The director of SEO/BirdLife, Asunción Ruiz, states that biodiversity not only brings more heartbeat and more life to the countryside, but also greater profitability
“This sea of olive trees surrounding Jaén is much more than that — we are at a biodiversity hotspot for the entire Mediterranean basin, and moreover, we are talking about a tree that represents our best ‘Marca España’,” emphasized Asunción Ruiz, Executive Director of SEO/BirdLife, during the opening ceremony of the 1st International Congress on Biodiversity and Agriculture.
As the expert explained during her speech, “In recent times, olive growers have been going through a time of crisis because we had turned that ecosystem into a desert of olive trees; but thanks to the project we are presenting today, we can now show that biodiversity is the best ally of olive growers, and that biodiversity—a plant, ground cover, or insect—is not only more life and more heartbeat in the countryside, but also profitability.”
In this sense, Asunción Ruiz highlighted the relevance and impact of the Olivares Vivos project in illustrating this reality. This project is coordinated by the Spanish conservation organization SEO/BirdLife and aims to restore biodiversity in olive groves through sustainable and profitable farming practices. To achieve this, it seeks to demonstrate that improving habitats—by restoring natural vegetation, hedgerows, ponds, and wildlife refuges—increases the presence of birds, insects, and beneficial flora, while maintaining or improving productivity and oil quality. It also aims to create a certifiable and transferable model that generates added value in the market, raises awareness among consumers and farmers, and contributes to climate change mitigation and the conservation of soil and water in high-value Mediterranean systems.
“It is very good news to be able to prove that with biodiversity comes profitability, because that is what ensures sustainability,” added Asunción Ruiz. Olivares Vivos began in Jaén but has achieved significant knowledge transfer, expanding to other regions of Spain as well as to Italy, Greece, and Portugal… “And we will not stop in Europe — this has only just begun; as we say in the countryside, the best harvest is yet to come.”
