RT Journal Article T1 Building the European Union’s Natura 2000 network JF Nature Conservation JO NC FD Pensoft Publishers DO 10.3897/natureconservation.1.1808 VO 1 A1 Evans, Douglas YR 2012 UL https://doi.org/10.3897/natureconservation.1.1808 AB In the second half of the 20th Century there was a growing awareness of environmental problems, including the loss of species and habitats, resulting in many national and international initiatives, including the creation of organisations, such as the IUCN, treaties and conventions, such as Ramsar and the Berne Convention, and the establishment of networks of protected areas. Natura 2000 is a network of sites in the European for selected species and habitats listed in the 1979 Birds Directive and the 1992 Habitats Directive. Under the Habitats Directive a series of seminars and other meetings have been held with agreed criteria to ensure a coherent network. Despite both scientific and political difficulties the network is now nearing completion.