About Our Organisation and Region
The Baltic Environmental Forum Germany (BEF Germany) is a non-profit association based in Hamburg, founded in 2003. As part of the international BEF network with offices in Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania, we work on environmental topics such as chemical management, circular economy and plastic reduction as well asclimate change. In our projects, we connect science, policy, and civil society, focusing on interdisciplinary communication and practical solutions for sustainable development.
Our regional partner in the KNOWING project is the County of Lauenburg (Kreis Herzogtum Lauenburg), located on the former inner-German border and part of the Hamburg metropolitan region. It is a region of natural beauty, shaped by forests, lakes, and the Elbe River. Agriculture plays a central role in its economy. Lauenburg’s landscape, including the Sachsenwald – Schleswig-Holstein’s largest forest – is home to a rich biodiversity and is increasingly affected by climate extremes such as heatwaves, droughts, and winter floods.
Our Role in KNOWING
In KNOWING, BEF Germany supports Lauenburg County in developing climate-informed recommendations for agricultural land management, thus KNOWING will cooperate with local farmers and other stakeholders from the agricultural sector to add scientific expertise to the debates on soil fertility, groundwater management and climate change-related threats such as droughts and soil erosion that extreme weather events can cause.
We also contribute to the processing of climate-related data in KNOWING, helping to translate scientific knowledge into local debates and decision-making. Through this collaboration, we support the development of a digital tool that models mitigation and adaptation pathways for regions like Lauenburg.
Why KNOWING Matters to Us
The motivation for us in the KNOWING project is to gather and evaluate scientific evidence together with experts from all over Europe and to make it available not only to scientists or stakeholders on a national and international level but also for the practitioners in our region to adapt better to future climate events.