Nature Restauration Law
RESULTS OF THE COMPANY VISITS
In September and October we visited five farms in Tyrol, Lower Austria, Upper Austria and Salzburg and discussed the following aspects of the practical implementation of the Renaturation Ordinance with the farmers:
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What do the regulation objectives mean specifically for the company?
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What measures are already being implemented in the company and what could be improved in the future?
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What special requirements need to be taken into account when implementing ideas?
In an exciting online live conversation on November 11, 2024 from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. with all participating farmers, we gave insight into the results of the visits carried out and the implementation options discussed.
The recording of the conversation is available at www.renaturierungsgesetz.at .
" Current projects
Simple. Good.
We are continually confronted with increasing pressure on rare and special habitats and with declining populations of valuable animal species. That's why many people want to do something useful for nature. However, implementing good ideas is often expensive and time-consuming. SIMPLE. GOOD. comes into play here – and shows that things can be done differently.
When you get an idea about how to improve the state of our nature, in many cases its implementation is so complex that it cannot be realized without a project application and financial support. But they do exist - good ideas that are very easy to implement, do not require much effort and sometimes have a big impact. This is how the SIMPLE. GOOD. initiative arised. In this three-year project, simple, easily implementable ideas for creating or improving habitats are presented every three months. The project is a cooperation between "Blühendes Österreich" and "Suske consulting" and is supported by the federal government, the states and the European Union.
All ideas are accompanied by a short video and step-by-step instructions that explain how to implement them in a short and understandable way. These instructions are distributed via the website www.bluehendesoesterreich.at, social media and the magazine "WirTunWas" to encourage other people and companies to follow suit. Everyone is invited to take part in implementing these simple ideas and to show this with a photo. The more people take part, the more motivated it is for others to get involved themselves.
We start with holes.
The first idea comes from a farmer from Upper Austria who has been drilling holes in the posts of his wooden pasture fences for some time to create nesting places for various insects. "All I really need is a cordless screwdriver," he says.
If you have such a simple idea yourself – describe it briefly and send it informally by email to office@suske.at.
More information: www.bluehendesoesterreich.at/einfach-gut
FarmBioNet
Network for Agriculture and Biodiversity
The Farmer-focussed Biodiversity and agricultural knowledge Network (FarmBioNet) project was launched in January 2025. The project, led by Teagasc, the Irish Agriculture and Food Development Authority, is funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe research and innovation programme.
The aim of FarmBioNet is to identify biodiversity-friendly farming practices and help farmers create habitats that provide food, security and protection for biodiversity on their farms.
Under the leadership of Suske Consulting, national agriculture and biodiversity networks will be established, composed of farmers, foresters, researchers, NGOs, consultants and other relevant actors of the agricultural knowledge and innovation system (AKIS). FarmBioNet will use these national networks to collect and disseminate knowledge and information.
Farming for Nature - Celebration
Does society have a message for agriculture?
On November 18th, a cool event took place in the Urania in the first district: Five agricultural companies that were chosen as “Biodiversity Ambassadors” in Austria this year spoke about the hot topic, namely what message society has for agriculture, after a keynote speech by Katharina Kropshofer, head of the nature department of the weekly newspaper “Der Falter” .
Questions such as “What does society expect from agriculture?”, “What can a farm really achieve?” and “What does this mean for the future?” were discussed with the farmers and the audience.
The event also awarded a prize for the favorite story.
For each of the 5 farmers, a 4-minute video of their story was shot – the videos are still available at www.farmingfornature.at
© Image: Robert Harson
