Photo: Pixabay/djedj
European landscapes have long been managed by people for agriculture and other land uses, and have been influenced by changes in ecological, physical, cultural and social conditions. Now, human-induced climate change is a major threat to their ecosystems and the benefits they provide to people. The TerraNova project seeks to understand past changes in the interactions between humans and landscapes as our energy regimes have changed. Using this understanding, it will provide scientific guidance on maintaining and enhancing the natural and cultural value of Europe’s landscapes. Criteria for rewilding abandoned agricultural lands will be developed, and scenarios for landscape change will be produced to inform land management decisions that balance biodiversity, cultural heritage and economic qualities.
Fifteen early-stage researchers hosted at different partner institutions will explore these issues to complete doctoral degrees. The individual research projects will be implemented at regional and European scales, and will focus on four field laboratories in different climatic zones across Europe. Each researcher carries out secondments at other institutions from their host and participates in regular field schools. Working together and in dialogue with a wide variety of stakeholders, the early-stage researchers will improve understanding of the natural and social drivers of landscape change in Europe and of alternative land management options that enhance natural and cultural landscape values. More information on TerraNova can be found on the project website https://www.terranova-itn.eu/
IUCN Europe hosts one early-stage researcher, who will explore the potential of abandoned agricultural lands to respond to current environmental, climate and socio-economic challenges. Specifically, the early-stage researcher will assess opportunities and constraints for nature-based solutions on abandoned farmlands and conditions for sustainable trajectories development. Research outcomes are expected to provide an understanding of which future pathways are possible in different contexts, in terms of different forms of restoration and sustainable rural development, and how these pathways interact with different policy objectives. The early-stage researcher is enrolled in the Ph.D. programme at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
Photo: @EC
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 813904.
It is coordinated by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam with the following partners: Leiden University, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, Uppsala University, Rewilding Europe, Aarhus University, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, IUCN European Regional Office and University of South-Eastern Norway. The project runs from 2019 to 2023.
For more information, please contact Chantal van Ham, EU Programme Manager Nature Based Solutions: chantal.vanham@iucn.org or Catherine Fayet, early-stage researcher hosted in IUCN Europe: catherine.fayet@iucn.org
