Since 1977, the Wild Foundation has been organizing a World Wilderness Congress for the purpose of providing a public forum to discuss and plan the preservation of nature and healthy human relationships with it. This
Wilderness
Challenge to protect European forests
European forests are under extreme pressure. We can read almost daily the stories that somewhere in Europe forests are dying, logged and disappearing. The initial event leading to this is usually a large scale wind blow, fire or snowfall, which is extensive killing
Forests and Wilderness crucial in the climate change combat
Trees are widely known to be important carbon sequestrators with a great potential to combat climate change. A recent study showed that planting one trillion trees could suck up two thirds of global carbon emissions.
Majella Wilderness hosts ancient black pine
An extraordinary black pine of more than 900-year old is growing in Majella Wilderness, embedded in Majella National Park in Italy. The pine could survive that many centuries because it was hidden in a remote,
European rivers threatened by more and more dams
A new report on the effects of damming on European rivers has highlighted how rivers are saturated with dams. Currently, there are already 21 387 dams on the continent, with another 278 under construction. In
Importance of peat bogs as CO2 storage
A study from Chazdon and Brancalion in 2019 revealed that newly planted trees could absorb most of the human made CO2-emissions. The study states that nothing is as effective in mitigating the climate overheating as
Barriers to the expansion of Wilderness in Europe
We can still find large continuous natural areas in many parts of Europe, which are little affected by human activities. Such areas are for example located in Slovakia, Austria, Italy or Slovenia. Here we find
Natural wonder on a tri-border: Kongura Wilderness
The autumn of 2019, auditors of European Wilderness Society visited a number of protected areas in Bulgaria. The most Southern point reached was Kongura Strict Reserve, embedded into Belasitsa Nature Park. The Reserve was created
Scenic nature in Ali Botush Wilderness
Ali Botush is a Strict Reserve in the Slavyanka mountain range, located directly on the border of Bulgaria and Greece. It was established in 1951 to protect the largest forests of the endemic Bosnian pine
Exploring the jungle of Mantaritsa WILDForest
Mantaritsa Strict Reserve was established in 1968 to showcase and protect an old, unmanaged forest ecosystem in the Western Rhodope Mountains. During their visit in Bulgaria, auditors of the European Wilderness Society paid a visit
European Wilderness Network: The wildest places in Europe!
In the past years, more than 41 Wilderness Areas from 17 countries joined the European Wilderness Network. The European Wilderness Network ist therefore Europe’s and one of the worlds largest Network of Wilderness areas. The
Wilderness found in Cervenata stena: the land of caves
In autumn 2019, European Wilderness Society auditors travelled to Bulgaria to seek new potential Wilderness. One treasure found was Cervenata Stena Strict Reserve. The Chervenata Stena (Red Wall) Strict Nature Reserve is a unique piece
In addition to tropical rainforest – mangroves are the excellent carbon storers
Mangrove forests are crucially important ecosystems circling the shores in the tropics, covering about 22 million hectares. However, they are under strong deforestation pressure, as 20% to 35% of all forests have been lost since
How the fall of East Germany raised the world’s biodiversity
Today, 30 years ago, the Berlin Wall that separated the capital city in Western and Eastern Germany fell. Just before the final decline of East Germany, one of the most unique nature reserves was created.
Potential Wilderness in Vitosha Nature Park
Recently, auditors of the European Wilderness Society set out on a trip in Bulgaria to visit existing members of the European Wilderness Network. Paralelly, the aim was to explore the diverse Bulgarian landscape and search
Rangers murdered by Romanian logging mafia
Shocking news this week from CNN as an indigenous leader who protected rainforest was murdered in Brasil. However, similar horrifying events take place here in Europe. Worrying news has come to our attention about the
IUCN 1b Wilderness Celebration in Hohe Tauern National Park
On the 28th of October 2019 Hohe Tauern National Park celebrated the awarding of the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) 1b Wilderness Status for the ‘Sulzbachtäler’ Wilderness. This full day event took place
400 kg of garbage: How clean rivers help Slovensky raj
Another Citizens Engagement Activity, organized by our employee and ex-IVY volunteer Hanna Öllös and our current IVY volunteer Jonas Sommer, took place in Slovakia. The event in Slovensky raj National Park focused on the synergy
Chinook salmon die-off as a consequence of climate change
The numbers of Chinook Salmon have dropped drastically in the recent years. In Columbia, US, 17 million salmon used to return each year, but now the number is reduced to just one million. Salmon are
The toll of environmental activism
There is always a price to pay and ‘nothing worth fighting for comes easy’, least of all the fight to save our ‘pale blue dot’. Its well known that the costs for sustaining our way