European Wilderness Society
Dechant Franz Fuchs Str, 5 Tamsweg 5580 AUSTRIA
c/o LuminaConsult 6th floor Square de Meeüs 35 1000 Brussels Belgium
5580 Tamsweg
Autriche
- Arts
- Environment/Sustainable development
- Others
- Research
- Youth and education
Established the European Wilderness Quality Standard and Audit System (EWQA) as Europe´s premiere wilderness standard and thus far have certified 20 wilderness’.
Identify and protect wilderness in Europe by employing legislative and financial tools.
Initiate the Pan-European Green corridor network
Hold an annual large carnivore conference in different parts of Europe.
Hold annually the Wilderness Academy Days in a different location each year.
Develop a watershed wilderness criteria system to be implemented across Europe, working jointly with Europe’s leading NGOs.
Lobby at the European parliament level for a stronger focus on wilderness protection as a conservation management solution.
Educate school children on the value of wilderness for Europe.
Bring together the fine arts and wilderness to promote conservation.
Develop a communication strategy to support the return of large carnivores across Europe.
We are following such main EU initiatives, policies as
implementation:
a) of the 2 nature (Birds and Habitat) directives
b) of the Water Framework and Floods Directives
c)and improving the EU 2020 Biodiversity Strategy
REFIT of Natura 2000
Our main project activities are:
1. Auditing of wilderness using EWQA from the Mediterranean to the Arctic circle, from the Atlantic coast to the Ural Mountains.
2. Cooperation for innovation and exchange of good practices:
a) Knowledge sharing and preparation
b) Preparation of publications
c) Dissamination of education materials
d) Research assesment
e) Studying and innovationg curricula
f) Preparation and implementation of cluster
3. Assist in the protection of Europe’s last wilderness.
4. EWS supports two scholarships for postgraduate MSc in Management of Protected Areas at theUniversity of Klagenfurt.
5. Publish regular research results, management guidelines, and case studies.
EWS has a comprehensive experience in research, eduction, marketing and goverment activities. We are prepared to share and exchange our konwledege in the fields of environment protection, sustainable development and tourism, innovative communication tools and networking, education of children and adults, marketing with members of ALF in Austria as well as in Euro-Mediterranean region.
EWS brings all stakeholders of Europe’s wilderness together. It employs a comprehensive approach to meet the complex ecological and social needs of Europe's protected areas. We have experience in wilderness management training. Since, the European Parliament adopted its special report on wilderness on February 3, 2009, the organisation has focused on 3 main topics:
1. To increase the knowledge and understanding of wilderness and its role in protected areas for delivering social and economic benefits. In addition, the organization has focused on educating adults in order to increase awareness of the public about what protected areas can bring to them personally.
2. Improve management effectiveness of protected areas through providing expertise and a third party management audit to administration.
3. Improve the legal framework for protected areas with special attention on wildlife and wilderness attributes
Since EWS has the same objectives as ALF (promoting knowledge, mutual respect and exchange between regions, bridge the gaps in perceptions, as well as promote diversity and coexistence, promote intercultural competences amongst Europeans and Asians, empowering the Euro-Med organisations to work on intercultural dialogue through exchanges and collaborations in the region, applying a policy of environmental and social responsibility) and we work in the same fields, such as environment and sustainable development as well as tourism, education, art which can improve and broaden in particular in the Mediterranean. In order to find appropriate partners and support, the organization has decided to join ALF.
We are ready to exchange knowledge and experience in the above mentioned fields with organizations in the Euro-Mediterranean region, establish new partnerships.
An important activity which can be implemented with the support of ALF is facilitation of cooperation with Mediterranean education and civil society organizations and particularly support of conduction of European Wilderness Academy Days in Turkey in 2016.
