News

September 2007

BRANCH final international conference 20th September 2007
BRANCH came to a successful close in Brussels, with the launch of the project’s final report and recommendations to an audience of European planners, policy makers and researchers.

The event was attended by approximately 75 stakeholders across Europe who came together to celebrate the success of the BRANCH project and reflect on its findings. Speakers included Branch partners and representatives from IUCN and the European Commission - the latter encouraged delegates to feed into the EU Green paper on adapting to climate change. Delegates also took part in workshops discussing next steps.

Delegates were keen to discuss the implications of the project and also commended the quality of our outputs, commenting the quality of project work and communications had made it accessible to a wide range of people.

Importantly this event reached and influenced those in positions able to implement BRANCH’s recommendations and take forward our findings. This was demonstrated by the inclusion of BRANCH as a successful project by a stakeholder at a later event on the EU Green paper on climate change.

Caen final conference 24th September 2007
The Conservatoire du Littoral hosted a costal conference for regional colleagues and stakeholder, with a series of presentations on difference aspects of the English and French coastal research.

The conference helped increase knowledge on the implications of climate change on the Normandy coast and what management options are available. A lot of discussion was had around the role of France’s water agency in taking forward actions.

Kent final conference 27th September 2007
Kent County Council presented the findings of its BRANCH case studied, carried out with partners Alterra and in consultation with local experts and stakeholders.

In Kent, BRANCH research has found woodland, grassland and wetland habitats were not connected well enough to allow wildlife to move in response to climate change. This local conference offered stakeholders the opportunity to discuss how to best use the outputs to inform future conservation and planning and ultimately implement an ecological network for Kent.

KCC cabinet member for environment, highways and waste Councillor Keith Ferrin said: "Climate change is a very real threat to our wildlife worldwide. A major study such as this is hugely important in helping us to understand how we can minimise the impact of change."

He added: "Kent has a diverse range of wildlife, including threatened species, so being part of the BRANCH study was especially important for us."

May 2007

Planners 'training' workshops - May/June 2007
As part of BRANCH's planner 'training' programme a series of workshops to help planners better respond to the challenge of adapting to climate change, are being run in the South East. For further informaion see Tools for planners

UK coastal stakeholder event - London, 22 June 2007
"Practical spatial planning options for biodiversity on the coast under a changing climate"

This workshop will present and discuss the coastal aspect of the project that has focussed on coastal cell 5 of Hampshire’s coast; modelling the impact of sea-level rise on coastal habitats and how this can be accommodated with reference to the requirements of the EU Habitat Directive and other planning constraints.

The event aims to develop this work further by engaging spatial planners, coastal managers and other professionals with an interest in the coast, in a discussion around research outcomes and recommendations.

• Download invite
• Venue directions - Medical Research Council, 20 Park Crescent, London W1B 1AL

Attendance is free. To register or for further information please email s.e.hanson@soton.ac.uk by 31st May.

On the 18th April the coastal working group held the last in a series of local workshops presenting the results of research carried out at case study sites along the south coast. This event was hosted on the Isle of wight and discussed the results from modelling along the south-west undercliff and Newtown estuary, with local planners.

BRANCH's Final conference - 20 September 2007
Partners will host our final conference at the Hotel Silken Berlaymont, Central Brussels on Thursday 20 September 2007. The event is designed for spatial planners, policy makers, climate change and ecological scientists and major land managers in Europe. We will present our final findings, reflections from the European perspective and give attendees the opportunity to discuss our recommendations in parallel thematic sessions. A programme will be posted shortly.

March 2007

Discussing results with stakeholders
BRANCH partners were busy in March hosting workshops to present and discuss recent research results, particularly from our case studies, with stakeholders. Offering end-users an opportunity to consider how our results and recommendations can be used to inform their work.

Materials from these events are available under reports and publications

Maas-Duinen National Park, Provincie Limburg; Restored corridor; Bird hide in the park. BRANCH project

Archive news

November 2006

Spreading the word - BRANCH partners continue to promote the project's messages and outputs across Europe and beyond . Presentations have been given to a range of audiences, from local planners through to national government offices and the European Commission:

• UK's Royal Society for the Protection of Birds 'Wetland vision' national conference, Newcastle, England.
• EU-China Partnership on climate change's 'Vulnerability and adaptation to climate change' conference, Beijing, China.
• Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality's national Green Adaptation Day, Den Haag, Netherlands.
• INTERREG IIIB North West Europe communications seminar, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
• EUROSITE annual conference 'Managing sites with a changing climate', Orleans, France.

