Introduction
Germany's
biodiversity is estimated as 28000 plant species, of which 6450
species are vascular plants, about 45000 species of animals and an
uncounted number of fungi and microorganisms. Ecuador's
biodiversity is less well known, but estimating it five-fold higher
at least with respect to plants, may be fair. In a plain sense, the
term "biodiversity" refers to the number of species,
genomes or genes of a selected area say Ecuador or Germany. However,
in a figurative sense, biodiversity also implies the idea of
communities and of interactions. Therefore biodiversity research
connotes more than only inventory research. The dramatic loss of
species caused by global change, and the increasing public interest
in sustainable utilization of ecosystems, resulted in governmental
and non-governmental activities for the worldwide conservation of
activities for the worldwide conservation of biodiversity and finally
in 1992 in the Convention of Rio, the "CBD".
Germany's
participation in international programs and activities
Germany
has signed the CBD and is a member of Conference of the Parties (COP)
since 1993. Biodiversity protection and research are therefore
genuine tasks and obligations shared by a great number of
governmental and non-governmental authorities. In addition to their
own terms of reference, the Federal Ministries and Authorities
fulfill the national tasks and international commitments of the
Biodiversity agreements.
A
"National Committee on Global Change Research" and a
"Scientific Council for Global Change of the Federal
Government" (http://www.wbgu.de) were established in Germany
which strongly emphasized the importance of biodiversity conservation
and the necessity of biodiversity research. Several secretariats have
been set up, e.g. a CBD-secretariat (http://www.biodiv.org), a
secretariat for the Clearinghouse-Mechanisms
(http://www.biodiv-chm.de/english/index)
, a secretariat of Diversitas, and several Central Offices for
documentation of biodiversity, e.g. for agriculture, forestry and
fishery.
As
a member of the European Union, Germany participates in the 5th
and the 6th framework programs. In the scope of the 5th
framework biodiversity-research was and is performed under the
aspects of "Quality of life and management of living resources"
and "Global Change, Climate and Species Diversity". In
these days the 6th framework programs have just started.
There is a research priority "Sustainable Development and
Global Change" which addresses research into "Biological
diversity, Conservation of genetic resources, Functionality in
terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems and Interaction of man and
ecosystems".
Exact
figures about financing of biodiversity-research by the German
government are not available. However, extrapolations on the basis of
the major programs may come up to a magnitude of 100 million $ per
year.
Nature Conservation in Germany
Nature
Conservation has a long history in Germany. Originally only
endangered species were protected, but after World War II, habitat
protection came into practice. Nature Conservation has been taken
into the Federal as well as most of the Federal States Constitutions
and is a matter of the German basic law. It is taught as a subject in
primary and secondary schools. Two Universities offer Diploma Studies
in Nature conservation. Establishment and gazetting of the
more than 5000 protected areas range as affairs of the individual
states but have to be agreed upon by the Federal authorities. This
holds also for the 14 National Parks which have been established in
Germany since 1978.
Botanical
Gardens. An important contribution to the commitments of the CBD, is
accomplished by the 101 German Botanical Gardens, which are either
affiliated with Universities or directly financed by the public.
About one fifth of the worldwide known vascular plants are ex-situ
cultivated in these Gardens. Several species which have been
eradicated in their natural habitat have survived in Botanical
Gardens and in a few cases from there have been reintroduced to their
home-country, e.g. Sophora toromino, the only tree
of the Easter Island, which was exterminated according to the records
of IUCN. In 1988 one individual was detected in the Botanical Garden
of Bonn and an international propagation program was started. In 1996
the first juveniles could be reintroduced to the Easter Islands.
Non-governmental
organizations: In a similar way numerous NGOs and scientific
societies work in the fields of biodiversity-research and
-conservation. Such NGOs, e.g. the German Botanical Society
(http://www.deutsche-botanische-gesellschaft.de), Ecological
(http://www.uni-giessen.de/gfoe) and Zoological Societies
(http://www.dzg-ev.de/index.html) not only pursue the protection of
endangered species, but also monitor and map the occurrence of the
individual species and often investigate their biology. The most
important NGO for nature protection in Germany is the BUND
(http://www.bund.net/).
Grant-funded Biodiversity Research in Germany
Biodiversity
research on a higher instrumental level, such as genetic population
demarcation, analysis of ecological fitness and survival strategies,
and of a potential economic use is the task of institutions which
have the necessary equipment at their disposal, such as Universities,
major research associations, e.g. the institutes of the Max Planck
Society
(http://www.mpg.de/instituteProjekteEinrichtungen/index.html),
several Academies, Federal and Non-Federal research departments.
