On 22 June 2021, the COST Association was invited to participate in the “Aquatic Ecosystem services on the science-policy-practice connection: challenges and opportunities” event organised by the AQUATAP-ES network, part of the Water Joint Programming Initiative (JPI). On this occasion, Dr Ronald de Bruin highlighted the existing synergies between COST and the AQUATAP-ES network and reminded the attendees that several running COST Actions tackle similar topics and could provide some interesting opportunities.
During the AQUATAP-ES event, 6 panellists, including Dr Ronald de Bruin were invited to answer some of the pressing questions regarding “Ecosystem Services Approach”, a way of understanding the complex relationships between nature and humans to support decision-making and to ensure the sustainable use, management and conservation of resources. One of the main event’s objectives was also to define what the future holds and to present possible opportunities for AQUATAP-ES’s members
Existing synergies between COST and the AQUATAP-ES network
The session gave Dr de Bruin the opportunity to present COST and to point out the existing synergies between the AQUATAP-ES community and COST Actions. “For example,” he explained,“the focus on creating a critical mass of research and technological excellence, the integration and sharing of knowledge, and in particular training, capacity building and the networking of researchers and innovators active in a scientific field of common interest, are all very much in line with the objectives and key features of COST Actions”. Dr de Bruin’s intervention also focused on explaining how members from sustaining the AQUATAP-ES community can submit a proposal for Actions, as an attempt to carry forward the network and their members.
Furthermore, Dr de Bruin highlighted the possibility to join running COST Actions in areas of interest to the AQUATAP-ES network. Indeed, AQUATAP-ES is looking for opportunities to continue its work, albeit in a revised context, as well as epand its network. “COST Actions, with their bottom-up approach, open and expandable participation, and a wealth of networking opportunities, offer the right tools for a network that is driven by excellence and thrives on interdisciplinary and international cooperation”, explained Ronald de Bruin. About 20 running COST Actions are active in the broader areas of aquatic Ecosystems Services and water management, making AQUATAP-ES and COST complementary.
During the discussion, speakers also emphasised the importance of resource management in developing countries for which integrating water management policies should be a priority. Through different events, COST has already addressed the broader issue of sustainable water management. For instance, in June 2019, a COST Connect event on the future of European Ocean Research showed how COST Actions aim to increase the understanding of the function of marine ecosystems and their response to climate change. More recently, in March 2021, a COST Connect on Europe-Africa Cooperation showed that a quarter of African countries participates in one or more of the 290 running Actions, some of them addressing topics such as marine biotechnology for instance.
“The pooling of resources helps to mobilise the best brains, while being inclusive at the same time”, concluded Dr Ronald de Bruin, “(…) COST Actions will continue to provide the right tools for Thematic Annual Programming networks like AQUATAP-ES that are looking to sustain their networking activities”.
European initiative to better manage aquatic ecosystem services: AQUATAP-ES
Today’s event was a reminder that managing water is one of the key challenges faced by humankind to preserve the Earth in a sustainable manner. Water crises are indeed one of the major risks to the economy and to society in the coming years. As examples, 80% of wastewater are discharged untreated, and two thirds of the global population could be facing water stress by 2025.
In this context, the Water JPI, as an inter-governmental collaboration, ambitions to achieve sustainable water systems for a sustainable economy in Europe and abroad. Thus, the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA), sitting under the Water JPI, is establishing guiding principles for the future while making them a priority for various stakeholders (policy makers, regulatory agencies, researchers and end users). The main topics addressed by the Water JPI SRIA are ecosystems, health and wellbeing, water value, and usage and sustainable water manager.
For a period of two years (2019-2021), AQUATEP-ES, a pilot Thematic Annual Programming (TAP) on Ecosystems Services, a small network of European researchers, sought to develop approaches to assess and optimise the value of ecosystem services. Under the auspices of the Water JPI SRIA, the network triedto better understand ecosystem services by relying on research about the ecological functioning of aquatic, riparian and groundwater ecosystems, as well as identifying stakeholders’ needs.
Today’s AQUATAP-ES stakeholders showcase event, by bringing together researchers, water and catchment managers, and policy makers aimed to identify common challenges and solutions to better integrate the Ecosystem Services Approach into everyday management of our waters.
Related COST Actions
WATer isotopeS in the critical zONe: from groundwater recharge to plant transpiration
European network for Mediterranean cyclones in weather and climate
Unifying Approaches to Marine Connectivity for improved Resource Management for the Seas
Conservation of freshwater mussels: a pan-European approach
European transdisciplinary networking platform for marine biotechnology
Taste and Odor in early diagnosis of source and drinking Water Problems
Genomic BIodiversity Knowledge for Resilient Ecosystems
Accelerating Global science In Tsunami HAzard and Risk analysis
The European Aquatic Animal Tracking Network
A pan-European Network for Marine Renewable Energy
Harmonization of UAS techniques for agricultural and natural ecosystems monitoring
Natural Flood Retention on Private Land
Knowledge conversion for enhancing management of European riparian ecosystem and services