We are seeing increasing pressure imposed on the environment on which we depend – with species and habitats disappearing at an alarming rate. Knowledge-based policies have the potential to neutralise some of these trends and allow a balance to be struck between anthropogenic impact and the quantity and quality of services that ecosystems provide. To do this, we need an integrated, systemic, multi- and interdisciplinary approach.

The Associate Laboratory TERRA, with its five complementary Research Units (CEF, LEAF, CEG, ISAMB and CFE), is uniquely placed to lead these efforts. Thus, our goal is to provide innovative scientific and socio-ecological evidence to support best management practices and political decision-making for sustainable land use and the bio-circularity of product chains, taking into account the societies they support.

TERRA works at different levels of human impact and land use intensity, at different spatial scales, from local to global, targeting widely different levels of biological organisation – from genes to ecosystems, approaching them from different perspectives. 

I believe that TERRA’s action is fundamental to public policies related to natural capital, natural resources and human well-being, supporting agriculture and forestry, fisheries and conservation, human and environmental health.

Finally, I believe that TERRA has the tools, protocols, experts and scientific networks needed to lead the way in sustainable land use and ecosystem services at national and international level. For all these reasons, join us on this journey towards a more sustainable and healthy future!