Funding & Resources

Need for Strategy resources
Resources, both financial and otherwise, are vital for the successful implementation of the Strategy over the forthcoming years. This necessity was recognised right from the early development of the Strategy, as is now recognised within the 6th Strategic Objective "Assurance of adequate financinal means to implement the Strategy".

Contributions to the Strategy are not simply financial, but could also take the form of human resources, exchanges and training support. Furthermore, the Strategy recognizes full involvement of the economic sectors in conservation activities as a priority action, and supports possibilities for funding and investment by sources not traditionally associated with nature conservation.

The Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy makes it possible to assess whether projects submitted for funding address the major issues in European nature conservation and contribute effectively to the conservation and sustainable use of the natural environment. It serves as a tool to prioritise international action at a European scale over 20 years, making it possible to target and focus existing funds to maximum effect. Resources are vital for the successful implementation of the Strategy over the forthcoming years; and not simply financial resources, but also human resources, exchanges and training. Furthermore, the Strategy recognises the full involvement of the economic sectors in conservation activities as a priority action, and supports possibilities for funding and investment by sources not traditionally associated with nature conservation.

Normally, the activities in the Work Programmes of States, international organisations and NGOs will be financed by the budgets of such bodies. However, new activities may be included in the Strategy's Rolling Work Programme for which States, international organisations and NGOs would find difficulty in providing adequate resource allocations.

Activities in support of Resourcing the Pan- European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy

In addition to their role as Joint Secretariat the Council of Europe and UNEP are funding an important part of the projects developed so far within the Pan-European Strategy. Both their work programmes have been adapted to this aim.

Members and observers of the Strategy process are also focusing their activities in support of the Strategy implementation by building in Strategy components in their work programmes.

International Conference "Innovative Financing Opportunities for European Biodiversity"

In June 1996 ECNC hosted the international conference "Innovative Financing Opportunities for European Biodiversity" in support of implementing the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy. The conference was attended by 130 participants from 33 countries and 85 organisations, and which endorsed the Conference recommendations as the Brabant Declaration.

The conference aimed:

• to introduce the Strategy to organisations interested in financing or investing in conservation and restoration of the natural environment and the countryside;
• to consult representatives of prominent commercial enterprise, banking, national lotteries, charities, investment and aid programmes of national governments and multilateral donors on their practical applications and views concerning the Strategy and the available funding mechanisms;
• to highlight how economically viable investment initiatives can support nature and the countryside;
• to develop a joint response to support the guiding and coordinating principles of the Strategy in the form of a Declaration and steps towards practical action.

The recommendations were produced as the Brabant Declaration and are included in the conference proceedings.

The European Biodiversity Recourcing Initiative

Governments and international organisations, working within the framework of the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy, launched the European Biodiversity Resourcing Initiative (EBRI). This initiative focuses on mobilising international financial institutions and the biodiversity sector to find common ground for practical and larger-scale investments in biodiversity-relevant projects. In the context of this initiative, a stakeholder workshop was organized. The workshop was attended by 40 representatives with 15 representatives of the financial sectors (including the World Bank, the European Investment Bank, the European Bank on Reconstruction and Development, IFC, Rabobank, the Asian Development Bank and the Council of Europe Development Bank), the economic sector (including the OECD), the governmental sector (including Switzerland, Hungary and the Netherlands), and international governmental organisations and NGO’s (including UNEP, the European Commission, the Council of Europe, UNDP, ECNC, IUCN, Globe, Ramsar Convention, Avalon and EcoForum). It was concluded that public-private partnerships between all relevant
stakeholders in Europe are the way forward to increase the investments in biodiversity, in particular through the development of integrated bankable projects with an important biodiversity component. It was also concluded that practical measures are needed to assist the banking and biodiversity sectors in finding the best and most effective ways of co-operation, such as the establishment of pools of expertise, bio-toolkits and the development of a European project portfolio of bankable biodiversity relevant projects. The full seminar conclusions are included in Annex 1 of this publication.
The main findings of the European Biodiversity Resourcing Initiative were presented to the 2nd European Intergovernmental Conference ‘Biodiversity in Europe’ in Budapest, which was a preparatory meeting for the 6th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity.
The discussion document that was prepared for the Budapest conference is included in Annex 2 of this publication. The report contains, inter alia, analyses of the relationship between the financial sector and biodiversity in Europe (see also Box 1), and recommendations for follow-up. The report
was discussed at a specific session of the conference devoted to biodiversity resourcing. As from December 2002, phase 2 has started.

