“At first I thought it was a scam”, says Henrique Pereira with a smile on his face. He is talking about an email from the ECB. He knows very little about money and finance; as an ecologist, Pereira researches biodiversity and makes proposals for European nature conservation policy. But there was a different reason for the message: After 20 years, the ECB has decided to redesign its euro bank notes. The idea is to make the notes more secure and sustainable – and with a fresh design. “The new motifs should appeal to all Europeans”, explains Pereira. And that brings us back to the email: The ECB invited him to join an advisory group consisting of fourteen European experts from the fields of science, art, history, culture and design. The advisory group is now going to propose motifs for the redesign. The ECB Governing Council has already shortlisted two possible themes for the new bank notes: “European Culture” and “Rivers and Birds”.

“As biodiversity researchers, we’re constantly looking for new ways to raise awareness of biodiversity. Redesigning the EU’s bank notes is a huge opportunity for us”, says Pereira, who works at the MLU and the German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig. He thinks that the “Rivers and Birds” theme is a good choice, as rivers cross borders and birds are symbolic of Europe for many reasons: “One of our fundamental European values is freedom of movement, an idea naturally expressed by birds. What’s more, the EU Birds Directive is one of the oldest pieces of nature conservation legislation – it was passed back in 1979”. Working in the group is a special experience for him as a researcher. “I hadn’t really thought about this topic before. Now I know that Argentina, for example, has wonderful animal illustrations on its bank notes”. He has a similar vision for the euro notes.

The specific details of the advisory group’s work and the motif ideas being discussed are strictly confidential. They will continue to work on proposals until the end of the year. Then the ECB Governing Council will decide which proposal is to be pursued in a design competition. A final decision on the design of the new bank notes is expected in 2026. Pereira: “My goal is for every European to have a piece of diversity in their wallet”.