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Coexistence between People and Large Carnivores in Europe: EC launches new platform to help resolve social conflicts

The launching ceremony and the first working session of the EU Platform on Coexistence between People and Large Carnivores has recently occurred in Brussels. Europe is home of five  species of large carnivores: the brown bear (Ursus arctos), the Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx), the Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus), the wolf (Canis lupus) and the wolverine (Gulo gulo). In most European Countries  their priority conservation status is assured by the EU’s Habitats Directive and resulting Natura 2000 Network, and by the pan-European Bern Convention. However, in trying to protect and conserve these species we cannot ignore the challenges associated with promoting a successful co-existence between human populations and large carnivores. These challenges are particularly severe in areas where these species are re-colonising, or being re-introduced after a long absence,  the local human population is therefore no longer accustomed to living in close proximity to potentially
dangerous predators. The launched  EU Platform on Coexistence between People and Large Carnivores will support a constructive dialogue between key stakeholder organisations at the European level. The subject involves a number of different stakeholders, the eight associations signing the platform agreement are: The International Council for Game and Wildlife Conservation; the European Farmers and European Agri-cooperatives; the European Landowners’ Organization; EUROPARC Federation; the European Federation of Associations for Hunting & Conservation; Joint representative of Finnish and Swedish reindeer herders; IUCN – The International Union for Conservation of Nature, European Union Representative Office; and WWF – World Wide Fund for Nature, European Policy Office.

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