"The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) aims at strengthening capacity for the effective use of science in decision-making at all levels" (www.ipbes.net). IPBES was established as a global science-policy interface in 2012 and it has the tasks to "synthesize, review, assess and critically evaluate relevant information and knowledge generated worldwide by governments, academia, scientific organizations, non-governmental organizations and indigenous communities" (ibd.). IPBES held its forth plenary session (IPBES-4) from 22 to 28 February 2016, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

To implement the IPBES work programme and to make it relevant also for the regional, national and/or local level, on which many biodiversity-related problems need to be tackled, the global IPBES mechanism needs national and regional structures to build upon. Such structures can spread information about IPBES, enrich IPBES negotiations by feeding in diverse opinions, support the identification of experts relevant to the IPBES assessments, disseminate IPBES products, and help to meet urgent capacity-building and data needs.

In Europe, one example of a regional initiative is the Pan-European IPBES Stakelder Consultation meeting taking place in June 2016 for the third time. This meeting brings together individuals (and organisations) that may contribute to the IPBES process (e.g. through their expertise, knowledge, data), may use its outputs or may be affected by its outcomes (= "IPBES stakeholders" in the IPBES terminology). Mobilizing a diverse and active IBPES stakeholder community across Europe and Central Asia has also been the aim of the Pan-European IPBES Stakeholder Consultation meetings in 2012 (PESC-1 in Leipzig, Germany) and 2013 (PESC-2 in Basel, Switzerland). Following-up these previous meetings, PESC-3 will provide a pan-European forum for discussing current developments in and around IPBES and aims at delivering input to the review of the first draft of the Regional assessment for Europe and Central Asia.

Objectives of the PESC-3 meeting

1. Informing about current developments in and around IPBES, in particular on:

• Regional assessment for Europe and Central Asia (ECA assessment)
• IPBES stakeholder engagement & capacity building

2. Delivering contributions to the IPBES process:

• Comments on the first order draft of the ECA assessment
• Identification of relevant capacity-building needs in the region, and possible means and resources to address them
• Strengthening of existing and initiation of new networks, platforms and other structures fostering the engagement in IPBES across ECA region