The international research project related to the workshop is sponsored by the International Geoscience Program (IGCP), which is a cooperative enterprise of UNESCO and the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS). The project "Recovery of ecosystems after the Permian-Triassic mass extinction: Lessons for the present" will run from 2008 to 2012 and 2-3 meetings and workshops in different countries are scheduled for every year.