Together with the Council of Europe and the Ministry of Environment Protection and Agriculture of Georgia, the European Topic Centre on Biological Diversity and the ENI SEIS II East project ran a seminar in Georgia. The seminar was held to assess proposals aiming to ensure the conservation of wild flora and fauna and their natural habitats in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. Participants included national authorities, non-governmental organisations, independent experts, the Council of Europe and the European Union. The EU-funded seminar evaluated the extent to which the Emerald Network sites in the three countries are fit to ensure the long-term conservation of species and habitats of European importance.

The Emerald Network is a network of nature protection areas that was established under the Bern Convention, which is a binding international legal instrument in the field of nature conservation, covering most of the natural heritage of the European continent and extending to some states of Africa.

Biodiversity, or biological diversity, is the variety of life in a particular habitat, and includes all living organisms found on earth. Biodiversity is essential to human wellbeing, as it delivers services that sustain our economies and societies, such as pollination, climate regulation, flood protection, soil fertility and the production of food, fuel, fibre and medicines. Globally, biodiversity continues to be eroded resulting in ecosystem degradation.

© Otars Opermanis

Read meeting documents here