How does international trade in agricultural and forest products affect biodiversity? CLEVER, a research project led by the University of Bonn in collaboration with EFI Bonn and ten other partners from Germany, Austria, the United Kingdom, Spain, Sweden, Cameroon and Brazil investigates this question, particularly for animal feed, energy crops, tropical timber, and aquacultures. In collaboration with stakeholders from politics, the private sector and civil society, the researchers develop innovative solutions for more sustainable production and consumption. The European Union is funding the project with around €2.600.000.
CLEVER aims to improve the scientific basis for measuring, analyzing and computer-assisted simulation of links between international trade in agricultural and forest products and biodiversity, aiming at enhancing transformative change for biodiversity policy making, addressing indirect drivers of biodiversity loss, and upscaling corresponding transformative innovations. Overall, the CLEVER consortium will leverage knowledge and tools to strengthen IPBES and IPCC and enhance science-industry cooperation for sustainable bioeconomic transformation.
EFI leads a work package on actor behavior and leverage points along international value chains, analyzing the factual impacts of value chain-related public policies and private governance mechanisms on the behavioral patterns of value chain actors. EFI also co-leads a work package on theories of change and policy analysis for public and private value chain interventions, which studies the evolution and design of key transnational, EU and national policies and governance mechanisms regulating biomass supply chains in selected countries. Under these work packages, EFI’s regional focus of work lies on timber trade between the EU and Cameroon/Democratic Republic of the Congo.
As part of the work package on Stakeholder Engagement and Communication, EFI leads tasks on dissemination, result exploitation and communication (DEC). Here, a DEC Strategy will be developed based on CLEVER’s objectives and stakeholder’s needs. Furthermore, EFI will support DEC activities during the project and potential further outreach after project completion.