A recent Horizon Magazine article on biodiversity awareness features SHOWCASE project coordinator Prof. David Kleijn of Wageningen University and Research (WUR). In the article called "People have started to care about insects. Now we need action, say experts" Prof. Kleijn talks about perceptions of the general public towards biodiversity loss and the main aims of the SHOWCASE project as a tool for raising biodiversity awareness amongst different categories of stakeholders.

More and more people start to realise the unprecedented biodiversity crisis that is taking place on both the local and global levels. In this article, Prof. Kleijn points out that awareness on biodiversity loss among people has risen. However, he points out that societies are still a long way from overcoming this crisis, and emphasizes on the importance of further engagement and promotion of biodiversity-friendly practices.

Prof. Kleijn elaborates that the SHOWCASE project will aim to overcome and strengthen biodiversity awareness to various stakeholders by communicating powerful narratives. "We’re starting to think about the narratives to connect to different stakeholders," says Prof. Kleijn. He describes a number of possible strategies - from the strictly neo-classical economics' perspective of cost minimization and profit maximization, through a functionalist point of view towards the role of insects in farming, to a strong emotional narrative on the beauty and story of each species.

Read the full article here.

Photo: Bee on a flower. Credit: James Wheeler on Pexels.