Food production and farming practices can have both positive and negative impacts on biodiversity. The interactions between farming and biodiversity therefore play a critical role for the resilience of food production and sustainable resource management. This can be the case through supporting the pollination of crops and the control of pests and diseases, contributing to productive soils, nutrient and carbon cycles, water quality as well as improving the resilience of farming systems to climate change through helping mitigate the effects of droughts and floods. However, biodiversity continues to decline, particularly on farmland.

In this first meeting we will look at Member States’ experiences in designing and implementing interventions at the necessary scale for improving biodiversity outcomes on farmland (improving species’ populations, habitat restoration, habitat connectivity). We will explore what factors have contributed to successful outcomes as well as challenges that need to be overcome.

Aims of the first TG meeting:

• Share good practice examples of initiatives for delivering biodiversity outcomes on farmland at the necessary scale (e.g. involving multiple farms; using collective approaches).
• Explore the success factors as well as the issues and challenges facing the design and implementation of interventions for improving biodiversity outcomes on farmland.
• Identify the main areas of interest for further in-depth discussion.