Main areas of biodiversity-research
According
to the programs, biodiversity-research in Germany takes place at 3
levels: Molecular biodiversity-research, organismic
biodiversity-research and ecosystem-related biodiversity-research
(Figure 1).
Figure 1. Major
Topics of Biodiversity Research in Germany
Molecular biodiversity-research
Molecular
genome inventories are investigated from all kinds of organisms:
Microorganisms, fungi, plants and animals. These inventories aim at
basic research as well as at useful organisms or at least genes.
Molecular biodiversity of microorganisms
Microorganisms
accomplish a great multitude of services in natural and anthropogenic
habitats, both terrestrial and marine, and are used in many
applications, mostly in foodstuff production and pharmacy; and many
of them are pathogenic. Major research programs in Germany [[(Figure
1)]] in which usually several institutions participate aim at:
Inventories
of terrestrial microorganisms and marine microorganisms
Detection
and cultivation of microorganisms which can be used for
detoxification of polluted soils and waters
The
contribution of microorganisms to a sustainable fertility of
agricultural soils
Food-stuff-relevant
microorganisms: Diversity of producers, spoilers and pathogenic
organisms
Genetic
diversity and variability of microorganisms of medicinal interest is
mainly investigated in cooperation with industry and hospitals
medicinal aspects of microbial
Species
diversity and monitoring of marine phyto- and zooplankton
GenoMik
(http://www.genomik.uni-goettingen.de) is a research program launched
in October 2000 by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research
(http://www.bmbf.de/) which covers most of the listed topics. It is
financed with about 20 Million € for 5 years.
The
German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Cultures
(http://www.dsmz.de/), maintains the so-called Center of Biological
Resources. It harbors the worldwide biggest collection of plant
viruses, plant cell cultures and about 13000 bacterial strains.
Molecular Biodiversity-Research in Plants
Modern
methods of plant breeding require the knowledge of the genetic
diversity of crop and forest plants. In 1998 the Federal Government
launched a 7-years program "Genome Analysis of Plants as
Biological Systems" (GABI)
(http://www.fz-juelich.de/ptj/datapool/page/455/gabiengl.
pdf) focusing on Arabidopsis as model organism and
on barley, sugar beet, potato and other important crop plants and
fruit trees. Genome sequencing, but also the functions of the genes,
proteomics, is the major goals of that program. Many governmental
research institutions and universities participate in that program
which has a financial volume of 80 Million $ for 7 years. A special
program is on the genetic variability of forests.
A
comprehensive gene-bank with viable seeds of more than 100000
accessions of 2000 useful plants is maintained at the Institute of
Plant Genetics and Crop Plant Research (IPK) in Gatersleben
(http://www.ipk-gatersleben.de/en/).
For
the documentation of all the ex-situ stocks of
crop plants, medicinal plants and forest plants which are cultivated
in the individual German institutions an "Information Centre on
Biodiversity" (http://www.zadi.de/ibv/)
has been established in the Central Office of Agronomic Documentation
in Bonn (http://www.bmvel-forschung.de/).
Molecular biodiversity-research in domestic animals
Ongoing
loss of many breeds of domestic animals is a worldwide problem. In
Germany genetic diversity of domestic cattle is one of the major
subjects of a Federal Research Institute (http://www.fal.de/)
maintaining a gene bank of endangered races.
Organismic biodiversity research
Organismic
biodiversity-research is predominantly performed on the level of
species and populations. It comprises
species
diversity of a territory, the so-called -diversity,
the
biology of species
and
the specific characters of populations such as growth, radiation,
maintenance and decline.
Many
research institutions contribute with a great multitude of individual
or collaborative projects to organismic biodiversity research, which
is sponsored by the Federal as well as the Federal States'
governments and by the German Research Foundation. It is quite
obvious that the knowledge of floristic and faunistic inventory of
Germany is much more complete than in tropical countries.
Consequently setup and operation of databases with comprehensive
information about the organisms on the one hand and basic research
into biodiversity on the other dominates the organismic biodiversity
research in Germany. The database "Vascular Plants"
(http://www.csdl.tamu.edu/FLORA/gallery.htm) is one of the most
outstanding projects collecting and providing data on the diversity
of plants in Germany. Today it contains more than 14 million records
of species, populations, plant communities, habitats and ecological
and other relevant data. By networking with other databases,
information can be easily amplified. In a related project, the
potential natural vegetation of Germany is recorded and can be
provided for the establishment of the vegetation map of Europe.
A
global database headed by the Zoological Museum in Bonn is the
"Global Register on Migratory Species"
(http://www.groms.de/)
where all the data on migrations are compiled.
