BioDiversum at the MPI-NAT
Our biotope project at the Fassberg Campus of the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences
It is an ecological disaster that finally reached public awareness in recent years: The massive decline of birds and insects – both in species and in individuals – threatens nature as we know it, and thus the basis of our life. The phenomenon is not limited to Germany but part of a worldwide, rapid loss of animal and plant species. Around one million species are on the brink of extinction, mainly due to increasingly intensive agriculture and loss of land due to development, settlement, and traffic, which affects plants and animals alike.
Numerous organizations and initiatives are now determined to fight this worrying development. Our institute is becoming active, as well: Our premises at the Faßberg in Göttingen will be ecologically upgraded to create a diverse biotope – a habitat tailored to the needs of animals and plants: the BioDiversum – Biotope at the Fassberg Campus of the MPI for Multidisciplinary Sciences (former MPI for Biophysical Chemistry). The project comprises a whole range of measures, from the installation of several hundred nesting boxes and the sowing of flowering meadows to the complete restructuring of fallow land at the northern end of the campus. At the heart of the project will be a pond of about 900 square meters. The aim is to significantly improve the living conditions for insects and birds, but also for many other animals and plants.
An overview of all measures can be found here.
