IPBES, the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, has exciting news for experts in the field of biodiversity and conservation. IPBES Plenary has officially opened a call for expert nominations for the methodological assessment of integrated biodiversity-inclusive spatial planning and ecological connectivity

The spatial planning assessment will address the use and change in use of land, inland waters and sea, including areas beyond national jurisdiction. It will provide options for avoiding land and sea use change that negatively affects biodiversity and options for improving planning for effective conservation, restoration and sustainable use of nature and its contributions to people across spatial and temporal scales.

Who are they looking for?

IPBES is seeking experts and practitioners from academia, government, and civil society with expertise in:

• A range of disciplines, including but not limited to geography, ecology, conservation science (including protected area designation), land and water systems science, spatial planning, urban planning, architecture, law, political science and economics;
• The application of spatial planning methodologies and related planning and management approaches in relation to biodiversity and nature’s contributions to people, in terrestrial (including inland waters) and marine systems, including land and sea planning, environmental impact assessment, economic and social zoning, community planning, land and sea use frameworks, and governance frameworks for integrated planning and management;
• The pertinence, effectiveness and limitations of existing methods, guidance, tools, scenarios, models, data, knowledge and capacity building for promoting connectivity and integrating biodiversity in spatial planning, across sectors and scales;
• The trade-offs and synergies between different types of spatial planning methodologies and of land, inland waters and sea use;
• Methodologies for promoting participatory approaches to spatial planning (including those involving Indigenous Peoples and local communities);
• The ecological requirements of migratory and wide-ranging species, complex species communities and diverse ecosystem processes;
• Ecological restoration to recover and enhance biodiversity and ecological connectivity to support ecosystem resilience, climate change adaptation and sustainable livelihoods and associated methodologies and approaches;
• The development or application of scenarios of spatial planning regarding synergies and trade-offs in the biodiversity-food-water-health-climate-energy nexus;
• Capacity, financial and technological implementation needs for spatial planning and ecological connectivity interventions.

Experts wishing to be nominated by a Government are encouraged to contact their IPBES National Focal Point regarding any country specific processes or deadlines and are requested to fill out their application form by 10 January 2025.

The deadline for submitting your nominations is January 24, 2024. For further details on the nomination process, please check here.