Three stakeholder seminars took place in October (see reports and publications). Attended by ecologists, local authority planners, land owners, site managers and others, these provided a great opportunity for us to present findings to date and discuss how these can best be refined for and implemented by end-users.

September 2006

Science conference and study tour - Tuesday 10th October
"From science to policy: Planning for the impacts of climate change on wildlife in Kent (2)".

This conference, aimed at planners and ecologists, is an opportunity for BRANCH partners to discuss some of our modelling results and interpretation with stakeholders. ECI have been discovering some of the possible impacts of climate change on species at the European level, while Alterra have been assessing the vulnerability of certain species and habitats to climate change, identifying spatial 'bottlenecks' in the landscape in the Kent case study.

Following the conference there is the opportunity attend a site visit to Wye Downs Crundale National Nature Reserve and around the Ashford Growth area, to discuss the implications of BRANCH's results within the landscape. To register or for further details email enquiries@branchproject.org

Download invite (pdf)
Directions to venue - Oakwood house (pdf)

Coastal stakeholder workshops
2 morning events aimed at South East England local planners. This is an opportunity for planners to view the modelling results and future simulations of two case study sites under different climate change scenarios. The events will aid planners in interpreting and using these results in planning policy, such as LDFs.

Monday 16th October - Stauton Country Park (Langstone harbour case study )
Tuesday 17th October - Royal Victoria Country Park (Hamble river case study)

For further details email enquiries@branchproject.org

June 2006

BRANCH attended the 6th annual DG Environment's Greenweek in Brussels. The focus of this year's conference and exhibition was the need to halt the steady loss of biodiversity being witnessed across Europe.

The BRANCH stand attracted a variety of interested visitors from across the member states, including planners, politicians and researchers. The display demonstrated the development of our tools for planners, including species' climate space projections and simulation of landscape change at the coast under different management regimes. see presentation

January 2006

Representatives from DG Environment, DG Regio, DG Research and the European Environmental Agency met with BRANCH partners in Brussels and where presented with the findings of the project’s Policy review to date. Delegates were asked to discuss immerging issues at the European scale and possible priorities needed to encourage the incorporation of climate change adaptation and space for wildlife at all levels of spatial planning policy.

Species vulnerability maps produced by the Environmental Change Institute were also demonstrated to the delegates, as a possible tool to help planners. An important aim of BRANCH is to ensure our final products are useful to planners by developing them in consultation with end users.

October 2005

BRANCH Partners are engaging stakeholders in a dialogue throughout the project, to work together to produce better and appropriate outcomes. In October, some key stakeholders were gathered in Winchester (UK), to discuss how Spatial Planning can take account of wildlife in a Changing Climate. Partners and Spatial planners identified what tools and information are needed to help planners prepare policies which secure biodiversity protection and enhancement.

A similar workshop will be held in Brussels in November, with further workshops planned to engage key stakeholders at each stage of the project’s delivery.

July 2005

BRANCH aims to communicate its outputs and key messages to relevant stakeholders and end-users to change thinking on how to tackle nature conservation in a changing climate.

As part of this action, members from the project team attended England’s South East Climate Change Partnership (SEECP) annual forum to discuss and promote the project to a key audience of spatial planners. This event focused on planning spatial responses to climate change from local to European scales, providing case studies and practical guidance to senior planners & decision makers from the UK

May 2005

An important element of BRANCH is transnational cooperation; looking beyond local issues, meeting people from other member states and sectors, exchanging experiences and sharing knowledge.

During a project board meeting in the Netherlands, partners took the opportunity to visit the Schinveld-Mook Ecological Network the Maas-Duinen National Park. This is one of the 12 National Ecological Networks in the Netherlands. Provincie Limburg took partners around habitat re-creation sites where improvements are being made to increase the cohesion of the network by linking habitats.

Partners learnt about the Dutch National Spatial Strategy which sets out a framework for the Dutch planning system and promotes certain land-uses in particular areas, including the creation of space for nature.