In
context with these data bases the "Global Biodiversity
Information Facility" GBIF (http://www.gbif.org) und
(http://www.gbif.de) must be mentioned in which Germany participates
with a National platform ("node"). GBIF has been
established in 2000 and meanwhile more than 70 countries are
contributing members.
Programs of Organismic biodiversity-Research in
Germany
There
are several focal points of Organismic biodiversity-research in
Germany which I will briefly mention:
Biodiversity
of agricultural areas, as influenced by the various agricultural
methods and crops is investigated by several institutions, aiming
also at an assessment of potential effects of genetically modified
organisms or of invasive species on the organismic communities.
A
similar program refers to the accompanying flora of forests, Ecology,
reproduction biology and medicinal aspects of the animal wildlife in
Germany are investigated in a special program connected to a database
for wild animal diseases which also covers animals from outside
Europe. Several governmental institutions investigate in
collaboration with universities selected issues of marine faunistic
and floristic biodiversity:
The
German Research Foundation (http://www.dfg.de/) which primarily
finances projects of basic research has launched a Priority Program
"Adaptive Radiation-Origin of Biological Diversity"
(http://mansfeld.ipk-gatersleben.de/radiationen/). The objective of
that research program is a critical assessment of hypotheses on
evolutionary (adaptive) radiations as a source of biodiversity.
Evolutionary mechanisms are investigated, that promote morphological
and physiological diversity. This Priority Program is sponsored with
2.5 Million € per year.
Ecosystem-related biodiversity research
(Figure 2)
Ecosystem-related
biodiversity-research takes place at levels of higher complexity,
starting with the inventory of the diversity of organismic
communities (the ß-Diversity) and the diversity of habitats
(the -Diversity). Another topic is
the analysis of the functions of biodiversity in the ecosystem which
leads further to the question of stability of the ecosystem. An
experiment was performed called BIODEPTH at 8 locations distributed
from the very North of Europe to the very South. Increasing numbers
of similar herbal species were planted on separate plots of cleared
soil, to mimic different degrees of biodiversity. After 2 years the
above-ground biomass was harvested. The results show a clear positive
correlation between the biodiversity and biomass production. At that
level biodiversity research becomes part of ecosystem research. Key
stone species and their functions have to be identified which,
however, is possible at most to some extent. Here, also man comes
into play, as a user and competitor of biodiversity and as that
creature that carries the burden of responsibility for our planet's
biodiversity. The striven aim is therefore "protection by
adequate, that means sustainable, use of the resources of the
ecosystems".
Figure 2. The
various levels of biodiversity research by increasing complexity
In
Germany biodiversity-related ecosystem research is a genuine task of
many governmental institutions and departments. Focal research points
are
strategies
for a sustainable use and maintenance of rural areas of agricultural
use,
biological
problems arising from the invasion of exotic species, such as
hybridization with and out competing of indigenous species.
strategies
for the renaturalization of abandoned mining areas.
Special German programs of ecosystem-related
biodiversity-research
In
fulfilling the obligations of the CBD, German Government has launched
several research programs dedicated to ecosystem-related
biodiversity-research in Germany as well as in developing countries.
The two major programs are BIOLOG and SHIFT.
BIOLOG
(http://www.biolog-online.info) was started in 1999 and 93 projects
most of which are clustered, were selected for funding. Work of the
projects started out in 2000 and 2001.
The topics of BIOLOG
(Figure 3)
There
is no doubt that global change is also relevant to marine ecosystems.
However, it is of particular and urgent importance to the terrestrial
world, in which it gives rise to a great multitude of socio-economic
problems. Therefore BIOLOG concentrates on research into terrestrial
biodiversity. But since the success of integrated research into
biodiversity is dependent on the accessibility of all kinds of
species data, biodiversity informatics is another focal point of
BIOLOG. Economists enquire as to the value of biodiversity. For
that reason, socio-economic aspects of biodiversity and of
biodiversity conservation have also been included in the projects of
BIOLOG.
Figure 3. BIOLOG
The
Pilot Phase: Research into biodiversity requires capacity building
BIOLOG
has therefore given priority to integrative Research and Development
Projects, which are based on a fair degree of capacity building,
especially on the international level. For a proper placement of the
approved projects, BIOLOG was started with a pilot phase of 3 years
and successful projects are continuing into the main phase for
another 6 or 7 years.
BIOLOG:
Why Africa, why Europe?
BIOLOG's
policy, as a research program, is to concentrate the projects
in
regions expressing different levels of biodiversity,
in
regions of different levels of relevant knowledge and expertise, and
in
regions of differently endangered biodiversity.
