The current tragic situation in Europe makes the organisation of the IALE 2022 European Landscape Ecology Congress in Warsaw particularly challenging and presents entirely novel difficulties. We strongly condemn Russia's illegal attack on Ukraine and are shocked by the violence and impact of the war on both a local and an international scale. We have to accept that these extreme circumstances require firm decisions.

The Congress Organising Committee and the IALE-Europe Executive Committee have decided, as an expression of solidarity with the Ukrainian people, that representatives of Russian institutions will not be able to participate in the IALE 2022 Congress. This is in line with the decision of the Polish Ministry of Education and Science to close all cooperation with Russia. Other countries and universities across Europe are now making similar decisions.

At the same time, we show appreciation to our Russian colleagues who emphatically and openly condemn the invasion of Ukraine, and who join us in shared European values. The IALE community has always been inclusive and open to all scientists and we look forward to sharing our scientific research with the whole international community of landscape ecologists in a more peaceful future.

We stand with the people of Ukraine and all whose lives have been devastated by this war.