They have completed the baseline study based on discussions with the municipal council and environmental committee, a desk review, bird monitoring, and water quality analyses.

Next steps include training farmers and hunters to implement sustainable agriculture and reduce illegal hunting. With acute attention given to equity in conservation, the project empowers women in leadership positions in training and eco-tourism activities.

It organizes education and citizen science programs to instill environmental responsibility among younger generations.

Learn more on the project webpage

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This tragic news is not an isolated case. More than 140 migratory waterbird species are currently on a trajectory toward extinction, driven by habitat loss, hunting pressure, climate change, and insufficient monitoring data.

Why Counting Waterbirds Matters

The loss of the Slender-billed Curlew underscores a simple truth: we cannot protect what we do not monitor.

The International Waterbird Census (IWC), the world’s largest and longest-running citizen-science programme for waterbirds, remains one of the most powerful tools to detect declines early and guide conservation action. In January–February 2026, the IWC will mark its 60th global count, and efforts are now underway to make this edition the most comprehensive yet.

How You Can Help

Over the coming months, we will be working to mobilise support for the IWC and ensure strong participation across all regions. You can help by supporting the global Waterbird Fund here: https://waterbird.fund/

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In this spirit, a workshop was organized for the craftswomen of the Dar Fatma “Al-Mustaqbal” Development Group. The training aimed to develop their skills in distilling aromatic and medicinal plants, upgrading product quality, and learning how to market goods inspired by local cultural heritage. By exploring how to transform the region’s natural resources into added-value products, the women gained new tools to build long-term economic opportunities within their community. 

The workshop was more than a technical training. It became a shared space for creativity and learning, including a field visit to the local nursery where participants discovered native plant species and explored sustainable ways to cultivate and valorize them. Throughout the sessions, the women worked together to improve how their products are presented, finding ways to reflect environmental values and the authentic identity of Dar Fatma. 

By supporting traditional crafts, aromatic plants processing, and nature-based products, this initiative strengthens the connection between people and their land. It also helps make Dar Fatma a living example of sustainable development in Tunisia, where ecological restoration and community empowerment move hand in hand. 

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To address these challenges, Doğa Derneği (BirdLife in Türkiye, Doga) has launched the “Flowing for the Future: Reviving the Gediz River Catchment in Aegean, Türkiye” project, funded by the Open Rivers Programme (ARCADIA). Running from July 2025 to August 2026, the project aims to identify, map, and document barriers across the 1,921 km² catchment, assess their ecological and socio-economic impacts, and support policy solutions that enable barrier removal and river restoration.

Over the next 13 months, Doga will conduct field surveys, GIS mapping, biodiversity assessments, hydrological analyses, and remote sensing-based before-and-after comparisons. These studies will build a clear picture of how barriers affect water quality, species, habitats, and local communities.

The project will also produce scientific reports and visual communication materials, as well as awareness campaigns to highlight the importance of free-flowing rivers. Engagement with local and national authorities, collaboration with legal and policy experts, and the creation of a regional stakeholder coalition will further strengthen advocacy for sustainable river management. 

Furthermore, these actions will create the first complete barrier inventory for the Gediz River, generating robust scientific evidence to guide barrier removal, modification, and restoration planning. Findings will be used to raise public awareness, support policy advocacy, and help decision-makers prioritise the removal of critical barriers that restore river connectivity and reduce ecological pressures. Ultimately, the project aims to strengthen long-term resilience for freshwater ecosystems and the communities that depend on them. 

This initiative builds on previous restoration work in the Gediz Delta under the CARDIMED project (Horizon Europe) and on biodiversity monitoring supported by the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) through Tour du Valat (TdV). With this new project, efforts now expand to the entire catchment, marking an important step toward a free-flowing, climate-resilient Gediz River. 

For further information, please get in touch with Özge Yaylalı, Biodiversity Research Officer at Doğa Derneği at ozge.yaylali@dogadernegi.org 

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This motion was initiated by PPNEA (Albania) and co-sponsored by 14 partner organizations from 13 countries, including EuroNatur, BirdLife International, Tour du Valat, Wetlands International, and others. What started as a call from a small country like Albania, against the controversial amendments to the Law on Protected Areas (Law No. 21/2024), has now grown into a global achievement for conservation. Together, we reaffirmed a simple principle: protected areas are for conservation, not massive development, including for mass tourism.

