Expert Workshop on Countdown 2010 Country Assessment
3rd - 4th November, 2005
European Environment Agency
Copenhagen, Denmark
The purpose of this workshop is to develop an assessment methodology which will assist national and regional governments and cities to monitor their progress toward achieving the 2010 commitment of halting the loss of biodiversity and to ultimately provide a framework for establishing priority interventions to achieve the target.
The spirit of Countdown 2010 is to empower its members and to build on existing data, tools and mechanisms. The workshop is an effort to synthesize rather than create new tools and processes.
3rd November 2005, 14:00 -15:30
Session 1: What do we want to monitor?
The first session sets the stage for the workshop. Sebastian Winkler gives an introduction into Countdown 2010 and its challenges for reviewing progress. Other assessment processes are looked at to maximise synergies and avoid overlap: European indicator development, regional monitoring, and the Millenium Ecosystem Assessment. Clare Miller (IEEP) then proposes approaches for a Countdown 2010 methodology.
An
Overview: Introduction to C2010 and Expectations from the workshop
The Countdown 2010 alliance combines efforts to save biodiversity within a powerful network of active members, explains Sebastian Winkler, Head of Countdown 2010. It supports governments in achieving the 2010 biodiversity target and creates public awareness to make the case for biodiversity conservation. The existence of the target and the high environmental awareness in Europe are a big chance for nature conservation. But to know whether we are making progress, we need some kind of measurement mechanism. There is a lot of data on the state of biodiversity around, and the Message from Malahide gives us a framework for implementation. As partners of the initiative are not only national, but also local governments, it would be nice if the resulting tool could adapt to them. From the multitude of available instruments it is important to choose one that communicates well.
The
EEA and the use of indicators the European Level: SEBI2010
The European Environmental Agency provides information for improving Europe's Environment. Gordon McInnes, Deputy Director, presents some findings on environmental change. For some problems, there were relatively simple solutions (e.g. sulphur dioxide levels). Others are easy to measure, but harder to change (e.g. Greenhouse Gas emissions). Biodiversity loss is not only hard to measure, but also difficult to influence. The Streamlining European Biodiversity Indicators Initiative (SEBI) focuses on consolidating headline indicators in Europe to provide the right level of information to the right people and reduce the key drivers of biodiversity loss.
- Presentation (pdf, 4.5 MB)
- European Environmental Agency Website
- SEBI 2010 on the European Community Biodiversity Clearing House Mechanism Website
Biodiversity
monitoring and policy integration at the regional level
Noord-Brabant was the first Countdown 2010 region, presents Toon de Goede. The region is a pioneer which subscribes to the importance of biodiversity and sustainability in dialogue with local inhabitants. They need regional indicators, which might be applied nationally. Currently Brabant uses mainly the distribution and number development of plants and birds. With these numbers they produce a State of the Art book, with trends and indices. Unfortunately they found the real effect of this work on politics hard to measure. Public awareness on biodiversity seems to be the key lever to generate action. The region will organise a meeting on public awareness indicators in April 06.
The
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment approach
Neville Ash of the World Conservation Monitoring Centre presents the Millenium Ecosystem Assessment as a process to bring science to the needs of decision makers. The conceptual drivers were the connections of human wellbeing to ecosystem services to biodiversity. The key message of the assessment published this spring was that humans change ecosystems more than ever before. They managed to increase provisioning services to improve the lives of billions, but at the cost of non-marketed supporting services. The findings were communicated directly into intergovernmental processes, and through a range of different products (summary, synthesis, thematic material).
- Presentation (pdf, 1.5 MB)
- Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Website
- World Conservation Monitoring Centre Website
Outlining
Options: possible models for the Country Assessment Methodology
The background paper for the workshop examined different approaches to assessing biodiversity, explains Clare Miller from IEEP. These included the Millenium Ecosystem Assessment, the Ecological Footprint and the Sustainability Index. A Countdown 2010 Assessment needs to be able to talk about state and progress, and it needs useful data as soon as possible. Thus, we have to be pragmatic instead of perfectionist to create political momentum and focus activities.
3rd November 2005, 15:45-18:30
Session 2: Working groups
To
move from words to action, two working groups meet to focus their thinking
on the development of the Countdown 2010 Assessment Methodology. These are:
Working Group A
Objective: To identify the most appropriate format for communicating progress toward the Countdown 2010 target
Working Group B
Objective: To develop guidance for pilot users of the Countdown 2010 measurement framework to help prioritize choices for action.
