Successful conclusion of the conference 'WH BEECH Communities - Experiences, results and conclusions' 

In the framework of the BEECH POWER project, the City of Angermünde (DE), Slovenia Forest Service (SI) and the Paklenica National Park (HR) have been closely cooperating on the development of WH Beech Communities as model for ecosystem-based sustainable development. For the conclusion of the BEECH POWER work package “Empowering World Heritage Beech communities as model for ecosystem-based sustainable development”, the international conference “WH Beech Forest Communities – experiences, results and conclusions” was held from 16 to 18 February in order to:

• share the experiences and results obtained within the work package “Empowering World Heritage Beech Communities as models for ecosystem-based sustainable development”,
• discuss further opportunities for WH Beech Communities as drivers for sustainable regional development and
• jointly define requirements, options and key points for enhanced regional cooperation and development of WH Beech Forest Communities.

Originally, the conference was planned as a hybrid event taking place in Angermünde and online. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, the conference had to be hold exclusively online. The conference was moderated by Dr. Anja Salzer and technically conducted by the European Wilderness Society.

Strengthening the World Heritage Beech Communities concept

The conference was an important milestone for the respective Work Package. The conference provided the opportunity to disseminate the knowledge and experience with the development of WH Beech Communities which was obtained within the BEECH POWER project reaching nearly 70 representatives from different component parts of the Unesco World Heritage Series “Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe” in 11 countries. Moreover, the concept of WH Beech Communities was developed further and concretized: The successful story of a regionally embedded WH Beech Community was jointly developed defining key ideas, key actors and their values, key elements, actions and strategies as well as success factors and obstacles in the development of WH Beech Communities and enhanced regional cooperation.

The obtained conference results are synthesized in an Overall strategy for enhanced regional cooperation and development of WH communities.

The conference ended with the overall conclusion that joint encounters and the exchange of ideas, experiences, and practices, such as this workshop-style conference are of utmost importance for the further development of the UNESCO WH Beech Forests serial site and enhanced intraregional cooperation. 

Revisit the first day

You couldn't make it to the conference? You can rewatch the first day of the conference HERE.