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Biodiversity is not static - it is constantly changing. The current patterns of biodiversity we observe today, and work to protect, reflect past environmental change and evolutionary processes.
Innovative capabilities in biodiversity science have emerging at the boundaries of evolutionary biology, genomics and spatial ecology. These new concepts and tools have have considerable potential to assist with many of the complex issues confronting policy and management, such as:
- climate change and adaptation
- conservation zone planning
- habitat fragmentation and restoration
- invasive species and biosecurity
- management of threatened species
A major objective of the CBA is to exchange knowledge, perspectives and challenges amongst scientists and policy makers, and find ways to effectively engage, now and into the future. The CBA's 2016 annual conference, The interface of evolutionary biology and policy impact, aimed to address the gap between academic research, where the majority of new biodiversity data is being generated, analysed and interpreted; and the current, and future, needs of practical policy development and real-world management.
- Workshop report and appendices
- Decision Point article: Evolutionary biology - what is it good for?
For more information please contact CBA Knowledge Broker Jess Ward-Jones.
Policy themes
Climate change and adaptation »
Reconstruction of historical patterns of species movement, colonisation, extinction and speciation and understanding the genomic basis of climate adaptation may help understand future dynamics and the potential of evolutionary processes to intensify or moderate the effects of global change.
Conservation zone planning »
The discovery and documenting of species, particularly the detection of cryptic species and the use of phylogenetic diversity to identify stable habitat refugia and biodiversity hotspots, will provide valuable information for decision-makers who need to compare and conserve biodiversity across space and time.
Habitat fragmentation and restoration »
Loss of habitat and fragmentation reduces population sizes and can lower migration rates and genetic connectivity among remaining populations of native species, reducing genetic variability and increasing extinction risk.
Invasive species and biosecurity »
Species that have evolved elsewhere such as weeds, feral animals, insects and other invertebrates, diseases, fungi and parasites can have major impacts on native biodiversity.