Action Week

"Achtung Artenvielfalt!"

The nationwide action week for the protection of biodiversity


Throwback to the third round of the action week “Achtung Artenvielfalt!” in 2023.

From apple varieties to migratory birds: From October 9-15, 2023, the action week “Achtung Artenvielfalt!” took place for the third time. FEdA and the Leibniz Natural History Museums once again brought together events across Germany to focus attention on the role of biodiversity in our lives.

Nature conservation associations, museums, zoos, gardens and research institutions across Germany got involved with over 70 events both online and offline. Discussion rounds, special guided tours in museums and botanical gardens, documentary films, podcasts and excursions. FEdA has published the nationwide study “Zielvorstellung Biodiversität – Biodiversitätsbewusstsein in der Land- und Forstwirtschaft”, which was carried out by ISOE, and discussed the state of biodiversity awareness in agriculture and forestry in an expert discussion. Watch the recording of the discussion.

Prominent personalities have campaigned for biodiversity. Löwenzahn presenter Guido Hammesfahr emphasized that the topic of biodiversity concerns us all. Documentary filmmaker and author Christian Ehrlich explains how closely interlinked the interplay of species is – and what the extinction of even just one species means.

Faktencheck Artenvielfalt, the FEdA project for the comprehensive assessment and evaluation of biodiversity in Germany, presented the most important habitats in Germany on social media this year. The authors focused on a different habitat every day and explained what threatens it and what protects it. Read the posts here.

The campaign week is organized by the Research Initiative for the Conservation of Biodiversity (FEdA) and the Leibniz Natural History Museums – the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin, the Senckenberg Museums in Frankfurt am Main, Görlitz & Dresden and the Leibniz Institute for the Analysis of Biodiversity Change in Bonn & Hamburg. The nationwide campaign week “Attention Biodiversity!” was launched in 2021 by the FEdA and the Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung.

Message from Bettina Stark-Watzinger, Federal Minister for Education and Research (BMBF)

„Der Erhalt der Biodiversität ist eine der großen Herausforderungen unserer Zeit. Denn die schwindende biologische Vielfalt gefährdet unsere Lebensgrundlage. Das Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF) hat deshalb bereits vor vier Jahren die Forschungsinitiative zum Erhalt der Artenvielfalt (FEdA) geschaffen. Im Rahmen dieser werden höchst aktuelle Ansätze untersucht und wichtige Handlungsoptionen entwickelt, mit denen wir den unterschiedlichen Herausforderungen begegnen können. Mit der Aktionswoche ‚Achtung Artenvielfalt!‘ machen wir darauf aufmerksam: In digitalen, analogen und interdisziplinären Formaten werden Hintergründe und Handlungsmöglichkeiten für eine nachhaltige Artenvielfalt mit Expertinnen und Experten diskutiert und erfahrbar gemacht.“

 

“Preserving biodiversity is one of the greatest challenges of our time. After all, dwindling biodiversity is endangering the basis of our existence. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) therefore set up the Research Initiative for the Conservation of Biodiversity (FEdA) four years ago. As part of this initiative, highly topical approaches are being investigated and important options for action developed with which we can meet the various challenges. We are drawing attention to this with the ‘Attention Biodiversity! In digital, analog and interdisciplinary formats, backgrounds and options for action for sustainable biodiversity are discussed with experts and made tangible.”

Biodiversity is all around us, concerns us all – and is often taken for granted. However, the earth is currently experiencing the greatest mass extinction since the end of the dinosaurs. In order to raise public awareness of the value and protection of biodiversity, the BMBF Research Initiative for the Conservation of Biodiversity (FEdA) has joined forces with the Leibniz Natural History Museums to call for the nationwide “Attention Biodiversity!” campaign week.

“Climate change and species extinction are the coupled consequences of our overexploitation of nature; both pose a massive threat to our future and must be combated together,” explains Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Volker Mosbrugger, spokesperson for the FEdA. “The climate crisis has now reached the public eye – we want to raise awareness of the biodiversity crisis with our ‘Biodiversity Awareness Week’.” Biodiversity is the central basis of life: intact nature is essential for the production of food, clean water, breathable air, resilience to extreme weather conditions, human well-being and quality of life.

Video messages from our celebrity supporters 2023