The adoption of Law No. 21/2024 in Albania, defended under the false narrative of “following IUCN criteria,” opened the door for tourism complexes, airports, and energy facilities even in national parks. This dangerous precedent prompted the development of Motion 130 to ensure governments worldwide cannot use similar loopholes to justify the destruction of nature under the guise of tourism. The motion specifically urges the Albanian government to reinstate restrictions on heavy infrastructure development within protected areas.

This outcome also adds weight to recent calls from the European Union, which has already required Albania to restore its environmental protections as a condition for advancing EU accession (see PPNEA recent statement: Despite nature conservation concerns, EU opens negotiations with Albania on environment).

From Albania’s coastal wetlands and aged sand dunes of Vjosa–Narta, where luxury resorts and airports are planned, to similar struggles across the globe, Motion 130 is now a strong international reminder to governments that tourism is no excuse to destroy protected areas.

While the vote marks a significant step forward, continued engagement will be essential to ensure that the motion’s guidance is reflected in national policies and in the management of some of the Mediterranean’s most sensitive areas. Motion 130 now stands as an important global reference point for maintaining the integrity of protected areas in the face of accelerating tourism pressures.

 Full motion text, list of sponsors, further information here.

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Motions are central to how IUCN Members influence international conservation policy. Once adopted, they become Resolutions and Recommendations, forming the basis of IUCN’s policy framework. As the only global platform bringing together governments, civil society, and Indigenous Peoples’ organisations, the IUCN Members’ Assembly holds a unique and powerful mandate.  Among this year’s adopted motions was Motion 130 – Strengthening protective measures for protected areas against unsustainable tourism development. 

Motion 130 is particularly relevant for regions where protected areas face mounting tourism pressures. The motion:

• Reaffirms that IUCN Categories I and II prohibit large-scale infrastructure in core zones.
• Highlights the risks of poorly planned tourism, including habitat loss, pollution, and increased climate vulnerability.
• Calls on governments to prohibit damaging mass tourism infrastructure in highly protected areas and ensure that all tourism activities undergo proper environmental and social assessments.
• Requests updates to IUCN’s tourism guidelines and promotes capacity-building and partnerships to support sustainable tourism practices.
• Encourages the development of legal indicators to monitor compliance better and strengthen accountability.

Motion 130 provides an important framework for countries and protected area managers seeking to reconcile tourism development with biodiversity conservation—particularly in sensitive Mediterranean wetlands and coastal ecosystems.

Motion 130 Strengthening protective measures for protected areas against unsustainable tourism development: adopted  

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Urdaibai hosts highly sensitive coastal and estuarine ecosystems and plays a key role along major migratory flyways. Throughout the process, scientists, environmental organisations, and local communities raised strong concerns about the potential impacts of large-scale infrastructure in this protected area. The outcome reaffirms the importance of science-based planning, transparent governance, and respect for international conservation frameworks in biosphere reserves.

We warmly thank all organisations that supported the Urdaibai Red Alert through joint letters and contributions, as well as the scientists who stood together behind the international manifesto. This collective mobilisation—driven by the Guggenheim Urdaibai Stop Platform and supported by a broad alliance of actors—demonstrates how coordinated action can help safeguard wetlands and uphold the integrity of protected areas.

For more information:
The Times: https://www.thetimes.com/world/europe/article/bilbao-guggenheim-extension-scrapped-3jdz9plwr
El Pais: https://elpais.com/cultura/2025-12-16/las-instituciones-vascas-deciden-poner-fin-al-guggenheim-en-urdaibai.html
El Diario: https://www.eldiario.es/euskadi/no-habra-guggenheim-urdaibai-patronato-decidido-no-seguir-adelante_1_12850315.html

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Credits Tauland Bino

The Green Light Protocol: Laying the Foundation

The conception of the restoration project was strongly supported by the Green Light Protocol, an initiative of the Mediterranean Alliance for Wetlands that helps civil society organizations co-create science-based wetland restoration plans.

Credits Besjana Shehu

Through this process, AOS worked closely with wetland scientists, hydrologists, landscape planners, and artists to:

• Analyze the ecological history and current pressures on the Vrina Marshes;
• Explore multiple restoration scenarios and hydrological solutions;
• Engage protected-area managers, local communities, and government representatives;
• Develop a shared long-term vision for the recovery of the marsh.

This participatory design phase confirmed Vrina as a priority site and provided the technical and social foundation needed to advance restoration efforts.

