On 7 December 2006 the kick-off meeting of the project ‘Supporting public involvement in building capacity for Ukrainian biodiversity monitoring’ took place in Kyiv (Ukraine) in the Aarchus centre of the Ministry of Environment of Ukraine.

The meeting was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Environment of Ukraine, the Academy of Science (Institute of Zoology and Institute of Botany of Ukraine) and NGOs (National Ecological Centre of Ukraine and ECNC–European Centre for Nature Conservation).

In Ukraine there is no state system for biodiversity monitoring, although to some extent there is monitoring of some taxonomic groups of species in the most advanced protected areas. However, most of this is not coordinated, is not widely communicated and does not involve a wider range of stakeholders. The current project will tackle this issue by enhancing Ukrainian capacity in developing biodiversity monitoring by increasing public involvement, as it has been proven to be a successful and cost-effective tool to help achieve the target to halt the loss of biodiversity by 2010. The results of this project will provide inspiration and guidance for best practice across Europe.

At the meeting the objectives of the current project and its importance at European scale were presented. As part of the project a national monitoring programme will be developed that will ensure that activities are harmonized and that monitoring results serve a range of needs, from policy requirements to awareness raising. At the meeting special attention was given to build such a monitoring programme in accordance with European initiatives, such as the SEBI2010 initiative (Streamlining European Biodiversity Indicators).

The participants showed great interest and enthusiasm and they believe that this project will help them set the basis for an effective and coordinated biodiversity monitoring programme in Ukraine.

For further information: Ana Nieto (nieto@ecnc.org), or click here.