Restoring the amazon of Europe

ELSP – Endangered Landscapes & Seascapes Programme

The UNESCO Five-country Biosphere Reserve Mura-Drava-Danube (TBR MDD) is the first five-country protected river landscape of its kind. This project contributes to the development of the TBR MDD by working with local communities and establishing a Restoration Task Force (RTF) that will inform the restoration of four key habitats (1,100 ha), catalyse further restoration and facilitate the transition to a nature-based economy. The project will initiate interdisciplinary dialogue, build capacity and advocate for the replication and up-scaling of restoration in the landscape, while promoting the reserve as an exemplary model for nature-based solutions (NbS) worldwide. The RTF will support the new TBR MDD Steering Committee to manage the landscape sustainably and focus on restoration and NbS. The pioneering project will establish collaboration with the agricultural sector and unlock future wet meadow restoration, improve hydromorphological conditions, and demonstrate the benefits of nature-based forest management while replacing non-native forest with climate-resilient native forest.

Key Habitats

Wet meadows,
rivers and floodplain forests.

Focal Species

Black stork, White-tailed eagle, Egrets, European kingfisher, Sand martin, Danube crested newt, European mudminnow, Eurasian otter, European beaver, Large copper, Southern festoon.

Project time frame

Starting Date: 01/12/2022
Ending Date: 30/09/2027

Partners

Project Lead: WWF-Adria – Association for the Protection of Nature and Conservation of Biological Diversity

Project Partners:

  • WWF-Adria-Serbia
  • Kopački Rit Nature Park (KRNP, CRO)
  • Croatian Waters (HV, CRO)
  • Vojvodinašume/ PA and forest management body (VSUME, RS)
  • The Institute of the Republic of Slovenia for Nature Conservation (IRSNC, SI)
  • WWF-Austria (WWF-AT, AT)
  • WWF-Hungary/Central and Eastern Europe (WWF-HU/CEE, HU)

For more information visit the Endangered Landscapes & Seascapes Programme website.