An important core of the ECCB 2026 conference are the sessions with contributions showing us the state-of-the-art in effective biodiversity conservation. The contributions are divided in a number of general categories, under which the submissions for oral and poster presentations should fall. An overview is provided below:

Ecosystem types

    1. Conservation in agricultural lands
      Work on farmland species ecology, impact of agricultural practices on biodiversity, case studies, biodiversity-friendly agricultural practices, CAP implementation, agroecology, agro-food chain, agricultural policy, etc
    2. Forest conservation and old-growth woods
      Work on forest species ecology, forest biodiversity, forest ecosystem function in the context of effective conservation, integrating biodiversity in forest management, adaptive management, identifying, mapping and preserving old-growth forests, in the frame of the Nature Restoration Regulation and the European Forest Strategy.
    3. Grassland conservation and management
      Work on the effective conservation of grasslands, the ecological insights essential to conserve these habitats, grassland practices, and sustainable adaptive grassland management.
    4. Mountain conservation
      Work on mountain ecosystem conservation. Topics include mountainous biodiversity and endemism, the role of mountains as climate refugia, human pressures such as tourism and livestock raising, social challenges, sustainable development of less-favoured mountainous regions, governance, and resilience.
    5. Urban ecology and greening
      Work on urban biodiversity in the frame of the Nature Restoration Regulation. Topics include urban communities, nature-based solutions for urban habitat restoration, green infrastructure, greening initiatives, biodiversity-friendly practices, and urban planning and strategies for enhancing urban ecosystem health and resilience.
    6. Soil biodiversity conservation and restoration
      Work on soil biodiversity conservation, including soil biota ecology, threats, monitoring and management, restoration of contaminated soils, and innovative methods and techniques for soil assessment, monitoring, and restoration, in the frame of the EU Soil Strategy and the forthcoming Soil Monitoring Law
    7. Conservation of freshwater habitats
      Work on the conservation and restoration of freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity, including rivers, lakes, and wetlands. Topics include water quality, species and community monitoring, adaptive management, restoration projects, river connectivity assessment and restoration, in the frame of the Nature Restoration Regulation and the Water Framework Directive.
    8. Marine life conservation and fisheries
      Work on marine biodiversity, fisheries management, and threats to marine environments such as pollution. Topics include monitoring, conservation project outcomes, adaptive management, and case studies advancing the protection and sustainable use of marine ecosystems.

 

Threats

    1. Biosecurity and One-Health
      Work on wildlife diseases, antimicrobial resistance, and emerging zoonoses. Topics include One Health approaches linking human, animal, and environmental health, as well as strategies for biosecurity, risk reduction, and integrating human health considerations into conservation practice.
    2. Habitat modification
      Work on land use change impacts on nature with a focus on effects of infrastructure (transport, urban, industry facilities). Topics can include land fragmentation, habitat loss, Environmental Impact Assessment Studies, biodiversity-inclusive spatial planning, etc.
    3. Conflicts between green energy transition and conservation
      Work examining the impacts and addressing the nexus of renewable energy development vs biodiversity, ecosystem function, and resource use. Topics include responses of local communities, spatial planning, policy solutions, and innovative strategies to align green energy transition with effective nature conservation.
    4. Climate change and biodiversity: impacts and adaptation
      Work on the impacts of climate change on species, habitats, and ecosystem functions and its consequences for effective conservation. Topics include distribution shifts, phenology, morphology, risk reduction, mitigation and adaptation strategies to integrate climate resilience into conservation planning and management.
    5. Invasive species management
      Work on the ecology, spread, and impacts of invasive species, as well as detection, control, and biosecurity measures. Topics include distribution patterns, management strategies, and policy responses for mitigating risks to native biodiversity and ecosystem health.
    6. Impacts of pollution
      Work on the impacts of all forms of pollution on biodiversity and human health, including microplastics, water, air, soil, and light pollution, addressing monitoring methods, sources, mitigation strategies, and solutions to reduce pollution effects on conservation efforts

