how farming can favour conservation of grassland habitats in specfic Natura 2000 sites (Photo: Rogelio Jimenez)

In terms of activities, the programme aims to strengthen participation of our grassroots membership in the policy dialogue process, and to improve the knowledge and evidence base to feed into better policy design and implementation.

This year sees the start of the newly reformed Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), with many changes and different options for member states. With our partners we will be analysing the new policies to find out how they are being implemented on the ground by different countries, how they will affect farming on semi-natural grasslands and silvo-pastoral systems, and how they could be improved. Read more.

Our main conference will be in Ireland in October in partnership with Burrenbeo Trust and combines with the Burren Winterage event. We will bring together EFNCP members with farmers and local projects from different regions of Europe. As usual with EFNCP conferences, there will be a lively mix of field visits, experience sharing from the grassroots, and developing ideas for better policies based on the practical realities of farming and conservation.

A highlight of the year at EU level will be a seminar in the European Parliament on the future of wood pastures in EU policy, organised in partnership with Romanian partner Pogany-havas and Spanish partners Fundación Entretantos. The seminar is planned for November 17th.

We will be participating in a large number of Civil Dialogue Groups organised by the Commission on different aspects of the CAP, where we are represented by EFNCP staff and member organisations.

Watch this space for up-coming items on our many new collaborative projects at country level.

The above activities would have been impossible without the LIFE operating grant, and we shall soon be applying again for 2016-17.

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European Forum on Nature Conservation and Pastoralism
Online: http://www.efncp.org/news/news20150525.php
Date: 2024/03/29
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