sister projects - Wildcard

Rewilding Knowledge Science–Policy Event

Gesche Schifferdecker on October 20, 2026

25 November 2026 | Comet Louise, Brussels

The EU Nature Restoration Regulation (NRR) offers a unique opportunity to scale up ecosystem restoration across Europe. As Member States develop their National Restoration Plans, the challenge is to identify approaches that deliver measurable ecological benefits while remaining economically feasible and socially acceptable.

Organised by the sister projects WILD-E, REWRITE, and us, Wildcard, in collaboration with the Society for Ecological Restoration (SER), this Rewilding Knowledge science–policy event will bring together leading European experts to explore the latest evidence, innovative solutions and practical opportunities for restoring nature at scale.

Across four sessions, participants will examine progress in implementing the NRR, explore the broader evidence base for effective restoration, discuss practical approaches and local experiences, and identify research and innovation needs to accelerate implementation.

The event will cover four key themes:

Session I: Overview and update on NRR implementation
Session II: Evidence-based nature restoration: The big picture
Session III: Evidence-based restoration: Going local and digging deeper
Session IV: Research and innovation needs for effectively implementing the Nature Restoration Regulation

Join us to discover how science and policy can work hand in hand to overcome barriers, unlock opportunities and turn Europe’s restoration ambitions into lasting change for nature and society.

Find more info on the programme here.

New European hub for rewilding science

Gesche Schifferdecker on September 15, 2026

A new European hub, Rewilding Knowledge, is bringing together rewilding research and knowledge to bridge the gap between academia, policy and rewilding action.

Rewilding Knowledge has been developed through a collaboration between three EU Horizon projects, wildE, REWRITE, and us, WILDCARD. While Horizon projects are time-bound, the platform Rewilding Knowledge will ensure that our findings remain accessible to policymakers, land managers, and researchers long after the projects conclude.

Across Europe, a range of different management approaches and tools are enabling nature to adapt to a changing world and drive the restoration of habitats and ecosystems on land and at sea. Rewilding approaches are bringing benefits to climate and biodiversity while addressing the needs of local communities.

Rewilding Knowledge aims to advance both academic and practical understanding of how rewilding science can address the climate and biodiversity crises and support nature restoration across Europe. This research and knowledge has been developed through three rigorous Horizon Europe-funded projects, with high-quality outputs aiming to build a future where rewilding plays a key role in supporting nature restoration and climate adaptation.

By bringing together the latest curated, robust scientific evidence from trusted and reputable sources in Europe, Rewilding Knowledge ensures users can rely on the quality and credibility of the information provided.

Key features include news, blogs, a searchable resource repository featuring reports and policy guidance, videos and podcasts. More content will continue to be added as the site expands and new knowledge and research becomes available.

Built on a foundation of collaboration and connection, Rewilding Knowledge welcomes projects and initiatives from the European rewilding science community to explore opportunities for knowledge sharing and partnership.

Powered by Oppla, Rewilding Knowledge is part of a wider global knowledge network bringing together the latest research on natural capital, ecosystem services and nature-based solutions.

Visit rewildingknowledge.eu to discover the latest European rewilding science.

Reflections at the XIX “Fragile Areas” Conference “Going wild again: Socio-spatial trends in fragile rural areas”

Santiago Alarcón on April 13, 2024

The XIX “Aree Fragili (Fragile Areas)” Conference “Going wild again: Socio-spatial trends in fragile rural areas” took place on 22 and 23 March in Rovigo, Italy. Organised by the Università degli Studi di Trieste and the Department of Land, Environment, Agriculture and Forestry (TESAF) of the Università degli Studi di Padova (UNIPD), the conference was designed to present and discuss rewilding initiatives from different angles.

UNIPD staff delivered four presentations and contributed to the debate as well as to the coordination of two parallel sessions and a round table. Davide Pettenella and Mauro Masiero, involved as researchers in WILDCARD, were the keynote speakers at the conference, addressing the topic “Rewilding between growing wild and renaturalisation: an economic perspective“.

In a dedicated presentation, Laura Secco, also involved in WILDCARD, explored the current state of European forests and the trends of transformative change represented by global initiatives such as the Sustainable Development Goals, the Decade of Ecosystem Restoration and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and their echoes in Europe such as the European New Green Deal and the European Union Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. In this context, she presented two both WILDCARD and the OptFORESTS project, focused on forest genetic resources.

By building on the two projects, she reflected on different though complementary perspectives – i.e., spontaneous rewilding and human-driven processes. From a policy and socioeconomic point of view she discussed how to support forest management practices in order to turn forest socio-ecological systems more resilient.