DNA TO POLICY: SHAPING BIODIVERSITY MONITORING FOR A SUSTAINABLE EUROPE

DNA TO POLICY:
SHAPING BIODIVERSITY MONITORING FOR A SUSTAINABLE EUROPE

Hosted by MEP Paulo DO NASCIMENTO CABRAL, First Vice-Chair of the Committee on Fisheries, SEArica Vice-Chair for Fisheries, Aquaculture, Marine Biological Resources and blue Technologies

Organised with the support of the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions

30 June 2026 – 14:00 to 16:00

European Parliament, Spinelli A5F385, Brussels

Following 3 years of implementation, the SEArica Intergroup will host the final event of the eDNAqua-Plan, an EU funded project under the framework of Horizon Europe that aims to strengthen Europe’s ability to utilise DNA-based monitoring tools in its monitoring and observation efforts of aquatic biodiversity by proposing an aquatic eDNA FAIR-based digital ecosystem that facilitates the sharing and access to reference material that supports biodiversity monitoring in marine and freshwater ecosystems. This major project seeks to strengthen the implementation of key EU frameworks, including the Marine Strategy Framework Directive, the Water Framework Directive, the Biodiversity Strategy for 2030, Europe’s contribution to the Essential Biological and Ocean Variables (GOOS & GEO BON) and the EU’s broader ocean governance agenda. The project’s final event will focus on the scientific and policy implications of the project’s findings and its future implementation, highlight opportunities for EU-level uptake of aquatic eDNA-based monitoring, and contribute to ongoing parliamentary reflections on aquatic biodiversity protection.