News

The General Assembly of the European Green Belt Association met during the BESTbelt Pan-European Conference 2024 in Latvia, which provided a good backdrop for the exchange of key issues around the European Green Belt. A new Board was also elected.

The 3rd Call for Proposals received an incredibly high number of a total of 96 Concept Note applications. 38 of these were then invited to develop a Full Concept in the second stage of the call. In the end, 21 Full Proposals were selected for funding. Some of the 21 new projects already started last month in October!

Nine-month mentoring programme will start in January 2025, offering the opportunity to develop professional skills, expand networks and transform working relationships in the conservation sector.

The Commission's Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO) funds 20 pilot actions for the creation of joint cross-border plans for crisis management and spatial planning. Public entities and cross-border structures can apply until 30 November 2024 to receive funds to make their territories more resilient.

Two years after the last BESTbelt Conference in Montenegro, the European Green Belt community met again during this year's BESTbelt Pan-European Conference 2024 in Latvia. More than 80 participants from over 60 different organisations from nearly all countries along the European Green Belt attended the conference from 14. - 18. October to discuss, learn from each other and strengthen or initiate collaboration.

The European Green Belt Days, celebrated annually from 18-24 September, highlight the region’s commitment to peace, nature conservation, and transboundary cooperation. Stretching 12,000 km across Europe, the European Green Belt Initiative unites diverse cultures and landscapes, fostering environmental awareness and collaboration.

A special European Green Belt border marker was inaugurated in Austria on 10 August 2024 by the Austrian League for Nature Conservation and the municipalities of Ferlach and Tržič on the traditional EU Kirchtag at the Alter Loibl Pass.

The largest restoration project to date in the UNESCO Five-country Biosphere Reserve Mura-Drava-Danube meanders along the European Green Belt and involves 17 institutions and organizations in 5 countries, including public administrations for nature conservation, water, forest and regional management, as well as universities and NGOs.

The Austrian League for Nature Conservation (Naturschutzbund Österreich) is once again organising European Green Belt Camps this summer to protect and restore the European Green Belt in Austria.

The BESTbelt and Balkan Green Belt community strengthened connections and exchanged about projects along the European Green Belt during this year's Balkan Regional Conference in Haskovo in May 2024.