NID4BirdLIFE: Nature-Inclusive Design solutions for the Black-legged Kittiwake in Belgium

To meet Europe’s 2030 and 2050 climate targets, the deployment of offshore energy infrastructure will need to be accelerated in the coming years. While this expansion will impact the marine environment, it also represents an opportunity to enhance biodiversity and restore degraded ecosystems.

One way to achieve this is by integrating innovative solutions such as Nature Inclusive Design (NID) alongside offshore renewable energy infrastructure. NIDs are measures integrated in or added to the design of infrastructure which attempt to increase ecological opportunities by providing direct and indirect positive effects on biodiversity. Current NID efforts largely focus on the underwater environment, with limited attention to above water species, such as birds.

In this context, the Renewables Grid Initiative and OCEaN launched a webinar series in 2022 on Nature Inclusive Design applied in offshore energy and grid infrastructure.

The fifth webinar in this series will explore the actions of the new LIFE project, NID4BirdLIFE. This European-funded project seeks to advance the conceptualisation, testing, and implementation of NID solutions for birds around the Princess Elisabeth Energy Island, with a focus on increasing nesting opportunities for the black-legged kittiwake.

Join our webinar on the 20 May, 11:30 – 12:45 CEST to hear from experts working on this innovative project:

• Riet Durinck, Offshore Community Relations Officer at Elia
• Robin Brabant, Marine biologist at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
• Robin Daelemans, Researcher at Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
• Manon Quetstroey, Manager Energy & Nature at Renewables Grid Initiative