Details
Webinar: Adaptive Management in Protected Areas
Join this webinar organised as part of the LIFE PAME-Europe Project.
- 25.11.2026
- 11:00 – 12:15 CET
- Open to all, but registration is required.
Adaptive Management in Protected Areas: From Assessing to Implementing
Protected Areas are dynamic systems, shaped by natural processes as well as changing environmental and societal conditions. Managing them effectively requires more than predefined conservation objectives and management measures: it calls for the ability to learn, adapt and respond to change.
But how can adaptive management be put into practice and support Protected Area managers in balancing ecological objectives, changing conditions and the expectations and concerns of local communities?
As part of the LIFE PAME-Europe Project, this webinar will explore the role of Protected Area Management Effectiveness (PAME) in supporting adaptive management, combining expert insights with practical experiences from Protected Areas in Iceland and the Netherlands.
Sue Stolton, an expert in PAME and part of the LIFE PAME-Europe Advisory Board, will explore how PAME has increasingly supported adaptive management. Two case studies will illustrate what this can mean in practice:
Vatnajökull National Park in Iceland will illustrate the challenges of managing a Protected Area shaped by dynamic natural processes, increasing tourism and recreational pressure. Furthermore, LIFE PAME-Europe Pilot Site National Park Zuid-Kennemerland in the Netherlands will share their experience of reactivating dune dynamics through notches and restored parabolic dunes. Highlighting not only the ecological benefits of such interventions, but also the challenges of stakeholder engagement, public acceptance and societal reactions.
Through these contributions, the webinar will open a discussion on how Protected Areas can adapt their management approaches in practice, learn from experience and navigate the sometimes complex relationship between conservation objectives and societal expectations.
Programme
- Welcome and Introduction. Neil McIntosh, Project Manager for LIFE PAME-Europe, EUROPARC Federation
- How PAME supports Adaptive Management. Sue Stolton, Partner at Equilibrium Research
- The Dynamic Nature of Fire and Ice: Dynamic or Rigid Management? Helga Árnadóttir, Project Manager at Division of Management and Conservation at the Nature Conservation Agency of Iceland
- Restoring Dynamic Dune Landscapes: Ecological Benefits and Societal Challenges. Inger van den Bosch, Research Coordinator at PWN
- Q&A: Participants will be able to pose questions after each of the speakers.