Municipalities compete in many fields. Who has got the most beautiful city centre? The most interesting cultural life? The best quality of life? Within the competition “Capitals of Biodiversity”, the municipalities compete in biodiversity: Which municipality acts with most commitment for biodiversity? Creates and supports natural green spaces? Initiates river revitalization or recuperation of other important habitats? Preserves nests of bats and birds in old buildings? Considers nature and biodiversity in their planning processes?

An unexpectedly rich biodiversity can be found in many European cities, towns and villages. The reason is their high variety of ecosystems, which provide manifold living spaces: Gardens and parks, rivers and small forests, old buildings and walls, fallow land and many more. This diversity is not only important to protect threatened nature; for a large part of the population it is also the first or even the only contact to nature, as they live far away from natural habitats which are more commonly found in rural areas.

Municipalities can do a lot to protect our biodiversity and to provide healthy and livable surroundings for their citizens and for future generations. Committed municipalities show responsibility and are wise in their long-term thinking and contribute directly to the sustainable development of their municipalities. The project „Capitals of Biodiversity“ honours and highlights these municipalities and communicates their performance on a national and European level.

The competitions will start in 2010, the UN International Year of Biodiversity,
in France, Germany, Hungary, Slovakia and Spain. From the smallest village to the largest cities, municipalities are invited to join, and a fair competition is ensured by choosing the winner in different size classes according to the population of the municipality. Finally, the best municipalities should be honored at European level.

In each country, the municipalities are supported with a training programme. Know-how and experiences in municipal biodiversity issues will be transferred with workshops and brochures and an easy-to-apply set of indicators for biodiversity in municipalities will be developed.

The project is led by Deutsche Umwelthilfe e.V., a German NGO with over 20 years experience in environmental competitions for municipalities. The competitions in the five countries will be implemented by Natureparif (France), Lake Balaton Development Coordination Agency (Hungary), Fundación Biodiversidad (Spain) and the Regional Environmental Center Slovakia. The Countdown 2010 Initiative of IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) and ICLEI European Secretariat are international partners of the project.

The project “European Capitals of Biodiversity” is supported by LIFE for three years (2009-2011). Clear objectives, outcomes and results are defined in the project. 

 

 

 

The Members of the Advisory Board are:

• Prof. Philippe Clergeau, National Museum of Natural History, France;
• Eva Goris, German Wildlife Foundation;
• Oliver Hillel, Secretariat for the Convention on Biological Diversity, Canada;
• Prof. Dr. Beate Jessel, Federal Agency for Nature Conservation, Germany;
• Prof. Dr. Dittmar Machule, Foundation for Vibrant Cities, Germany;
• Amrit Mediratta, Council of Europe, Great Britain;
• Pavlína Mišíková, Ministry of Environment, Slovak Republic;
• Dr. Zsolt Szilvácsku, Respect Consulting Ltd., Corvinus University, Hungary.

 

 

Principal objective of the project is to increase nature and biodiversity protection in urban areas and by local authorities in Europe.

Specific objectives of the project are:

• To support and motivate initiatives of local authorities regarding nature protection and conservation of biodiversity in Europe by organising competitions for municipalities;
• To improve the successful German competition model and to transfer the experience to four other European countries (Spain, Slovakia, Hungary and France);
• To support local authorities to fulfil legal compliance regarding nature and biodiversity protection;
• To inform local authorities about their possibilities regarding nature and biodiversity protection;
• To promote the extension and accessibility of green areas;
• To establish a common biodiversity monitoring system among participating municipalities;
• To inform and sensitize citizens regarding nature protection and conservation of biodiversity and the importance of their collaboration.

 

 

This is a selection of the expected outcomes and results of the project:

• Two national competitions in France, Hungary, Slovakia and Spain (2010 and 2011), one in Germany (2010);
• Monitoring system for local authorities to monitor biodiversity projects on local level. Available in six European languages;
• Information brochure regarding the competition (objectives, background, examples, criteria) in six languages;
• Competition material in English, German, Spanish, Hungarian, French and Slovak;
• 10.000 municipalities in five countries informed about the competitions;
• A minimum of 450 municipalities participating in the competitions 2010 and/or 2011 in their respective country;
• 36 training workshops for local authorities with 500 – 600 participants in five countries;
• CD-ROM in six languages with positive examples of, and very practical information for, local authorities in all European countries;
• All relevant organisations and administrations in all EU member states and candidates well informed about the competition;
• Media contacts to more than 250 newspapers, magazines, radio and TV stations on European level;
• More than 300 articles and reports published in various European countries about the award and the background (= importance of biodiversity);
• Comprehensive Train-the-Trainer-programme to enable organisations from all European countries to organise municipal competitions with focus on nature and biodiversity;
• More than 50 related networks and associations in Europe informed and involved.