The European Red List of Insect Taxonomists provides an assessment of the current capacity of the taxonomic expertise at a EU27 and Pan-European level.
From the data obtained, the profession of Taxonomist is at threat.
As repeatedly countersigned by the scientific community without taxonomists, it will not be possible to document the populations and trends of species and assess their conservation status, let’s not forget we have so far identified and correctly described a mere 20% of the insects on the planet. In this scenario, our very ability to protect threatened species will be compromised. The project is also a response to the European Commission’s recognition of the risk of disappearance of taxonomic expertise, which would seriously hinder actions to reverse the decline of insects, including key pollinators, which is part of the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030.
A consortium, formed by CETAF, IUCN and Pensoft, accepted the challenge to develop and apply a novel methodology to measure the risk of ‘extinction’ for taxonomic expertise.
The event of Friday the 21st (follow on Twitter with #RedListTaxonomists) has been packed with people and ideas that we will gather and communicate as soon as possible, providing responses to the needs of the community.
Meanwhile, don’t forget you can still give your contribution here: https://padlet.com/amarchi3/mmx08pcn2vdgs1lu