HORIZON-CL6-2026-01-BIODIV-03-two-stage

Latvijas Valsts Meži (LVM) is seeking to join a consortium for the Horizon Europe call HORIZON-CL6-2026-01-BIODIV-03-two-stage: Unlocking the potential of citizen action for nature protection and restoration.

Our proposal is based on our long-term strategy for sustainable forest and biodiversity management, which integrates science-based practices, digital innovation, and stakeholder engagement.

We have experience in large-scale habitat restoration, biodiversity monitoring, and citizen-engagement initiatives (including LatViaNature and other national and EU projects), where we are involved in developing and testing innovative methods to reduce natural disturbances in forest habitats, in particular - wooded coastal dunes, lichen-rich pine forests, and coniferous forests.

In addition, we are involved in developing and testing monitoring methodologies to assess changes in forest habitats using remote sensing tools.

Our key biodiversity restoration and citizen engagement experience is grounded in our active role in previous large scale project related on Natura 2000 site and Habitat restoration (for example, LIFE-IP LatViaNature project), Large-Scale Peatland & Wetland restoration, and our Long-running “Nemēslo mežā” campaign and Cūkmena detektīvi eco-program, that involves thousands of children and educators in forest protection and biodiversity awareness.

We have also created and maintain more than 150 nature trails and recreation sites, which improve public access to forests and educates on biodiversity importance.

Value we could bring to the consortium:

1. Scale & Resources: LVM Manages 1.62 million ha of state land, of including 1.39 million ha of forests, of which 23% (380 thousand ha) are nature protection areas, which allows for large pilot areas for biodiversity and citizen-engagement innovation projects.

2. Community reach - strong capacity for public engagement, education, and mobilization through established programs and partnerships.

3. Expertise in forest management, ecological restoration, and digital innovation (e.g., LVM GEO platform for spatial data and monitoring).