Enabling transformative change on biodiversity

Science and Policy clearly underline that biodiversity loss can only be successfully addressed if transformative changes will be initiated, accelerated, and up-scaled. There is however hardly any knowledge on potentials and challenges arising from transitions focused on biodiversity.

System-level change of this kind starts through social innovation, for example, regulations, incentives, local and participatory processes, and through the introduction of new technologies, new processes of production, or consumer products, which change how socio-technical and socio-ecological systems operate and impact their environment. Such transformative change must decrease the impacts of indirect drivers of biodiversity loss, which are in turn, underpinned by societal values and behaviours.

Indirect drivers of biodiversity loss are understood here as:

  • Production and consumption patterns, human population dynamics and trends (including their footprints), trade, technological innovations, local to global governance (including financing).
  • Research and innovation can enable these transformative changes to happen and initiate processes, behaviour changes and actions which are transforming the way we impact biodiversity.
  • Socio-economic and multidisciplinary research, including on the role of education, will develop knowledge and tools to understand the role of transformative change for biodiversity policy making, address the indirect drivers for biodiversity loss, and accelerate biodiversity-relevant transformative changes in our society.

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