Working Group A: Developing a Communications and Assessment Framework for the Countdown 2010 Target
The group discussed a scorecard approach like the one OECD and World Bank use for country reporting (one page, ranks and recommendations). They recommend starting on the European level, and then move on to national level. This would require no new data gathering, as there are enough NGO reports and assessments around. This report should build on the Message from Malahide, take the main commitments and look at how countries are doing on those. To have an impact, the outcomes need to be relevant for people in Europe, human wellbeing and ecosystem services.
Working Group B: What gets measured, gets managed - or does it?
The group proposes three ways of assessment:
- As Countdown 2010 is comprised by private sector, governments and NGOs, a bottom-up approach creates ownership and frees resources. The role of the initiative is to set priorities for action and communications. For this, easy (example) indicators can be used.
- To assess how governments are performing in relation to the commitment, an issues-based checklist should be used. This would help them in priority setting. The initiative can also support work with NBSAPs.
- Members of Countdown 2010 sign up to a declaration with concrete individual commitments, and report on their progress. This is a way to involve the private sector more actively.
4th November, 9:00-10:30
Session 3: How do we monitor it?
To build a more complete picture of what is happening in other processes, Neville Ash, Ines Verleye, Rania Spyropoulou and Beatriz Torrez present their respective activities and opportunities for Countdown 2010 to link up with them.
The
2010 Biodiversity indicators partnership
The 2010 Global Biodiversity Indicators Partnership is a new project to track progress at the global level in achieving the 2010 biodiversity target, explains Neville Ash from WCMC. The timeline plans development and testing from 2006-09 and application and refining from 2010-12. Funding is available, and an indicator framework already set up. The initiative links up to lots of other initiatives and uses a web site and the Global Biodiversity Outlook for communicating the results. The initiative will be launched in February next year.
Issue
based modules for the coherent implementation of biodiversity related conventions
Coherent implementation of the huge number of commitments on biodiversity presents a major challenge for national governments, explains Ines Verleye from UNEP. Looking at specific issues, her project tries to compile these commitments into modules (at the moment: inland water, invasive species, sustainable use, climate change).
EEA
Information Technology tools
Rania Spyropoulou and Sheila Cryan introduce the European Environmental Agency's set of information technology tools to manage reporting requirements and other environmental data.
Opportunities
within the Global Biodiversity Information Facility
The aim of the Biodiversity Information Facility is to make the world's biodiversity data freely available on the internet, explains Beatriz Torres. The database covers primary data: Species and specimen data with links to ecosystems. The tool generates maps on the fly and promotes open sharing of data, which stay at the data providers. The project covers 78 million sets of biodiversity data and connects 78 members.
4th November, 10:45 - 16:00
Session 4: Connecting ideas
A
second set of working group meets to specify levels, content and format
of the assessment and decide upon delivery mechanisms and audiences.
Working Group A: Developing a Communications and Assessment Framework for the Countdown 2010 Target
The group proposes governments and the media as their target audience. The Countdown 2010 network can focus on priority action and package information by reviewing implementation of policy responses to biodiversity. One option would be a Question & Answer approach with generic European headline questions, later more detailed questions for every country. The report would be delivered in short targeted statements showing how biodiversity impacts specific sectors.
Working Group B: What gets measured, gets managed - or does it?
The group looked for triggers for change in behaviour and for ways to package the existing information. Target audience of the initiative are NGOs as a driver to reach out to general public. The public should subscribe to the 2010 biodiversity target and be mobilised into action. Governments can be targeted with a carrot/stick approach. The private sector can be targeted with a check list. To join the initiative, they would sign a declaration.
Concluding Plenary Discussion
The focus of the assessment should be on communication towards the target audience, building on existing data and information. The concept of environmental services might be useful for reaching out to new audiences. Towards governments, the aim of communication would be to encourage use of monitoring and through this to generate more biodiversity action.
Participants agreed that the basis of the assessment should be the Message of Malahide with its sectorial approach. Where data is not available, it would be necessary to "monitor the monitoring" of countries.
There was less agreement on the procedure of assessment and the look of the final product. Participants proposed a questionnaire for governments (maybe to be answered by external experts). A simple toolbox for national partners to execute the assessment could also be useful. Some demanded that governments should be consulted for their needs. The final product would be only a snapshot of the current situation and could come in several ways: Snappy sound bites, a scorecard, a one-page report or lengthy analysis.
Proposed procedure
- A report of this meeting will be prepared for the sponsor, presented at the Countdown 2010 Executive Group Meeting on December 13 in Brussels and sent to the participants.
- A paper on the methodology and a prototype will be prepared by IEEP and others for mid-January. Participants will be invited to submit comments.
- A report on the assessment will be submitted to the PEBLDS conference in February 2006 in Croatia.
- Afterwards, the approach will be tested in pilot regions.