Urbanisation has caused a significant disconnect between humans and nature, with over half of the world's population now living in urban areas. This trend reduces direct interactions with nature, worsening global challenges like biodiversity loss and climate change. As part of EXPBIO's Work Package 4, partners have compiled best practices for communicating biodiversity to stakeholders. The goal was to analyse European and national campaigns, including NSR projects, focusing on plant biodiversity and its role in supporting wild pollinators.
In the North Sea Region (NSR), plant ecosystems and other living organisms are increasingly under pressure from human activities. Notably, 45% of the world's flowering species are threatened, and meadows are among the most endangered habitats in Europe. The EU's Nature Restoration Law aims to restore at least 20% of the EU's land and sea areas by 2030, highlighting a commitment to environmental restoration.
Addressing Plant blindness
The concept of "plant blindness," refers to the inability to recognise or appreciate the importance of plants. This issue is linked to a deficit in knowledge and identification skills, a preference for animals, and decreasing experiences with plants . Plant education has emerged as an important area for fostering plant awareness and addressing biodiversity conservation and sustainable land use.
EXPBIO's Transnational Action Plan
To tackle these challenges, EXPBIO's Work Package 4 aims to raise awareness of the importance of native plants and biodiversity through a Transnational Action Plan. This plan integrates a citizen science approach into the NSR educational program on plant biodiversity, targeting different stakeholders such as students, teachers, and the public to reduce plant blindness.
Collaborative Efforts and Best Practices
EXPBIO partners have compiled best practices for communicating and educating about native wildflowers. These initiatives focus on effective communication strategies, collaboration opportunities, and alignment with existing campaigns. The project emphasises the importance of integrating plant-focused education into school curricula and community programs, fostering early appreciation for native species.
Citizen science initiatives can play a role in raising public awareness by involving community members in plant identification and monitoring. Public campaigns, events, and collaborations with local governments and NGOs are essential for promoting plant biodiversity.
Progress and Achievements
The project has successfully compiled relevant biodiversity communication and education campaigns, resulting in over sixteen detailed suggestions. Eleven key activities have been selected for development, focusing on promoting awareness, stakeholder collaboration, and education about native wildflowers and biodiversity.
In 2025, EXPBIO will continue to expand biodiversity awareness through citizen science methodologies, tailored educational initiatives, materials, and pilots.. These efforts aim to create wildflower areas in schools, organise Bioblitzes, and develop targeted educational resources, fostering long-term connections to local biodiversity across the region.
Photo: Ellinor Smederöd