Project Page Views: [ 588 ]
| Project Metadata Element | Details |
| Project Title | Operational Potential of Ecosystem Research Applications |
| Research Area | Water |
| Project Acronym | OPERAs |
| Principal Investigator or Lead Irish Partner | Marcus Collier (IE) |
| Lead Institution or Organisation | University College Dublin (UCD) |
| Lead Country | Ireland |
| Latitude, Longitude (of Lead Institution) | 53.30859, -6.22577 |
| Lead Funding Entity | European Commission |
| Approximate Project Start Date | 01/12/2012 |
| Approximate Project Finishing Date | 30/11/2017 |
| Project Website (if any) | http://operas-project.eu/ |
| Links to other Web-based resources | |
| Project Keywords | Ecosystem Services; Anthropogenic pressure; Natural Capital; Policy impacts |
| Project Abstract | Ecosystems provide humanity with innumerable and invaluable resources and services that provide us with improved health and welfare. Human exploitation of ecosystems leads to a loss of resources globally. Thus, ecosystems may not be able to function in a way that is vital to the welfare of humanity. Ecosystem services and Natural capital provide guidance to better manage our ecosystems while preserving the ecological value and biological diversity. The main aim of OPERAs is to develop ecosystem science for policy and practice in order to enhance the sustainable use of ecosystems. The main objectives of OPERAs are to: Improve the management of ecosystems through better understanding of policy impacts. Investigate the socio-economic and sociocultural benefits of increasing the effectiveness of ecosystem management and providing significant advances in ecosystem services understanding, methods, theory and application. Develop and test tools of practical guidance for policy makers and stakeholders on the effective and cost-efficient ecosystem services, governance structures and practical management. Establish a 'Community of Excellence' (CoE) built around the OPERAs project for continued practice that will benefit from the OPERAs outcomes. Formulate a 'Resource Hub', a web-based portal that will be co-developed by scientists and practitioners representing different perspectives of the ecosystem services concepts. The Resource Hub will provide the main interface between OPERAs and a Community of Excellence (CoE) for continued practice that will benefit from OPERAs outcomes. The OPERAs project comprises of research scientists, NGO's and SME's from a variety of disciplines, who are working to establish what constitutes good ecosystem governance. OPERAs is working closely with stakeholders throughout the project. |