The Nature Outlook expertise area includes statutory tasks that Wageningen Research (WR) carries out for the Ministry on behalf of the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL).

The Statutory Research Tasks Unit for Nature & the Environment (WOT Nature & Environment) ensures that the statutory research tasks in support of nature and environmental policies are carried out professionally and reliably. These tasks are carried out for and financed by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature. The research topics are divided across a number of expertise areas.

The Nature Outlook expertise area includes statutory tasks that Wageningen Research (WR) carries out for the Ministry on behalf of the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL). Under the Environment and Planning Act (Omgevingswet), PBL is responsible for carrying out a comprehensive nature outlook every four years to fuel the strategic debate on nature policy. This comprehensive report covers not only the state of nature, but also includes context-specific ‘nature interests’ in other sectors to inform and shape the development of a nature-inclusive society.

PBL does not have sufficient in-house expertise to carry out its statutory tasks in the field of forestry, nature and landscape in the context of policy and society. This expertise is available at WR, which is why, for reasons of efficiency, the Ministry has arranged for WR, via WOT Nature & Environment, to maintain and further develop this expertise for PBL. The analyses carried out by WR contribute directly to the PBL reports.

The work of the Nature Outlook expertise area is mainly to provide substantive inputs to comprehensive outlook reports. It produces contributory reports and syntheses of relevant scientific knowledge. As outlooks usually start from the current state of affairs, we see PBL’s monitoring role as part of the futures assessment.

The expertise area contributes to the following categories of activities:

1. The comprehensive nature outlook reports. 

2. Comprehensive descriptions of the current status and trends in forests, nature and landscape, and of possible relevant future developments within the policy and societal contexts for the nature outlooks.

3. Support to PBL on the preparation of a multi-year WOT research agenda, based on future demands for expertise and information for the nature outlook report and the currently available knowledge. Co-authoring the multi-year research programme and carrying out the research.

4. Filling in knowledge gaps for future nature outlooks. The focus here is on the expertise required to understand and analyse the complex interaction between the physical, societal and governance systems for a nature-inclusive society, and to draw inferences about the future.