The 7th International Parks Dinarides Conference Opens – EU Accession Makes a Major Difference in Nature Conservation

Protecting nature while ensuring benefits for the people who live in it is the mission that brings together the members of the Parks Dinarides Network. Guided by this mission, members jointly work to strengthen community resilience and create conditions for development and opportunities in education, tourism, and the green economy. This was highlighted at the 7th International Parks Dinarides Conference, held today and tomorrow (3 December) in Podgorica under the title “Global and European Perspectives on Protected Areas in the Dinaric Region.”

The President of Parks Dinarides, Zoran Mrdak, recalled that the network was established in 2014 out of the desire and need for cooperation among countries of the Dinaric Arc.

“Today, eleven years later, our network includes 113 members, 64 of whom are protected area management authorities. This year’s conference brings together 35 managers responsible for single protected areas and seven management authorities overseeing a total of 37 protected areas,” said Mrdak.

He also announced that Triglav National Park from Slovenia and Šar Mountains National Park from North Macedonia have joined the Dinaric Parks Network as new members.

“Parks Dinarides is a platform for dialogue… There is no other regional platform that brings together such a wide range of actors from the Dinaric Arc countries around a shared mission in this way and at this scale: protecting nature and improving the well-being of the people who live in it,” Mrdak emphasized.

Trifun Savić, Director General of the Directorate for International Cooperation and EU Funds at the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Northern Development of Montenegro, stated that the Dinaric Parks Conference has become one of the most important meeting points for regional protected area managers and nature conservation experts.

“All these topics are connected by a common thread – how we can jointly improve the nature protection system and strengthen protected areas through cooperation, exchange of experience, and learning from one another,” said Savić. He also recalled that Montenegro is currently taking steps to meet the obligations under EU accession Chapter 27 – Environment and Climate Change, particularly by strengthening knowledge, institutions, and governance structures.

“This is clearly reflected in ongoing processes: the finalization of the new Law on Nature Protection and the development of the Biodiversity Strategy until 2031. These documents should form the foundation for a modern, harmonized, and sustainable nature conservation policy, as well as provide strong support for what we aim to enhance – protected areas as Montenegro’s greatest natural asset,” Savić added.

Michael Hošek, President of the EUROPARC Federation, the umbrella European NGO bringing together protected areas, emphasized that Europe is entering a challenging and unpredictable period, but that regional cooperation in the Western Balkans can bring benefits to all—especially to countries aspiring to become full members of the European Union.

“EU accession makes a significant difference in nature conservation, not only in terms of networks and species, but also in terms of professionalization,” Hošek stressed.

At the opening of the conference, Oliver Avramoski, Director of the IUCN Regional Office for Eastern Europe and Central Asia (IUCN ECARO), emphasized that “protected and conserved areas must be at the heart of all our policies,” noting that future environmental protection efforts will increasingly focus on protected area management.

“The Dinaric Arc is a continuous ecological system, and our work must therefore be systemic. Just as nature is interconnected, so must we be. In the coming years, the focus will be on the quality of management and governance models, ecological connectivity, and effective river protection,” Avramoski stated.

Over the two days of the international conference, four panel sessions, a workshop, as well as meetings of the Dinaric Parks Steering Committee and Assembly will be held.

The 7th Conference is organized in cooperation with the Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Northern Development of Montenegro, with support from the GEF 7 project “Integrating Biodiversity into Sectoral Policies and Practices and Strengthening the Protection of Key Biodiversity Areas in Montenegro.” Technical support in the preparation and implementation of the event is provided by the EUROPARC Federation and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).