The "silent spring" has almost become a reality in Germany: since 1950 the number of birds declined by roughly two thirds and quite soon there could be more humans in Germany than birds. By now, half of our breeding birds are listed on the Red List of Threatened Species while many others already have disappeared.

Our industrialised agriculture, with its space requirements and use of fertiliser, herbicides and pesticides, is one of the drivers why there are fewer adequate habitats for birds. Today more than 50 percent of Germany's land mass is used for agriculture. Sadly, without sufficient natural living conditions the dying of birds will continue unchecked.

And the consequences for our ecosystems and human society are not yet predictable. A healthy bird population is vital for pest control, the functioning of a sustainable agriculture, and as a consequence for the security of our own livelihood.

The good news is: just by protecting or restoring relatively small areas we can help birds effectively, as long as these areas provide sufficient food resources and adequate nesting sites. According to the latest report "State of the World's Birds" from BirdLife International, restoring just 15% of croplands or pasturelands back to natural ecosystems could avoid 60% of expected bird and other species extinctions.

Our project: in 2020 we purchased an area of 3,7 hectars in Kosel, Schleswig-Holstein that was formerly used as a corn and grain field. The land is situated between different protected areas and could play an important role in the further protection of the region's ecology and bird life. As the field was extensively used for agriculture in the past and fertilsers, herbicides and pesticides were applicated excessivley not one breeding pair can currently be found in the area.

By restoring the area to its orignal natural state we aim to create the right conditions so that native bird species will find an adequate living environment and a new home on a longterm base. The project will be scientifically supported and evaluated by Dr. Frauke Fischer, lecturer in nature conservation at the University of Würzburg, and the expert team of the agency "auf"!

Together with the foundation "Naturschutz Schleswig-Holstein" we started the restoration of the former field in 2021 and we are hopeful that by 2022 first breeding successes might by possible.

In 2019 we started a petition to anchor the "protection of biodiversity" in the German constitution. With your help we were able to collect more than 110.000 signatures. In October 2020 all signatures were handed over to the leaders of the different parties of the German Bundestag together with a personal letter. At the same time we started a campaign that was launched in various online channels.

The petition attracted a lot of attention in the public, with the political parties and the responsible ministries and we are hopeful that our demand for more species protection will stimulate the political debate in Germany in the long term.

Thank you very much for your incredible support!

Our demand: Roughly one third of Germany's animal and plant species is threatened with extinction. The loss of biodiversity threathens the ecological as well as the economical future of our country. This is why the protection of biodiversity must be treated as a matter of highest priority and as such should be anchored in the German constitution. To achieve this we suggest to include a third common task in Article 91a of the basic german law.

"3. Improvement of the biodiversity protection and preservation of the ecosystem services."

The protection of biodiversity can only be achieved as a common task of the the federal government and the federal states since both parties alone lack the possibilities to take adequate measures. The suggested amendment of Article 91a would provide the necessary conditions for this.

Why do we want to change the basic german law? The protection of biodiversity is of existential significance for our future. Without biodiversity nature cannot provide us with the so called "ecosystem services", as for example the supply of clean air, drinking water or nutrient-rich soils. To secure these ecosystem services the biodiversity must be protected on all levels. The goal is that government and federal states work together on this task since the territorial and jurisdictional boundaries of the federal states cannot sufficiently address the natural functioning of ecosystems.