The Strategy Trust Fund Project

At the 3rd meeting, held in Geneva, the Executive Bureau asked the secretariat of the Council of Euope to prepare a document setting out proposals on the operation of a special trust fund with a view to considering it at the 2nd meeting of the Council for the Strategy [STRA-BU(97)45)].

In the opinion of the secretariat such a fund should be created in order to finance the participation of representatives of countries for Central and Eastern Europe:

1. in meetings organised by different organisations in the framework of the Strategy.
2. should the need arise, in the meetings of the Strategy Council.

Key documents

• Discussion on developing activities under "Resourcing the Strategy" - MS Word document
• Expert Group First Brain-storming Meeting on Resourcing the Strategy, 13 June 1997 (MS Word document STRA_BU(97) 12)
• Steps towards assurance of adequate resources to implement the Strategy (MS Word Document STRA-BU(96) 14)
• document related to the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy submitted to the Aarhus Conference Part III Financial Issues (STRA-GR(98) 6 part III)

Potential sources of funding

The Financial Mechanism for the Convention on Biological Diversity is the Global Environment Facility.

The GEF provides grants and concessional funding to recipient countries for projects and programs that protect the global environment and promote sustainable economic growth. GEF projects and programmes are managed through three implementing agencies: the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Bank.

The GEF is striving for universal participation and currently 156 countries are participants. Countries may be eligible for GEF funds in one of two ways: (1) if they are eligible for financial assistance through the financial mechanism of either the Climate Change Convention or the Convention on Biological Diversity; or (2) if they are eligible to borrow from the World Bank (IBRDand/or IDA) or receive technical assistance grants from UNDP through a Country Programme. A country must be a party to the Climate Change Convention or the Convention of Biological Diversity to receive funds from the GEF in the relevant focal area.

The GEF Operational Guidelines for Enabling Activities include those for the field of biodiversity.

On the European level the European Union has an online guide "Funding opportunities for environmental projects" whose purpose is to give an overview of the current funding opportunities available from through Directorate General XI (Environment, Nuclear Safety and Civil Protection) and especially its Biodiversity Unit. Many of these opportunities have a direct relevance to biodiversity and to the support of action under the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy.

The Fifth Environmental Action Programme has elevated environmental protection from being a flanking to a central policy. The effect of this will be, in the medium to long term, the integration of the 'precautionary principle' into the use of all financial instruments of the Union. To this end, the use of all monies should reflect the goal of achieving sustainable development. Where possible links are provided to environment related funding opportunities in other Directorate Generals (DGs) of the Commission. Given their specialist nature, actions for nuclear safety have not been included.

The history of EU financing for nature conservation is focused through the LIFE financial instrument. LIFE is the financial instrument supporting the Community environmental policy. Within the meaning of LIFE, the nature conservation actions are those "required to maintain or restore the natural habitats and the population of species of wild fauna and flora at a favourable status". In practice, LIFE-Nature must contribute to the implementation of the "Birds" (79/409/EEC) and "Habitats" (92/43/EEC) Community directives and, in particular, to the establishment of the European network of protected areas - Natura 2000 - aiming at the on-site management and conservation of the most valuable fauna and flora species and habitats in the Union.

EU projects directly supporting the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy

LIFE-Nature
The EU projects on biodiversity largely relate to the LIFE financial instrument and 300 projects have by 1998 been financed under LIFE I and LIFE II. The LIFE-Nature database includes a searchable database with the following information on all projects financed under LIFE I and LIFE II : project title, description and beneficiary of the project. Pan-European Strategy related topics include:

• Priority measures for the conservation of large carnivores in the Alps (LIFE97 NAT/IT/004097)
• Project 2001. Creation of ecological corridors for the protection of species threatened with extinction (LIFE93 NAT/E/011500)

LIFE-Third Countries 1996-99
The LIFE-Third countries database includes a searchable database with the following information on all projects financed under LIFE- Third : project title, description and beneficiary of the project. Pan-European Strategy related topics include:

• Coastal conservation and local agenda 21, a pilot project for Russia (LIFE97 TCY/ROS/093)

Environmental information and awareness raising activities
Under DGXI Environmental information and awareness raising activities (Budget line B4-306), projects funded in 1997 with Pan-European Strategy related topics include:

• Building Public Awareness and Support for Landscape Protection and Sustainable Development within the Pan-European Biological and Landscape Diversity Strategy

PHARE and TACIS financing opportunities
See financing opportunities under the home pages of Phare and Tacis.

For other lists of potential sources of funding relevant to the Pan-European Strategy also see the ECNC list of funding sources.