ALFAwetlands: informing the future of wetland restoration in Europe

The conference brought together more than 200 in-person and online policymakers, researchers, wetland restoration practitioners, and other stakeholders from across Europe to present the projects’ main results and discuss how scientific knowledge and practical restoration experience can support the future of European wetlands.  The event also provided a platform to connect research results with European climate, biodiversity and nature restoration objectives.

From four years of research to practical wetland solutions

Wetlands are essential for climate regulation, biodiversity, water management and resilient landscapes, yet many European wetlands remain degraded by drainage, land-use change, and other pressures.

The ALFAwetlands project, in which IIASA is a partner, and its sister initiative REWET, have approached these challenges from complementary perspectives, combining research, monitoring, modeling, restoration experiments, stakeholder engagement, and policy advocacy.

The final conference showcased key scientific findings, innovations and policy-relevant results developed by the two projects.

Participants also discussed how the knowledge, tools and approaches developed during ALFAwetlands and REWET can continue to support effective and evidence-based wetland restoration across Europe.

Connecting science and policy

A particular focus of the conference was on translating research into action.

ALFAwetlands has worked to improve the European geospatial knowledge base on wetlands, assess different restoration pathways and their climate, biodiversity, ecosystem service, social, and economic implications, and develop restoration approaches through Living Labs and co-creation with stakeholders.

The latest ALFAwetlands policy brief, “Rewetting for Resilience”, was presented at the conference. Developed with contributions from IIASA experts Juraj Balkovic, Fanqi Vicky Jia, and Amanda Palazzo, it outlines how rewetting agriculturally used peatlands delivers exceptional climate benefits as well as biodiversity recovery and how paludiculture could transform restoration economics into viable business opportunities aligned with EU climate neutrality.

“Restoring even a relatively small area of agriculturally used peatlands can substantially reduce emissions and support EU climate neutrality. Paludiculture can make restoration more economically viable by creating productive uses and new business opportunities on wet peatlands,” says IIASA Researcher Fanqi Vicky Jia.

The policy brief provides recommendations to help translate these findings into action and support the transition from restoration targets to effective implementation.

“Our policy brief shows that peatland restoration can contribute to climate and biodiversity goals while creating opportunities for economically viable land use. With coherent policies and stronger demand for paludiculture products, these recommendations can help translate European restoration targets into practical action on the ground,” says IIASA Senior Researcher and ALFAwetlands Project Lead Juraj Balkovic.

The conference also presented results from the sister project REWET and the joint white paper “Prioritizing Wetland Conservation and Restoration in Europe: United Voices for More Policy Impact.” The white paper brings together evidence from seven EU-funded wetland projects and identifies four policy priorities for accelerating wetland conservation and restoration.

A joint legacy for European wetland restoration

The Final Conference marked an important milestone for both ALFAwetlands and REWET but also provides an opportunity to look forward.

Knowledge generated by the projects, including scientific evidence, monitoring approaches, models, restoration experiences, stakeholder engagement methods, policy recommendations and openly available resources, can continue to support researchers, authorities, land managers and practitioners beyond the projects’ lifetime.

The joint event encouraged new partnerships and continued exchange across the European wetland restoration community.

By bringing together scientific knowledge, practical experience and policy perspectives, ALFAwetlands and REWET aim to help strengthen the bridge between wetland research and restoration implementation and contribute to healthier, more resilient European landscapes.