Human activities are linked to biodiversity and the services it gives us, either directly or indirectly. We are constantly interacting with biodiversity, even if we do not live in the countryside. We enjoy the products and benefits of this biodiversity and sometimes of very distant ecosystems. This means that our actions and behaviours can also have an impact on these ecosystems, whether near or far.
Citizens can obviously make day-to-day choices that will help to preserve biodiversity. But it is extremely complex! It is clear that businesses and the authorities must also take actions.
This is what we call “co-responsibility”.
As citizens, we live with biodiversity every day. In fact, we are this biodiversity. We are constantly interacting with it, whether through our clothes, our food, our lifestyle, our well-being or our homes.
There are many simple actions we can take every day to respect this biodiversity and choose “co-responsible” consumption practices.
Biodiversity is essential for the activity of businesses (directly or indirectly). Firstly, where they are located, as this location will have abundant biodiversity. But they also use this biodiversity in their infrastructures and their production or operating processes, through their procurement policies, etc. All these actions have an impact on biodiversity and the ecosystem services.
Businesses can introduce measures to allow more sustainable production and consumption methods. Areas to explore include the search for a more biodiversity-friendly sourcing of products and materials and the reduction and reuse of waste in the production cycle (“circular economy”).
There are a number of advantages in moving towards a more sustainable economy, particularly in sectors intended to reduce environmental damage.
Within the European Union, 14.6 million jobs are dedicated to (directly and indirectly) protecting biodiversity and replenishing natural resources such as forests.
The State is committed to defending, maintaining and even replenishing Belgian and international biodiversity and to combating the threats against it, through its National Biodiversity Strategy.
In the Flemish Region, the INTERREG 2B Connect project aims to develop land and buildings in a series of pilot schemes, and to create a network of consultants specialised in supporting businesses. It includes a biodiversity review tool developed by the Province of Antwerp: the BIODIVA SCAN.
In the Brussels Capital Region, the Guide bâtiment durable (Sustainable building guide) and the “Resilience Design” Eco-innovation Toolkit for SMEs help Brussels organisations to take the environment into account, particularly biodiversity.
In the Walloon Region, the Réseau Wallonie Nature (Wallonia Nature Network) and “Entreprises Nature Admise” have adopted specific charters with volunteer businesses.
In launching the “#BeBiodiversity” campaign, the State is demonstrating its desire to move up a gear. The ambition on the one hand, is to give citizens-consumers the means to choose more biodiversity-friendly products and producers and, on the other hand, to inform businesses and help them take voluntary steps to preserve biodiversity and ecosystem services.
This decision-making tool is currently being built. The challenge is to create a scientifically validated approach to help businesses and public organisations quickly assess the impact of different land-based organic raw materials on biodiversity and make the best possible choices with regard to the preservation of this biodiversity.
Pilot schemes will support this process and will be showcased in communications about the project.
The FPS Public Health, Food Chain Safety and Environment, in collaboration with the Belgian regional authorities, has launched a major project to help businesses and public organisations take actions to promote biodiversity.
The online tool BiodiversiTree, developed in collaboration with pioneering companies, proposes practical actions to further integrate biodiversity into the processes of businesses and organisations. These actions focus on four areas of intervention: land, infrastructure, sourcing and processes.
Click here to find out more about this decision-making tool. Click here to find out more about this decision-making tool.
We are working with volunteer businesses to create our tools, to ensure they are relevant and effective. These partner businesses enjoy free expert advice and the support of our team in implementing these tools, whilst ensuring that they are suitable for their role. The businesses that work with us on this ambitious biodiversity project are our “pioneering businesses”.
Click here to find out more about these pioneering businesses Click here to find out more about these pioneering businessesHumans have pushed several planetary boundaries out of their safe operating space and inequalities within and between countries are rising… Our current societal and environmental challenges require a meta-response. This is what Regenerative Development and Design (RDD) aims to bring.
See moreAs part of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Federal Public Service for Public Health, Food Chain Safety and the Environment organized a High-Level event on the crucial role of nature and biodiversity in building a sustainable future. Entitled “Regenerative development for transformative change”, the event, which took place in Brussels on April 11, was built around a central message: “Giving back to nature more than we take away”.
See moreOfficers from customs, animal and plant health authorities, and environmental authorities convened in Brussels on 14 March for an event focusing on improving border controls for Invasive Alien Species. Effective border controls are a key element in preventing their introduction into the European Union. This event was jointly organised by the Belgian presidency of the Council of the European Union, the European Commission, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
See moreFrom 26 February to 1 March, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA), the world’s highest-level decision-making body for environment, met in Nairobi, Kenya. This sixth session (UNEA-6) envisaged how multilateral actions can help tackle the triple crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution.
See moreFrom 12 to 17 February, the 14th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS COP14) was held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. At this conference, the Belgian Presidency had an important role to play: to shape the discussions on behalf of the EU to promote the implementation of the CMS and give concrete form to the historic agreement in favour of biodiversity, reached in December 2022 during the 15th COP to the Convention on Biological diversity (CBD COP15).
See moreThe new awareness campaign for travellers
See more
