Rationale for a network of long term socio-ecological research sites in European cultural landscapes

Agriculture and forestry have transformed European Landscape almost to a full extent over millennia. A major consequence is that changing human activities have shaped ecological systems and the continuation of these activities is, in many instances, a prerequisite for the conservation of ecological characteristics. The construction of biodiversity by human activities since the Neolithic can be studied through archaeological records and reconstruction of land use history based on archival materials and historical cadastral maps. The case of biodiversity is striking, as many species are so dependent on historical land uses that they vanish in case of drastic land use changes either in the direction of abandonment or in the direction of more intensive usages. In this context, the understanding of the role of history, social and policy regimes are of overriding importance as an entry point to study biodiversity. The transitions from the area-based energy system of agricultural societies to the fossil-fuel based industrial energy system is a major driver of these changes. The Zones Atelier Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) network in France is an example of a national network of research sites that provides an opportunity to analyse the effects of climatic differences and local practices on biodiversity. But an additional network across the European Union is necessary to understand the role of high-level policies such as the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The CAP is a main driver of land use in agricultural/ rural landscapes across Europe. It became the rule in Western Europe at different dates since 1970 and is now implemented in Central and Eastern Europe where agriculture has been collectively or State run till 1990. Other relevant policies include the aim to double renewable energy use, including biomass, as stated in the EU white book on renewable energy, and European policies on spatial planning, trans-european networks (TENs), etc. In this paper we describe the development of national and European networks of sites designed to address questions related to biodiversity and society. The eventual aim is to establish a pan-European network of LT(S)ER sites (where the S stands for socio-economic) through which we can understand the main policy and socio-economic drivers affecting biodiversity loss.