Projects
in Central Europe (BIOLOG EUROPE) are being funded because of the
well-developed scientific background, on the basis of which even
complicated biodiversity-related problems can be investigated. In the
BIOLOG EUROPE projects,
the
effects of fragmentation of the landscape, and
of
intentional and accidental invasion of exotic species and other
impacts on biodiversity are being studied, as well as
the
diversity, dynamics and function of microorganisms in terrestrial
ecosystems.
Socio-economic
implications which are connected with biodiversity as a natural and
cultural heritage can also be readily focused upon in Central Europe.
Projects
operating in several regions of sub-Saharan Africa (the so-called
BIOTA-projects) were selected to start BIOLOG AFRICA. This continent
was chosen with respect to the enormous deficiency of even basic
knowledge in the fields of biodiversity and ecosystem functions and
the urgency of environmental problems related to global change in
this continent. In the BIOTA projects special emphasis is given to
biodiversity inventories at different scales, combined with long-term
monitoring. For that purpose "observatories" were
established, which are standardized plots of usually 1 km2
left untreated or subjected to selected kinds and intensities of
utilization. Selected features of the observatories, such as climate,
soil, vegetation, wildlife and livestock are monitored at meaningful
intervals and in meaningful area sizes. Monitoring will go for a time
period of at least 10 years to obtain reliable data. Respective legal
stipulations are necessary for the establishment of an observatory.
The concept of such observatories has been approved by the
International Program DIVERSITAS and will be soon adopted also by the
U.S. and hopefully by other countries.
BIOLOG: Biodiversity Informatics
(Figure 3)
In
addition to the Terrestrial biodiversity programs, the subprogram
"Biodiversity Informatics" was set up. An immense number
of organismic specimens and related data are deposited in the various
Natural History Museums of Germany. A substantial proportion of these
data is not yet readily accessible or is incomplete; in particular
molecular genetic data is still missing for the majority of the
collected specimens.
The
aims of "Biodiversity Informatics" are to
improve
the methods of biodiversity data capture and maintenance,
to
digitalize and network the wealth of the already available data
collections, and
to
interlink biodiversity-related infrastructures nationally and
worldwide by joining with the program GBIF.
SHIFT: Studies on Human Impact on Forests and Floodplains
in the Tropics (
http://www.internationale-kooperation.de/)
The
SHIFT program (Figure 4) which is financed by the Federal
Ministry of Education and Research with 25.6 Mio € was started
in 1989 as a milestone in a long-lasting scientific and technological
cooperation between Germany and Brazil. Many projects have already
come to an end, and funding of the actual 12 projects shall finish by
the end of 2003. SHIFT is closely tied to the International Pilot
Program for the Conservation of the Brazilian Rain Forest and it
contributes to the global UNESCO research program "Man and
Biosphere". The 5 major goals of SHIFT are:
Increase
of knowledge about structure and key functions of tropical ecosystems
Knowledge
about regulatory ecosystem factors in order to develop concise
concepts for sustainable land use and for protection of endangered
areas
Developing
of measures and management concepts for recuperation of degraded and
abandoned areas
Figure 4. SHIFT and
Mata Atlantica
Improvement
of the scientific assessment of human actions with respect to
environmental risks and reduction of anthropogenically induced
environmental problems
Training
of specialists and capacity building for environmental research
The
projects are all performed in cooperation of German and Brazilian
researchers and are located in four geographic regions with unique
ecological, economic and social impacts:
Central
Amazonia (which represents the new frontier of agrarian movements
into the rain forest and the inundated river margins).
Eastern
Amazonia, (a transition zone from forestry systems to pastures and
new sustainable land use forms)
The
Pantanal (as a central ecosystem of high biological diversity and a
social conflict area due to high population pressure).
The
Atlantic Forest, Mata Atlantica that is impaired by heavy industrial
and agro-industrial activities and a concentration of the population.
Biodiversity
research of SHIFT will be continued in the scope of the new program
"Ecosystem, Economy and Society in the Region MATA ATLANTICA"
of the Federal State Rio de Janeiro
(http://www.biolog-online.info/PT/Umwelt/F70000/F73000).
It was started last year and focuses on the remnants (5 % of
originally 1 million km²) of the previous rain forests of the
Atlantic Coast.
BIOTEAM
The
German programs of biodiversity research show that biodiversity is
understood not only as a matter of biology, but is also recognized as
an issue of man, especially with respect to the tremendous increase
in population. Therefore biodiversity-research must also cover
socio-economic problems of biodiversity utilization and conservation.
