Connecting communities and nature across borders for a sustainable future...

Our motivation

Project area

The project area covers the protected areas “Karaš-Nera” and the Satchinez Marsh, both part of the Pannonian bioregion — a landscape shaped by winding rivers, seasonal floods, coastal forests, sandy pastures, dunes, and an impressive variety of plants and animals. What makes this project different is the way it brings people and nature together. Local communities are not just bystanders but active participants in caring for these places, helping to protect their natural treasures while also finding ways to live and grow sustainably. At its core, the project embraces the idea that nature knows no borders, and that collaboration across communities is the key to preserving biodiversity and securing a healthier future for all.

Objectives

The project focuses on supporting local communities while strengthening nature protection and conservation. It aims to safeguard biodiversity, expand green infrastructure that links habitats, and improve ecological corridors that reduce landscape fragmentation. At the same time, it seeks to make these natural areas more accessible for recreation, reduce pollution, and improve the monitoring of air and water quality.


A key objective is to foster sustainable development in the communities bordering the Mlaștina Satchinez (ML) and Karaš-Nera (KN) protected areas, ensuring that local stakeholders are directly involved in the process.


To achieve this, the project brings together local communities, protected area managers, and specialists in joint actions for species conservation, habitat restoration, green infrastructure development, sustainable resource use, and addressing environmental challenges, with a strong focus on air and water quality.


The implementation period of the project is December 2024 – December 2026.

Activities

  • Improving conditions for biodiversity, reducing landscape fragmentation, ensuring ecosystem connectivity and the provision of ecosystem services in the Apa Mare river valley – Satchinez
    In practical terms: we aim to improve connections between habitats to support the natural dispersal and development of species in the Apa Mare river valley.
  • Improving conditions for biodiversity and the provision of ecosystem services in the Satchinez Marshes / Mlaștinile Satchinez Nature Reserve area – Satchinez commune
    In practical terms: we improve the condition of the Satchinez Marshes and protect the benefits this area provides to nature and the community.
  • Developing a joint monitoring system for nature and biodiversity conservation
    In practical terms: partners will monitor habitats and species in the same way, so they can act using comparable data.
  • Organizing environmental awareness and public involvement activities for local communities and the general public
    In practical terms: we organize activities that help residents understand environmental issues and take part in protecting the area.
  • Developing the joint air-quality monitoring system in cooperation with all project partners – Romanian-side approach
    In practical terms: we measure air quality together on both sides of the border to identify pollution and how it changes over time.
  • Contributing to the development of the “GREEN PATH – A joint strategy and action plan for Satchinez and Bela Crkva communes – pollution management, nature and biodiversity protection, landscape management and the sustainable use of natural resources”
    In practical terms: the two communes agree on joint measures, responsibilities and priorities for reducing pollution and using natural resources sustainably.