 

Tools

    1. Recent developments in eDNA monitoring
      Work on eDNA monitoring developments with cross-ecosystem and cross-taxa applications. Market-ready products are welcome to be presented
    2. Automated detection for conservation
      Methodological work on innovative tools, technologies, and methodologies for automated data collection, monitoring, management (including automatic camera systems, bioacoustics and remote sensing), and analysis in conservation. Topics include AI applications, software solutions, including market-ready products advancing research, decision-making, and conservation practice.
    3. Biodiversity (key performance) indicators
      Work on methods, and tools to derive indicators for monitoring biodiversity and ecosystem health. Topics include use of open-access large datasets, reporting on indicators, indicator and valuation systems, including but not limited to the essential Biodiversity Variables (EBVs)

 

Solutions

    1. Solutions from recent conservation projects
      The session invites work that presents the activities and the outcomes of EU-funded (LIFE, Biodiversa, Horizon etc) projects, NGO conservation projects and beyond. Both research and practical studies are welcome, especially those that share activities, lessons learned, and practical knowledge to advance efficient biodiversity conservation in Europe and beyond. A networking session to enhance the links of academia with NGOs
    2. Evaluation of best practices in conservation
      Work that evaluate, synthesize, or demonstrate evidence-based effective approaches in conservation, including systematic reviews, meta-analyses, adaptive management frameworks, and the integration of scientific evidence into policy and practice. Submissions are encouraged that assess the effectiveness of conservation actions, and offer concrete measures and best practices to enhance knowledge sharing and application among scientists and practitioners
    3. Promoting pollinators and pest control agents
      Work on action plans, habitat management, and strategies to halt and reverse pollinator loss and promote pest control agents. Topics include threats and drivers, innovative conservation approaches, and case studies demonstrating effective solutions for supporting wild and managed pollinator populations. Also initiatives to promote pollinators and pest control agents as vehicles to support nature conservation are strongly encouraged.
    4. Wilderness and rewilding
      Work on defining, mapping, and restoring wilderness, as well as rewilding practices that promote ecological processes, biodiversity recovery, and landscape connectivity. Case studies, conceptual advances, and innovative approaches to foster wilderness and rewilding are especially encouraged. Case studies are mostly welcome from non-European countries
    5. Human-wildlife conflict mitigation
      Work presenting research and solutions for mitigating human–wildlife conflict and promoting coexistence. Topics include conflict drivers, innovative mitigation strategies, community engagement, policy approaches, and successful case studies advancing harmonious relationships between people and wild
    6. Ex-situ conservation
      Work on the conservation of biodiversity outside natural habitats, including the roles of zoos, botanical gardens, seed banks, gene banks, and captive breeding or propagation programs. Topics may include strategies for species reintroduction, advances in ex-situ technologies, genetic resource management, and the integration of ex-situ and in-situ conservation efforts.
    7. Nature-based solutions for effective conservation
      Restoration of degraded habitats and implementation of nature-based solutions across all ecosystem types-freshwater, terrestrial, urban, and agricultural-with emphasis on innovative approaches and links to the Nature Restoration Regulation.
    8. Community engagement, community-based conservation
      Community-based conservation empowers local people to protect and manage natural resources, fostering stewardship, cultural connection, and sustainable livelihoods through active community engagement.

 

