“Joint action for the Alps – conserve, connect and restore” was the title of a joint event in Kranjska Gora (Slovenia) from 11 to 14 June 2024 that attracted stakeholders, experts and decision-makers from the entire Alpine region. It combined the Alpine Biodiversity conference, organized by the Slovenian Presidency of the Alpine Convention, with the Forum Alpinum 2024 conference (“The Alps – a Refuge for Bio- and Geodiversity?”), organized by ISCAR – International Scientific Committee on Research in the Alps. Both events offered various opportunities for the exchange of knowledge and experience on the conservation of biodiversity in the Alpine region from a scientific and application-orientated perspective, which suggested the involvement of the PlanToConnect partners. For example, the spatial analyses from the PlanToConnect project, presented by Peter Laner, Eurac Research, and the identification of corresponding recommendations for action provided a basis for the discussion about the policy brief that is being prepared by the Slovenian Presidency as a result of the Alpine Biodiversity Conference. The exchange with the scientific community at the Forum Alpinum was important to gain inputs for the project, for example by the thematic sessions “Ecosystem services & connectivity” and “spatial planning”. Through the contributions of the PlanToConnect project in close coordination with the alpine spatial planning network AlpPlan, the relevance of integrated cross-sectoral spatial planning for the protection and development of Alpine green and blue infrastructure was highlighted at various points.
