Dear Colleagues,

Imagine that you are the co-ordinator of a biodiversity project in the theme of this discussion. Your consortium, composed of some excellent teams from all across Europe and from countries outside Europe, includes social and natural scientists and economists. You have received a grant of 10 million.

What is the question, or what are the questions, that you and your consortium are trying to answer?

Can you phrase it in just a few words: Is there life on Mars? How do marsupials keep their pouches clean? Do cell-phones fry your brains? How much plant life is needed to keep a person alive in a sealed room? Can humanity survive?

Cordially,

Dr Martin Sharman
Head of Biodiversity Sector
Unit DI-4 Natural Resources Management and Services
Directorate General for Research
European Commission
CDMA 21 3/165 Rue de Champs de Mars 21
B-1049 Brussels, Belgium