It was argued at the meeting that results-based payments favour nature-friendly management by offering higher subsidies for more arable land with greater biodiversity and that performance-based payments can therefore be an effective tool in tackling the biodiversity crisis by providing incentives for farmers to create and preserve the benefits of nature on their lands. In the course of the discussions, the following was heard.

Importance of the ecosystem: Since food production depends on nature – be it soil health, pollination or pest control – preserving biodiversity is directly linked to food security.

Fair support for farmers: The EU Nature Restoration Law requires that farmers be fairly compensated for promoting ecosystem services, such as maintaining the abundance of farmland birds and butterflies, or sequestering carbon).

Biodiversity credit scheme: Similar to the carbon credit trading scheme, this system would enable companies to demonstrate their contribution to nature restoration, thereby encouraging private investment in nature conservation.

At the meeting, we came up with lots of ideas on how to proceed with our project. As producers primarily receive information about the objectives and values of support through communication, close collaboration between experts, donors, and farmers is essential. It is important to train more existing experts in the field of ecosystem services and the benefits of nature. It is also important to make the support system more transparent, so that people understand what is paid for and how. For instance, the Irish Corncrake LIFE project has two team members dedicated solely to community engagement. Thanks to the inclusion experts, the initially rather hostile community cooperated well with the project.

Agricultural educational institutions should also play a stronger role: basic knowledge of the importance of biodiversity and nature restoration should form a part of agricultural education.

However, a performance-based approach means not only greater financial support, but also building trust and valuing the work of farmers. Penalties should be avoided, as they discourage farmers from making decisions and discourage them from participating in nature restoration works.

The importance of user-friendly IT systems that support the collection and flow of data between different authorities was strongly emphasised. For instance, under Slovenia’s performance-based support scheme, applicants use a mobile application to evaluate their projects. They register the indicator species found in the meadow area in the application, which can be determined by the colour of the flowers. The application then opens a list of species related to the colour, from which the applicant can select the species. The application then calculates the score for the area and automatically sends it to the Grant Authority, which makes the payment according to the received score. Brands can also support biodiversity, for example, Nature Meat is being developed in Denmark to highlight the benefits of green products.

The LIFE project event emphasised the importance of fostering greater trust and cooperation among all stakeholders to optimise the impact of performance-based grants on biodiversity conservation and restoration initiatives across Europe.

An overview of the enrichment of our own agricultural landscapes, and examples from Flanders, Austria, and Wallonia, can be found here.