AUTHOR: Anja Stipankov Ivanovic, F6S
To mark our progress, the PaluWise consortium assembled in the city of Nijmegen in the Netherlands, for the General Assembly, during 20-22 May, 2026. A special highlight of the meeting was the field visit to the absolutely beautiful Weerribben-Wieden National Park, where many of the reed and cattail demo sites are located. This makes our assembly pretty unique and amazing, if we may add.
A year and something of PaluWise
After slightly more than a year of intensive collaboration (we started our journey in February 2025), the PaluWise team joined together to evaluate the milestones achieved in transforming degraded peatlands through innovative paludiculture. This meeting served as a platform for each work package leader to share progress, from project coordination, establishing demonstration sites, promoting PaluWise, establishing synergies, planning events, creating policy briefs, to identifying high-potential market value chains.
By aligning our actions as a team, we ensured that research and industry efforts are perfectly synchronised across our international network. The gathering concluded with the creation of a strategic roadmap for our future steps, focusing on upscaling production, influencing EU policy through our joint policy brief, and expanding the bio-based market for a net-zero Europe. All in all, we had two very productive days.
How does Paludiculture support local and global Biodiversity?
On May 22, the world observes the International Day for Biological Diversity to promote global awareness and action for the protection of Earth’s ecosystems. The theme for 2026, “Acting Locally for Global Impact”, perfectly mirrors the mission of the PaluWise project. That’s why we reserved one (very special) day for a team field visit to the Weerribben-Wieden National Park in the Netherlands, where we also could see plenty of reed and cattail demo sites. This visit was our way to honour biodiversity, an extraordinary variety of all living things. Biodiversity thrives where water meets land. Connecting our research activities with practical field work reminds us that every hectare we restore is a victory for the planet’s biological heritage.
Credits to the respective owners.
Synergy in the field
Biodiversity restoration is too big a task for one project alone. During our General Assembly, we maximised the opportunity for networking and knowledge exchange with our Horizon Europe sister projects. We spent an enriching final day collaborating with Palus Demos and Paludi4All. Sharing experiences and planning joint activities helps ensure that our local actions are coordinated for the greatest possible global impact. We also continue to find synergy with projects like WET HORIZONS and ALFAwetlands to scale up the restoration of wetlands for a more resilient future.
Production in harmony with Nature
As we celebrate International Day for Biological Diversity, PaluWise remains committed to proving that economic production does not have to come at the cost of the Earth’s species. By advocating for the inclusion of paludiculture products in the Advanced Materials Act, we are creating a policy framework that supports a sustainable, competitive, and biodiversity-friendly industry. Together with our partners and sister projects, we are acting locally today to ensure a biodiverse and climate-secure world for tomorrow.
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