TY - GEN A1 - Lin, Yen-You A1 - Hordasevych, Solomiia A1 - Matias, Denise Margaret S. A1 - Müller, Jens A1 - Aschenbrand, Erik A1 - Kopsieker, Lisa A1 - Ferreira, Ana Filipa T1 - Research in European UNESCO Biosphere Reserves - Workshop Proceedings (Revised) N2 - The international workshop “Research in European UNESCO Biosphere Reserves” took place from 13th to 16th February 2024 at the Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development, Eberswalde, Germany. This event was part of a series of workshops funded by the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation that aim to connect European biosphere reserve practitioners and facilitate the exchange of knowledge and good practices. The workshop brought together a total of 28 participants from 15 European countries, including managers and researchers, and it built on the Eberswalde Declaration and the Lima Action Plan to advance research in biosphere reserves. Specific themes addressed in the workshop included: current research progress, research gaps and needs, monitoring and research data accessibility/management and research collaborations. The workshop emphasised the critical intersection of scientific research, policymaking and the practical realities of managing biosphere reserves, highlighting both the achievements and ongoing challenges faced by biosphere reserve practitioners and researchers in Europe while offering opportunities to exchange and connect, as well as an outlook for future action and collaboration. Biosphere reserves serve as invaluable landscapes for learning and research, and they contribute significantly towards improving the effectiveness of management measures. Workshop discussions highlighted the diversity of research projects conducted across a broad spectrum of topics, involving numerous institutions and stakeholders. However, a noticeable gap exists between scientific and academic requirements, policy and funding cycles and the on-the-ground realities of biosphere reserve management, which often hinders progress due to a lack of collaboration and communication between managers, practitioners and researchers, thereby negatively affecting effective management and governance. A recurring theme is the lack of visibility of biosphere reserves, as they frequently overlap with other protected area categories that have higher visibility among the population and policymakers alike. Some possible solutions suggested in the workshop included raising awareness among funders about the value of biosphere reserves and their contribution to broader policy objectives, enhancing experience and result-sharing across the network, establishing and sharing databases to connect researchers with practitioners, co-designing projects to foster collaboration among a diverse range of stakeholders and the better integration of research results into management practices. KW - Biosphere Reserve KW - Eberswalde Declaration KW - Man and the Biosphere Programme KW - UNESCO Y1 - 2025 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:eb1-opus-10075 SP - 1 EP - 36 ER -