Updates on EUROPARC’s online conference!

As we announced at the beginning of June, the EUROPARC Conference 2021 that was scheduled to take place in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands is postponed to 2023 due to the pandemic. However, building on the great experience of last year’s online Conference, we are going online on the 6th and 7th of October with “Parks in the Spotlight Powered by People; Inspired by Nature. Find here updates on EUROPARC’s online conference!

With the “Spotlight” on Parks in many different policies both in the EU and worldwide, this conference is about championing what Parks can achieve, but it also aims to highlight what is needed for Parks to reach their full potential. Our conference will look at the practical management that turns political and societal topics, such as climate change, biodiversity restoration, health, tourism and economy (especially post covid), capacity building, technology, role of youth and agriculture into reality.

Workshops

Conference delegates will have the option to choose from 10 different workshops. In previous conferences, it was often a tough decision to decide on which workshops to follow, as they would take place at the same time. To eliminate this problem, the 10 workshops will be available on BOTH days! Additionally, we are working hard on making the workshops more participatory, so get out your thinking caps, as delegates will not just be observers, but also “doers”.

Of course, delegates can count on workshops related to all big EUROPARC topics including:

• Sustainable Agriculture
• Sustainable Tourism
• Youth involvement
• Climate Change
• Ecosystem Restoration
• Health
• Stakeholder Engagement
• Technological innovation

Speaker’s Corner

A proven format that we used last year will also make its return this year: the Speaker’s Corner. However, whereas last year presenters had 15 minutes, this year we’ve reduced the presentation time to 5 minutes! For one hour, 10 different presenters get the opportunity to “put the spotlight” on their projects. In this “speed dating format” the goal is to increase awareness about our members’ work and facilitate networking amongst our community.

As the enthusiasm of our members is generally unlimited and the number of presentation slots limited, a selection might be needed. Here is how it will be done:

• Applications will be selected by the Federation’s team to create a good cross-representation of projects covering the different aspects of Protected Area management.
• Projects highlighting work done on the ground, in response to big societal topics mentioned above will be favoured.
• The speaker’s corner is open to the EUROPARC Federation’s members in priority.

Registration for the Speaker’s Corner will open together with registrations to the conference.

Keynote speakers

As can be expected from a EUROPARC Conference, we will have stimulating Keynote Speakers to set the tone for the conference. We will reveal them in the upcoming months, so “watch this space”!

Registration

For now we ask you to save the date, but registrations for the conference will open in August! We look forward to welcoming everyone on the 6th and 7th of October.

General Assembly

Additionally, EUROPARC members are warmly invited to join on the 5th of October for our General Assembly. This year is extra special, as it is an election year. This also means that you can now nominate your candidates for Council and President! All info on the process can be found here. We look forward to receiving your nominations.