Fundamentals

    1. Cross-cutting ecological themes for species conservation and restoration
      Work increasing the fundamental ecological knowledge base (i.e. on species performance, species interactions and ecosystem functioning) for conservation and restoration management practices. These Work should be on cross-cutting themes, i.e. relevant across different ecosystem types and applicable to multiple taxa. Work should explicitly link ecological understanding to management/conservation measures/restoration results. When a specific ecosystem is targeted, Work will be presented under the respective session (see general category 2.).
    2. Functional ecology insights for effective conservation
      Work discussing how insights in the functional aspects of biodiversity (i.e. species traits and functional diversity) can help effective conservation
    3. Using ecosystem services for conservation
      Work discussing the lastest insights from research on ecosystem services and nature’s benefits (including ecosystem health) evaluation for effective conservation practices.
    4. Conservation genetics, e-DNA, phylogenetics for effective conservation
      Work on how insights in genetic diversity, phylogenetics, restoration genomics and evolution aid effective conservation efforts
    5. The social component of conservation
      Work exploring the broader social, cultural, and psychological aspects of conservation. Topics include environmental sociology and psychology, human-nature relationships, well-being, behavioral change, participatory governance, public engagement, and innovative interdisciplinary research advancing our understanding of people’s roles in conservation.

 

Socio-cultural

    1. Indigenous and local knowledge in conservation
      Work highlighting the role of indigenous and local knowledge systems in biodiversity conservation. Topics include co-management, traditional ecological practices, integration with scientific approaches, knowledge sovereignty, and case studies demonstrating the value of place-based knowledge for effective, culturally relevant conservation outcomes.
    2. Environmental justice and equity
      Work exploring the intersections of biodiversity conservation with social justice, equity, and inclusion. Topics include access to nature, fair distribution of conservation benefits and burdens, indigenous rights, participatory approaches, and addressing disparities in environmental outcomes across communities and regions

 

Economics

    1. Business, tourism, and recreational activities for biodiversity
      Work on sustainable business practices, biodiversity finance, environmental economics, and ecosystem service monetary valuation. Topics include green investments, corporate responsibility, case studies, and innovative market-based mechanisms supporting biodiversity conservation and integrating nature into economic decision-making.
    2. Payment for ecosystem services (PES)
      Work exploring the economic and institutional dimensions of conservation through Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES). Topics include incentive-based conservation, effectiveness and monitoring of PES schemes, behavioral responses to financial incentives, and innovative approaches linking ecosystem service valuation with sustainable development and biodiversity conservation.

 

Governance

    1. Conservation law and policy
      Work examining the enforcement and effectiveness of conservation laws, policy gaps and conflicts, integration of biodiversity into sectoral policies, new legislative developments, and progress toward Sustainable Development Goals and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework targets.
    2. Protected areas: delineation and management
      Work on the delineation, implementation, governance, and connectivity of protected areas, including Natura 2000. Topics include strict protection zoning and criteria, criteria enlargement and connectivity of protected areas, as well as case studies demonstrating effective strategies and management at the landscape scale.
    3. Transboundary conservation
      Work on landscape ecology focussing on large-scale connectivity. This session welcomes Work for cross-border conservation, including transboundary Natura 2000 initiatives, and case studies illustrating collaborative approaches for managing biodiversity in green belts across political boundaries.
    4. Global conservation priorities and planetary limits
      Work addressing global conservation priorities, Key-Biodiversity-Areas, global responses to ecological and climate crises, conservation tele-coupling and the relationships between conservation and planetary boundaries
    5. Conservation in conflict zones
      Work exploring biodiversity conservation in regions affected by war, political instability, or humanitarian crises. Focus areas include impacts of borders and barriers, refugee settlements, assessing ecological catastrophes, and innovative monitoring and management approaches in challenging, conflict-affected landscapes

 

Knowledge exchange

    1. Conservation education curricula in Europe and beyond
      Short (5-minute) presentations of university curricula at post-graduate level and doctoral level, joint degrees on international conservation education programs, as a forum for knowledge share for young conservationists and academia networking
    2. Conservation science communication
      Work on environmental education, science communication, public engagement, and biodiversity marketing. Topics include social media, fundraising, professional skill-building, and strategies for reaching diverse audiences to enhance conservation impact and awareness.
    3. Citizen science and conservation
      Work showcasing citizen science initiatives for biodiversity and ecosystem monitoring, assessing human pressures, and fostering public engagement. Local and national citizen-science projects can be presented, addressing issues such as method harmonization, data sharing policies, tools to increase public engagement.