Milestones of the programme
The first EUROPARC conference on the theme Transboundary Protected Areas (TPBA's), “Transfrontier Parks: experience, problems, future prospects”, was held in 1988 in Worriken, Belgium.
In 1994 the IUCN launched the common programme “Parks for Life - Action for Protected Areas in Europe” in association with numerous organisations including the EUROPARC Federation . The programme defined the support and promotion of transboundary cooperation as a priority activity for strengthening the planning and management of Europe’s protected areas. A particular focus point was TBPA's along the former “iron curtain”, where the natural environment had survived intact. Working within the framework of this programme EUROPARC commissioned transboundary studies, established and supported transboundary partnerships between protected areas and organised workshops, conferences and two expert working groups on this topic.
In July 1999 EUROPARC commissioned a "Pre-study on the appraisal of the quality of transfrontier cooperation of protected areas in Europe" and coordinated work on a draft set of standards, which were to assess the development of transboundary cooperation. The annual EUROPARC conference in 1999 in Zakopane, Poland, was entitled "Transcending Borders - Parks for Europe".
Also in 1999 the publication "Transboundary protected areas in Europe" was produced by the EUROPARC Federation, the IUCN/WCPA and the Austrian Federal Ministry of Environment, Youth and Family Affairs.
In June 2000 EUROPARC's Basic Standards for Transfrontier Cooperation in Europe were first presented at an international seminar in Retz (A) and unanimously approved by representatives of the European Commission's Environment Directorate General, UNESCO and the IUCN and by the EUROPARC Council in September 2000. Following this a working group was established within the framework of the EUROPARC Expertise Exchange (EEE) programme to address specific questions of transboundary cooperation.
The working group used the Objective Oriented Planning Process (OOPP) and analysed various aspects of transboundary cooperation in different European regions. They focused on identifying possible indicators, elaborating guidelines for the evaluation of transboundary cooperation and recommendations for actions to be taken for the further development of transboundary cooperation between protected areas.
During the EEE project the Federation supported transboundary partnership agreements between: Aggtelek National Park (H) and Karst Protected Landscape Area (SK), Woliski National Park (PL) and Rügen National Park (D), Galicica National Park (Macedonia) and the Prespa National Park (AL).
In 2001 EUROPARC established another expert working group, the "Transfrontier Task Force", which involved 11 experts from seven different European countries. Their task was to set up a framework for evaluating transboundary cooperation between European protected areas using the Basic Standards. The group agreed indicators for each of the Basic Standards Criteria and Fields of Work and refined and approved the framework for an evaluation system.
To ensure their relevance and rigorousness, the full system of Basic Standards criteria and fields of work, together with their indicators and the evaluation system were tested in three separate transboundary protected areas. The parks used were chosen for their range of ecosystems; combinations of designation, political context and cultural and administrative positions within Europe. The results were used to redifine the indicators, application and evaluation processes.
Once tested and redefined the Basic Standards evaluation system was put into practice in 2003. It is an objective, innovative and unique system that aims to promote best practice in transboundary cooperation between European protected areas. The system, implemented under the EUROPARC 'Transboundary Parks - Following Nature's Design' initiative, was later endorsed by the IUCN and officially launched in September 2003 at the 5th World Parks Congress in Durban, South Africa.
Since it was launched 15 transboundary protected areas have been certified successfully using the evaluation system.
