How can we preserve biodiversity without jeopardising local economic development?

The two need not be mutually exclusive, as trainings organised by UN Environment and partners are demonstrating.

The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYR Macedonia) plans to designate the Sharr Mountains on its territory – home to the Alpine Rose, as well as bears, wild boar and lynx - as a National Park.

In order to see how nature can be efficiently preserved while sustainably developing tourism, recreation and local agriculture, country’s officials were taken to visit two Italian regional parks, Adamello Brenta and Paneveggio Pale di San Marino between 17 and 21 April.

There, the delegation from FYR Macedonia learned how to develop annual work plans, financial management, the process of developing strategic documents and ways of involving local communities in the day-to-day management of the protected areas.

Lessons learned from the training will help FYR Macedonia develop necessary documents such as a valorisation study and management plan, needed to designate the Sharr Mountains in the FYR of Macedonia as a national park.

The trip was organised by UN Environment in cooperation with the Italian Ministry of Environment, Land and Sea and local Italian authorities.

The delegation from FYR Macedonia consisted of representatives from the Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning as well as local municipalities and non-governmental organisations from the Sharr Mountain region.

Co-financed by the Italian Ministry of Environment, Land and Sea, the initiative contributes to the overall objectives of an on-going project funded by the Global Environment Facility.

The project is titled ‘Achieving Biodiversity Conservation through Creation and Effective Management of Protected Areas and Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Land Use Planning’ and one part covers the expansion of the protected areas in FYR Macedonia.

For more information please contact filippo.montalbetti@unvienna.org or natalia.noellenburg@unvienna.org