A Vision for Ecological Renewal

Building on the outcomes of the Green Light Protocol, the restoration initiative focuses on reviving natural water dynamics and restoring a mosaic of interconnected habitats. Planned measures include:

• Reestablishing seasonal flooding by reconnecting parts of the Pavllo River with its floodplain;
• Creating shallow pools, reedbeds, and open water zones to support waterbirds, amphibians, and fish;
• Removing Tamarix overgrowth and promoting native marsh vegetation;
• Enhancing ecological corridors that link Butrint’s wetlands with other coastal habitats;
• Assessing options to improve freshwater availability while safeguarding local farmland.

Restoring Vrina is expected to enhance biodiversity and improve ecosystem services such as salinity control, groundwater recharge and climate resilience.

People at the Heart of the Project

Community involvement is central to the project’s success. Farmers, landowners, and village councils have been consulted and will be involved in participating in co-designing the restoration and defining future land-use opportunities. This includes exploring sustainable grazing management and developing nature-based tourism activities that complement Butrint’s world-famous cultural heritage.

A restored Vrina Marsh could become a new attraction for birdwatchers, nature lovers, and students to a region historically known for its archaeological wonders.

A Model for Albania’s Wetland Future

The Vrina Marshes restoration aligns with the Butrint National Park Integrated Management Plan (2020-2030), which identifies wetland recovery in the Vrina plain as a strategic priority. As one of the first large-scale wetland restoration efforts in the country, Vrina has the potential to become a model for Albania’s future landscape restoration initiatives.

With a shared vision and a strong scientific basis, the project now moves toward implementation, offering a unique opportunity to revive one of the country’s most significant coastal wetlands for nature and people alike. Ensuring that future generations experience the wildlife, beauty, and resilience of the Vrina Marshes.

Link to the Vrina Marshes Infographic

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Today, a new initiative under the Green Light Protocol is laying the foundations for its recovery.

A Wetland of Exceptional Biodiversity

Carska Bara shelters more than 250 bird species, 500 plant species, and remarkable wetland wildlife, from the Eurasian otter and fire salamander to whiskered terns, storks, and the globally threatened Ferruginous Duck. Its reedbeds, gallery forests, and shallow lakes support one of the richest wetland assemblages in the Pannonian Basin.

However, decades of canalization, water pollution from the Begej and Tisa rivers, invasive trees such as Acer negundo and Fraxinus pennsylvanica, and the gradual infilling of lagoons by sediment and reeds have severely undermined the functioning of this unique ecosystem.

A Vision Shaped Through the Green Light Protocol

In 2025, the Green Light team, composed of Milan and Kristina from the Bird Protection and Study Society of Serbia (BPSSS), Lorena as representative of the Mediterranean Alliance for Wetlands from Tour du Valat, and Rob MacInness an external wetland expert, visited the Carska Bara site for an initial assessment. Through field missions, problem analysis, and discussions with key local stakeholders including managers, researchers and governmental authorities, the team worked together to develop a shared vision for the restoration of the wetland.

Credits: Lorena Segura

Together, they defined a shared long-term vision:
A functional, climate-resilient Carska Bara that benefits both nature and local communities.

The Green Light Protocol helped establish five strategic objectives:

• Restore hydrology by improving water flow from the Begej River and reducing sedimentation.
• Improve water quality through monitoring, sediment removal, and nature-based treatment solutions.
• Revive habitats by managing reedbeds, re-profiling channels, removing invasive trees, introducing water buffaloes to enhancing alkaline grasslands.
• Strengthen local livelihoods through training in reed harvesting, eco-tourism development, reed-based products, and community engagement.
• Share lessons learned nationally and internationally to inspire future wetland recovery efforts.

A Long-Term Opportunity for People and Nature

Successful restoration would re-establish Carska Bara as a thriving wetland landscape, rich in open water, reedbeds, woodlands and grasslands, and alive with herons, spoonbills, otters and migratory waterbirds. It will also create new economic opportunities for surrounding villages such as Belo Blato, Perlez and Ečka through nature-based tourism, sustainable harvesting and educational activities.

Carska Bara has long been one of Serbia’s natural treasures. Today, with renewed collaboration, scientific guidance, and a clear vision created through the Green Light Protocol, this emblematic wetland has a real chance to thrive again.

Link to the Carska Bara Green Light infographic

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