Funding from Interreg NWE is enabling the group to research measures to improve the connectivity of urban habitats for small mammals within the project "URBAN ANIMAL NETWORK". The project involves several partner institutions across north-west Europe and is coordinated by the Dutch municipality of Hilversum.

Project goals

Urban Animal Network aims at improving urban biodiversity by:

• Connecting urban green areas within the city and with green spaces at the urban fringe,
• Identifying and removing barriers to animal movement,
• Improving habitat quality and increasing habitat area for animals in cities.

The project focuses on four ecological layers in cities:

• Air (bats)
• Trees (squirrels)
• Ground (hedgehogs)
• Water (amphibians)

Project partners

• Municipality of Hilversum (NL) - lead partner of the project,
• Municipality of Rotterdam (NL),
• City of Bruxelles (BE),
• Natuurpunt Beheer (BE),
• Stadsbestuur Genk, and associate partner the Province of Limburg (BE),
• Limerick City and County Council (IE),
• University College Dublin (IE),
• UniLaSalle - Institut Politechnique, and associate partners Groupe Mammalogique Breton and Rennes Métropole (FR),
• Ile-de-France Nature, and associate partners Atelier Médicis and La Société des Grands Projets (FR),
• Administration communale de la Ville d’Ettelbruck (L),
• University of Applied Science Western Switzerland, and associate partners Ville de Geneve, Yverdon-les-Bains en MUZOO (CH),
• and, of course, us from Ruhr University Bochum (DE).

European subsidy

Urban Animal Network is made possible by European cofunding from the programme Interreg Northwest Europe (NWE).