The Azores, through the Regional Science Fund (FRC), have been partners of a consortium led by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) since December. The partnership was established by a contract for the provision of services to the European Union.

With a financial allocation of two million Euros and a duration of four years, this contract aims to create a platform that enables the sharing of information on funding opportunities for projects developed in the area of conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity and ecosystem services in Outermost Regions as well as in European overseas countries and territories.

This platform aims to facilitate the exchange of information between financial backers - European Commission, Member States, financial institutions, non-governmental entities and companies - and the entities promoting these projects as well as to develop regional ecosystem profiles to identify the most deprived areas in terms of investment.

The Regional Science Fund, which is under the jurisdiction of the Regional Secretary for Education, Science and Culture, will be in charge of updating the ecosystem profile of Macaronesia and creating the knowledge centre of Macaronesia in this working group.

The sharing of information on funding opportunities as well as the development of strategies in close collaboration with other activities carried out at a local, regional or national level will take place in the context of this knowledge centre.

In addition, the FRC will also foster the cooperation between the three autonomous regions of Macaronesia - Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands - with the purpose of rendering conservation actions and the management of terrestrial and marine biodiversity more effective and better guiding European investment in this area.

The invitation to the participation of the Azores in this consortium is also related with the role played by the Regional Science Fund in the coordination of NetBiome-CSA, a project funded under the 7th Framework Programme that is mainly intended to strengthen cooperation between European overseas regions in the context biodiversity conservation and management.