Periodic Reporting for period 1 - CLEVER (Creating leverage to enhance biodiversity outcomes of global biomass trade)
Berichtszeitraum: 2022-09-01 bis 2024-02-29
Global trade can result in economic benefits and increased efficiency in the allocation of resources, but it has also led to undesirable social and environmental outcomes, including for biodiversity. Trade in beef, soy and palm oil has contributed to deforestation and biodiversity loss mainly in exporting countries. Scientific research relying on innovative traceability tools has contributed to placing such links between tropical forest loss and consumption in Europe on the policy agenda. Documenting these links and related causal relationships is often challenging when commodities are imported for non-food uses, such as paper, furniture, and animal feed. We also know little about whether new value chain governance solutions, such as mandatory due diligence, can effectively control the potential undesirable impacts of expanding trade relationships. CLEVER investigates how international trade in non-food biomass impacts the biodiversity in producer countries. The project seeks to identify new leverage points for the sustainable transformation of trade between the EU and selected trading partners in South America and Central Africa. The main goal of the project is to contribute to the design of policy solutions for more sustainable production and consumption, by quantifying biodiversity and other impacts of trade in major raw and processed non-food biomass value chains. This involves the development of improved biodiversity metrics for extended life cycle analyses, a stakeholder co-design approach to developing policy and private governance solution based on policy analysis, and economic analyses of cause-effect relationships between trade dynamics, national and international policy, and biodiversity. Insights from these various lines of research inform our work on GLOBIOM, a global modelling tool, that will be used to assess alternative policy scenarios to reduce the impact of trade on biodiversity.
CLEVER has made substantial progress towards understanding links between trade and biodiversity (Objective I) through the collaborative design of theoretical and conceptual frameworks (e.g. in D2.1) and the development of a new approach to model and predict biodiversity at regional scale (D2.2-3). Key related activities included:
- Internal surveys and interviews with several CLEVER researchers to build the stakeholder maps for soy, timber, and fishmeal/oil trade (T8.1)
- Development of an automated biodiversity data processing pipeline and model development (T2.2-2.3)
- Collaboration for refinement of default characterization factors (CFs) of direct biodiversity loss (WP6) by using biodiversity estimates (WP2);
- GLOBIOM model enhancements to better characterize non-food biomass production practices (T6.1)
We made major advances towards improving empirical evidence on causal relationships between value chain governance and biodiversity (Objective II). Main related activities were:
- Literature review, events, and consultations with stakeholders from stakeholder reference group (T1.1 T4.1 T5.2 T8.3-4)
- Quantitative data compilation, processing, and econometric analyses (T3.1-4)
- Qualitative interviews (N~200) with value chain actors from the focus value chains in Brazil, Cameroon, and Gabon (T4.2-3 T5.1-2)
We created and disseminated co-designed knowledge on potential leverage points for biodiversity conservation (Objective III) building on the following activities:
- Established a Stakeholder Reference Group and internal procedures to govern stakeholder engagement and interactions for co-design (T8.1 T8.3)
- Organized policy-oriented events and workshops with active stakeholder participation and contributions from other cluster projects (T8.4-5)
- Engagement of project staff in international platforms such as IPBES and intensive communication and dissemination activities (T8.5)
- Internal surveys and interviews with several CLEVER researchers to build the stakeholder maps for soy, timber, and fishmeal/oil trade (T8.1)
- Development of an automated biodiversity data processing pipeline and model development (T2.2-2.3)
- Collaboration for refinement of default characterization factors (CFs) of direct biodiversity loss (WP6) by using biodiversity estimates (WP2);
- GLOBIOM model enhancements to better characterize non-food biomass production practices (T6.1)
We made major advances towards improving empirical evidence on causal relationships between value chain governance and biodiversity (Objective II). Main related activities were:
- Literature review, events, and consultations with stakeholders from stakeholder reference group (T1.1 T4.1 T5.2 T8.3-4)
- Quantitative data compilation, processing, and econometric analyses (T3.1-4)
- Qualitative interviews (N~200) with value chain actors from the focus value chains in Brazil, Cameroon, and Gabon (T4.2-3 T5.1-2)
We created and disseminated co-designed knowledge on potential leverage points for biodiversity conservation (Objective III) building on the following activities:
- Established a Stakeholder Reference Group and internal procedures to govern stakeholder engagement and interactions for co-design (T8.1 T8.3)
- Organized policy-oriented events and workshops with active stakeholder participation and contributions from other cluster projects (T8.4-5)
- Engagement of project staff in international platforms such as IPBES and intensive communication and dissemination activities (T8.5)
WP2
- Innovative methodology correcting for sampling effort bias in biodiversity models;
- Improved Biodiversity metrics (Species richness, abundance, and endemism);
* Impacts: more accurate and comprehensive information about biodiversity impacts for planning and expanding conservation efforts.
