On 28 January 2025, the Baltic Environmental Forum - Latvia, in cooperation with the Ministry of Smart Administration and Regional Development, organised the second meeting of the Latvian Community of Practice on Nature Diversity and Ecosystem Services. Held in Riga, the event brought together over 30 participants from various sectors, including research, NGOs, businesses, and state and municipal organisations. The main objectives were to provide updates on the SELINA project, discuss recent developments in ecosystem services and biodiversity in Latvia, and explore participants' experiences with contracting ecosystem services research, particularly in relation to the terms of reference being developed within SELINA.

Participants emphasised the importance of integrating ecosystem services (ES) assessments into nature restoration projects and territorial planning. However, it was also noted that the integration of ES remains low in some sectors, such as forestry and municipal planning. To address this, participants recommended introducing legal requirements to encourage municipalities to adopt these approaches, as well as promoting the uptake of payments for ecosystem services in forestry.

Key discussions centred on the challenges organisations face in defining clear research objectives when contracting ES research. Two main challenges were identified. First, limited internal expertise often hinders the ability to define precise research objectives and evaluate the quality of results once a study is completed. It was emphasised that having a clear vision of how the results will be used before contracting the research is crucial to maximising its impact. Second, limited resources—both financial and personnel—pose challenges, particularly for smaller organisations and municipalities. Participants highlighted that many organisations either lack experts who work with environmental issues or rely on a single expert who is already overloaded with other responsibilities.

The meeting also proposed potential solutions to these challenges, including a two-stage contracting approach. This would involve hiring an external expert to assist in defining research objectives and evaluating the quality of results before contracting the actual study. Additionally, the creation of a centralised research database was suggested to improve access to existing research and avoid duplication.

Other key points included the development of ecosystem accounts by Latvia’s Central Statistical Bureau (CSB). The upcoming CSB funding programme was seen as a potential opportunity to test SELINA’s support tools. Several participants also expressed interest in the Terms of Reference being developed within SELINA, believing they could help overcome challenges in contracting studies.