Sustainable Peatland Futures
#EUKICON26 || Day 2 || 10:45 AM
This workshop addresses the question of how European peatlands can contribute to long-term climate mitigation while balancing biodiversity protection, water management, and socio-economic needs.
Description
Peatlands are indispensable ecosystems in the fight against global warming. Intact peatlands can be the most space-efficient long-term carbon store in our planet’s terrestrial biosphere. However, half of the peatlands in Europe are massively degraded.
This workshop addresses the question of how European peatlands can contribute to long-term climate mitigation while balancing biodiversity protection, water management, and socio-economic needs. Workshop participants will learn why peatlands matter, which initiatives and policy developments are currently underway, and how different sectors and projects – including agriculture, agroforestry, afforestation and biochar – can engage in and benefit from sustainable peatland management.
Many EUKI projects work on mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, yet practitioners face similar challenges related to implementation, financing, monitoring, and social acceptance.
The workshop seeks to generate practical ideas that recognise the value of nature-based climate solutions, identify enabling conditions, and foster cooperation across regions and sectors.
Short introductory inputs will provide a common knowledge base, drawing on peatland distribution and a general overview of the value of (restored) peatlands in climate mitigation, the European Peatlands Initiative, the EUKI Peatland Futures project, and recent scientific and policy developments. The core elements are interactive small-group exercises with the EUKI community. Based on participants’ experience and focus areas, key questions will address common challenges, joint solutions and cross-sector linkages – for example paludiculture products and ecosystem services – with the goal of reducing emissions.
The main emphasis, however, is on dialogue, peer learning, and joint reflection among participants.
Facilitators
- Eliza Óhegyi, CEEweb for Biodiversity
- Marina Scunca, Eurosite
- Michael Succow Foundation; partner in the Greifswald Mire Centre, and the European Land Conservation Network