This claim is not new, but the problems are very complex and
promising research strategies are scarce. Biologists and
sociologists, economists and lawyers must cooperate. In 2002, a
program has been implemented by the Federal Ministry of Education and
research, termed "Biosphere research - integrative and
application-oriented model projects", "BIOTEAM"
(http://www.biolog-online.info/PT/Umwelt/F70000/F73000) ([[Figure
5]]). BIOTEAM aims at
an
economic validation of conservation measures on the basis of
cost-benefit-analyses,
an
interlinking of ecosystem-targeted research in hotspots of
biodiversity with bioprospecting for new pharmaceutical and
construction materials, and a fair benefit sharing,
the
development of strategies for a local or regional biodiversity
management for industrialized areas and against the invasion of
Neobiota into the indigenous flora and fauna.
Nine
projects have been approved, four of which are working in Ecuador, 1
in Chile, 1 in Africa, and 3 in Germany. From the Ecuadorian projects
3 are focusing on benefit sharing with respect to use of indigenous
plants. The program is financed with about 9 Million € for 3
years.
Figure 5.
Bioteam
German Science Foundation
The
German Science Foundation (DFG) in several programs also finances
ecosystem-related biodiversity-research. Well known in Ecuador is the
DFG-Research Unit: Functionality in a tropical mountain rainforest:
Diversity, dynamic processes and potentials of utilization under
ecosystem perspectives (http://www.bergregenwald.de).
This is the project working since 1997 in South Ecuador in the forest
of the San Francisco valley and on the previous forested areas, which
have been cleared for agricultural purposes (Figure 6). The
project is centered around the research Station "Estacion
Cientifica San Francisco" which is run by the Foundation NCI.
In a multidisciplinary study, comprising at present 32 major projects
in relevant bio- and geosciences, in forestry and in sociocultural
research, the German-Ecuadorian research group aims at an
understanding of the ecosystem "mountain rain forest" in
the San Francisco Valley between Loja and Zamora and to develop
protocols for reforestation and sustainable use. The study is
supported with approximately 2 Million € per year.
Figure 6. Structure
and research strategy of the German Research Unit: Functionality in a
Tropical Mountain rain Forest: Diversity, dynamic processes and
potential of utilization under ecosystem processes.
Benefit Sharing in Biodiversity Research and
Utilization
Monetary
biodiversity research
Benefit
sharing in biodiversity research is understood mainly with respect to
the exploitation of biological and genetic resources, in particular
of developing countries where most of the world's biodiversity
is found. The CBD recognizes national sovereignty over all biological
and genetic resources, and provides that access to valuable
biological resources has to be carried out on "mutually agreed
terms" and is subject to the "prior informed consent"
of the country of origin. When a microorganism, plant, or animal is
used for a commercial application, the country of its origin has the
right to benefit, but on the other hand the country has to facilitate
access to that resource. As the BONN-Guidelines of 2002 state,
benefits can include cash, samples of what is collected, the
participation and training of national researchers, the transfer of
biotechnology equipment and know-how, and shares of any profit from
the use of the resources. Although the field of bio-patents still
requires much skill and legislation, the regulations of the CBD
provide more or less clear elements for the development of
practically applicable measures and many models have already been
presented. At least a dozen countries have already established rules
for control over access to their genetic resources such as the
Philippines, Costa Rica, the OAU, and the countries of the Andean
Pact.
Non
monetary biodiversity research
Neither
the CBD, nor the BONN Guidelines provide clear ideas about benefit
sharing in context with basic and therefore non-monetary biodiversity
research. Such kind of research is very much on the upswing in
Germany as it was shown before. In this context, benefit sharing is
mainly understood as capacity building, training of indigenous
scientists and establishment of common data bases. Through the CBD,
the industrial nations have agreed to provide financial support to
the developing countries to defray the incremental costs of the
fulfillment of the obligations of the CBD. However, the regulations
how the support meets the obligations are not very precise, and with
respect to non monetary biodiversity research are mainly focusing on
the Global Taxonomy Initiative
(http://www.biodiv.org/doc/lists/nfp-gti.pdf). It is felt that there
is a lack of guidelines for benefit sharing in basic biodiversity
research, especially with regard to research into ecosystem aspects
undertaken in developing countries.
A
working group on benefit sharing in biodiversity-research has
therefore been installed in the German Research Foundation and the
issue has been taken up by the International Union of Biological
Sciences to work on respective guidelines in January 2004. In view of
the many promising programs in BIODIVERSITY research which have been
started during the last few years, not only in Germany, obstruction
of that kind of research due to ill-defined legislative framework
must be avoided in any case.