Understanding the perceptions of and improving communication on the biodiversity crisis and nature restoration benefits to sustain citizen engagement and democratic governance

Policymakers at all levels gain a nuanced understanding of stakeholder and citizen perceptions of the biodiversity crisis, its conflicts, and the impacts of new biodiversity and climate policies, enabling more informed, inclusive decision-making and policy implementation; Policymakers adopt and integrate innovative co-creation and deliberative processes engaging citizens throughout the policy cycle, driving collective action for nature restoration, protection, and climate mitigation/adaptation; All societal sectors develop a comprehensive understanding of the biodiversity crisis, its interplay with climate change, the synergies of combined action, and the critical role of nature restoration, leading to empowered, informed contributions and behavioural change in support of biodiversity protection and restoration.

Proposals must address challenges defined in the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, the Kunming-Montréal Global Biodiversity Framework and the EU Nature Restoration Regulation in the context of EU climate policy; Employ a multi-actor approach and a multi-disciplinary methodology combining biodiversity science, advanced digital tools (e.g., AI), and Social Sciences & Humanities (including gender studies); Build on the IPBES methodological assessment of multiple values of nature and ecosystem services; Involve public authorities with legal competence in biodiversity and restoration in both pilot activities and advisory boards; Demonstrate collaboration with or extension of results from specified prior projects (HORIZON-CL 2-2023-DEMOCRACY-01-05, H2020-SC6-GOVERNANCE-2020, Green Deal cross-cutting on empowering citizens, PHOENIX, REAL DEAL); Engage with the JRC Competence Centre on Participatory and Deliberative Democracy, the EC Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity and the Bio Agora Science Service; Encourage international cooperation, notably with Latin American and Caribbean partners; Optionally leverage AI for analytical tasks.