The “Biosphere Reserves. Sustainable Territories, Resilient Communities” project is based on the environmental quality of the territories of the Biosphere Reserves, largely due to the commitment and work carried out by the entities responsible.
It aims to enhance the territories, in close coordination with the communities, including heritage assets and the promotion of ecosystem services, focusing on strengthening skills, assuming an assertive and innovative strategy for enhancement and communication, and adopting a demanding and collaborative governance model.
The project began in November 2020 and lasted 30 months. It was funded by EEA Grants 2014-2021, under the “Environment, Climate Change and Low Carbon Economy” Program and promoted by the General Secretariat for the Environment and Climate Action.
The project is organized around three priority axes – knowledge, training and communication – articulated according to a collective strategic approach that enhances all the territories of the Biosphere Reserves (BR), understood as living laboratories of sustainability and models of the 2030 Agenda and its SDGs, with the aim of promoting greater national and international visibility, and boosting an innovative, comprehensive training plan focused on improving the quality of life and prosperity of the communities.
KNOWLEDGE
as a tool for social transformation
The strategic rationale of the Sustainable Development Plans for the BR, seen as instruments for strengthening and innovating local sustainable development strategies, is based on initiatives related to mapping, prioritizing and valuing ecosystem services, with a commitment to knowledge, with the support of the national scientific and technological system and international networks, incorporating the knowledge passed on by the communities.
Initiatives related to recording and valuing the memories of communities and territories will involve the active participation of local actors and will be key to fostering greater ownership of identity – territories and their resources – and generating opportunities for the local economy. Valuing identity and endogenous resources, in a harmonious and synergistic interpretation of Man (culture) and Nature, guarantees the effective promotion of the values perceived by communities and economic agents.
The initiatives associated with the training axis are part of a global plan aimed at all the BR, and are aimed at technicians, administrators, communities and promoters of the local economy. Designed to address the interests and expectations of the BR, they will be carried out by Quaternaire Portugal, the Pedro Nunes Institute and the universities involved, with the support of the 3 UNESCO chairs and the scientific and technological system, which will be called upon to collaborate on complementary initiatives.
The proposed approach in the field of capacity building aims to improve the skills and management and cooperation practices of the BR, individually and as a network, and linked to areas likely to boost the local economy, from sustainable tourism to entrepreneurship, with the enhancement and promotion of the endogenous resources of the territories.
The overall communication plan proposed for the national BRs aims to strengthen their visibility and better coordinate initiatives to promote the network of BRs, as well as fostering opportunities for national and international cooperation.
An awareness-raising plan is proposed aimed at the population and local development actors with relevance at the BRs, which in the school sector is embodied in the National Biosphere Reserves Olympics, complemented by the creation of BRs caretakers. The enormous experience of the project’s coordinators has ensured greater visibility and presence of the Portuguese Biosphere Reserves in UNESCO’s World Biosphere Reserve Network through cooperation with Norway and Iceland, IberoMAB and the CPLP, and with the active participation of various international experts.
The project brings together a large multidisciplinary team from the Universities of Coimbra and NOVA Lisbon, the Pedro Nunes Institute, the Order of Biologists and KEEP – Association for Peace, People and the Planet, with Quaternaire Portugal as the promoter.
It also includes institutional partners from the donor countries, such as Norway’s only Biosphere Reserve, the University of Bergen, with its UNESCO Chair, and Iceland’s National UNESCO Commission.
Through the European Economic Area (EEA) Agreement, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway are partners, in the internal market of the Member States of the European Union.
As a way of promoting a continuous and balanced strengthening of the economic and trade relations, the parties of the EEA Agreement have established a Multiannual Financial Mechanism, known as the EEA Grants.
The EEA Grants aims to reduce the economic and social disparities in Europe and strengthen the bilateral relations between beneficiary and donor countries.
For the period 2014-2021, a total contribution of 2.8 billion euros was agreed for 15 beneficiary countries. Portugal benefited from an amount of 102,7M€.