© Gavrilo Knežević

European Green Belt Initiative

Our Vision: 

The European Green Belt, our shared natural heritage along the line of the former Iron Curtain is to be conserved and restored, to function as an ecological network connecting high-value natural and cultural landscapes whilst respecting the economic, social and cultural needs of local communities.

An extraordinary ecological network and living memorial landscape has developed along the former Iron Curtain, which divided the European continent into East and West for nearly 40 years. Along 24 countries and more than 12,500 kilometres – from the Barents Sea at the Russian-Norwegian border, along the Baltic Coast, through Central Europe and the Balkans to the Black and the Adriatic Sea – the border zone granted nature a pause and has created a zone of life. As the European Green Belt snakes from north to south it passes through a huge variety of European landscapes. Today, the European Green Belt forms the backbone of a Pan-European ecological network and provides a significant contribution to European "Green Infrastructure".

The European Green Belt Initiative aims to harmonise human activities with the natural environment and to increase opportunities for the socio-economic development of local communities.

Read more about the European Green Belt and the Initiative.

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Busy as the bees: Maintenance activities at Marchfeld's Blooming Landscapes

There are two reasons to be proud of the project's first sprouting plants: the autumn-planted flowering areas are thriving, and a newly formed nature conservation group has completed its first joint operations!

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Shifting waterbird colonies in Northwestern Poland: a significant natural process observed

The relocation of a formerly thriving bird colony from Grądzka Kępa to Chrząszczewska Island, due to habitat degradation, demonstrates the importance of monitoring for conservation planning along the European Green Belt.

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Young people can learn about otters and the importance of conserving them at Lake Skadar

The NGO Green Home held a training session at Lake Skadar, educating young people and locals about otter conservation as part of the transboundary BESTbelt project “Improving the status of the otter and its habitat in the Skadar Lake National Park area“. The session highlighted the threats to otters, their ecological roles, and the use of citizen science tools to monitor endangered species and protect freshwater habitats.

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