While actively working towards transforming the future design and monitoring of EU rural policies, BESTMAP is very happy to say that our first ever Summer School on modelling policy impacts on ecosystem services and biodiversity was a huge success! It aimed to draw upon developed methods and experiences from the project, operating in five case studies across Europe.

The BESTMAP consortium

The event was hosted by Palacký University Olomouc in the Czech Republic, between 12-16 September 2022 and successfully gathered project partners and early career researchers from all over Europe.

Together with the BESTMAP Project Coordinator Prof. Guy Ziv of the University of Leeds, the consortium members Arjan Gosal, University of Leeds, Meike Will, Birgit Müller, Anne Paulus, Michael Beckmann (UFZ–Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research), Stephanie Roilo, Anna Cord (Technische Universität, Dresden), Tomáš Václavík, Marek Bednář and Bořivoj Šarapatka (Palacký University Olomouc), aimed to present and introduce the participants to different modelling approaches. This includes:

• agent-based modelling,

• biodiversity/species distribution modelling,

• ecosystem services modelling (both provisioning and regulating ecosystem services).

The students also had to learn through practical, interactive exercises about the potentials and limitations of the different modelling approaches. They got hands-on experience with specific models by applying them to real-world data from BESTMAP case studies. 

The BESTMAP consortium exploring the South Moravian Case Study area.

Some of the activities included a field trip to Šardice, "South Moravian Tuscany" where the students could see examples of agri-environmental practices in a traditional agricultural landscape in Czechia. Throughout the insightful field trip to the project's Czech case study, Petr Marada (Palacký University Olomouc) presented impeccable example for successfully implementing agro-environmental climate measures to foster ecosystem services and climate adaptation, that he has applied at his family-ran Marada eco farm. 

Along with the summer school activities, the BESTMAP consortium went over the project's current achievements, challenges and future updates during a 2-day General Assembly. 

Online participants at the BESTMAP General Assembly.