WP 3
- Sourcing patterns change in response demand shocks in combination with voluntary and mandatory due diligence initiatives as well as to changes in deforestation risk at the supply side;
- Heterogeneous effects of trade policy on aquaculture expansion in young versus mature industries;
* Impacts: Public and private decision-makers develop more effective policy proposals to address indirect drivers of biodiversity loss
WP4 & WP5
- Map of public and private policies and governance mechanisms;
- Value chain maps of five value chains;
- Theoretical framework & Value chain actors’ behavioral responses to the EU Regulation on deforestation-free products (EUDR)
- 2 policy support studies, 3 peer-reviewed publications, 6 presentations at academic conferences and expert workshops.
* Impacts: (1) biodiversity is integrated into public and private decision making; (2) Interdisciplinary biodiversity research around these value chains is more interconnected across Europe, South America, and Central Africa.
WP6
- Estimates of burned areas, as well as productivity and environmental impacts of soy & pulpwood production systems;
- Improvements to the representation of global non-food biomass value chains and trade in modeling;
- Preliminary environmental footprint for soybean imports from Brazil to the EU at the subnational scale, including emissions and resource consumption per unit of soy for the supply chains identified.
* Impacts: (1) biodiversity is integrated into public and private decision making and (2) biodiversity interrelations with climate, water, and food are better known.
WP7
- Communication material to enable co-design of modeling framework & support result communication;
- Analysis of potential future development of selected supply chains and related pressures on biodiversity & Ecosystem Service;
- Analysis on the effectiveness, efficiency and co-benefits of various supply chain policy / governance initiatives.
* Impacts: (1) biodiversity is integrated into public and private decision making; (2) Approaches and strategies to enable transformative societal change linked to CLEVER’s focus value chains are identified at the policy level.
WP8
- Stakeholder mapping for the supply chains considered in Clever;
- Co-designed Modelling Framework for Supply Chain Governance Initiatives;
* Impacts: Effective communication at the science-policy interface on indirect drivers of biodiversity impacts and SDG interrelationships in these value chains leads to more ambitious international environmental policy and conventions; value chain actors mainstream ‘do no harm’ biodiversity strategies informed by CLEVER’s tools and data products.
- Innovative methodology correcting for sampling effort bias in biodiversity models;
- Improved Biodiversity metrics (Species richness, abundance, and endemism);
* Impacts: more accurate and comprehensive information about biodiversity impacts for planning and expanding conservation efforts.
WP 3
- Sourcing patterns change in response demand shocks in combination with voluntary and mandatory due diligence initiatives as well as to changes in deforestation risk at the supply side;
- Heterogeneous effects of trade policy on aquaculture expansion in young versus mature industries;
* Impacts: Public and private decision-makers develop more effective policy proposals to address indirect drivers of biodiversity loss
WP4 & WP5
- Map of public and private policies and governance mechanisms;
- Value chain maps of five value chains;
- Theoretical framework & Value chain actors’ behavioral responses to the EU Regulation on deforestation-free products (EUDR)
- 2 policy support studies, 3 peer-reviewed publications, 6 presentations at academic conferences and expert workshops.
* Impacts: (1) biodiversity is integrated into public and private decision making; (2) Interdisciplinary biodiversity research around these value chains is more interconnected across Europe, South America, and Central Africa.
WP6
- Estimates of burned areas, as well as productivity and environmental impacts of soy & pulpwood production systems;
- Improvements to the representation of global non-food biomass value chains and trade in modeling;
- Preliminary environmental footprint for soybean imports from Brazil to the EU at the subnational scale, including emissions and resource consumption per unit of soy for the supply chains identified.
* Impacts: (1) biodiversity is integrated into public and private decision making and (2) biodiversity interrelations with climate, water, and food are better known.
WP7
- Communication material to enable co-design of modeling framework & support result communication;
- Analysis of potential future development of selected supply chains and related pressures on biodiversity & Ecosystem Service;
- Analysis on the effectiveness, efficiency and co-benefits of various supply chain policy / governance initiatives.
* Impacts: (1) biodiversity is integrated into public and private decision making; (2) Approaches and strategies to enable transformative societal change linked to CLEVER’s focus value chains are identified at the policy level.
WP8
- Stakeholder mapping for the supply chains considered in Clever;
- Co-designed Modelling Framework for Supply Chain Governance Initiatives;
* Impacts: Effective communication at the science-policy interface on indirect drivers of biodiversity impacts and SDG interrelationships in these value chains leads to more ambitious international environmental policy and conventions; value chain actors mainstream ‘do no harm’ biodiversity strategies informed by CLEVER’s tools and data products.