Stara planina, example of human - wildlife coexistence

This story is about everything we have done to improve the coexistence of large carnivores and humans, to mitigate the impacts of climate change in their habitats, how we have built a foundation for new successful solutions, and also about how important it is to continue improving this work.

We are concluding the ForestConnect project with a workshop at the Magaria farm near Dimitrovgrad, where, together with all three project partners from Bulgaria (WWF Bulgaria, NWSE, EFA), we summarized the results of two and a half years of work across seven European countries.

It is quite impressive how complex this project has been, but even more importantly, we all worked on it with great enthusiasm and energy. When we reviewed all the results in a single day, we could truly congratulate ourselves on what had been achieved.

We are also proudly present beautiful, still well-preserved nature of Stara Planina, the good friends we made during this work, and the wealth of knowledge they have shared with us.

Instead of advising others on how and why bears, wolves, and lynx are important and how coexistence is possible, we opened the doors to those who live on this mountain to show you themselves.

From the authentic donkey farm where people from all over Europe come to heal, rest, learn how to live in harmony with nature, and enrich their spirit, to the view of the valley and the natural wonder of Pirot - the Vidlič mountain, a walk through swarms of butterflies and forests of old fruit varieties intended for wildlife…

Unfortunately, there is no way to convey the scent of thyme in the early morning when the sun lights up meadows surrounded by pine trees, nor the feeling of a butterfly landing on your cheek, or the softness of thick grass brushing against your feet… You will have to experience that yourself, so make sure you give yourself that opportunity!

Of course, not everything is perfect, but the goodwill created through the joint work of 13 partners across seven countries will open space for future collaborative activities in the conservation of endangered species and their habitats.

The models we have developed, along with strategic documents, guidelines, and manuals, will, we hope, serve many in continuing the work on conserving large carnivores and promoting coexistence between humans and nature.

This is not the end.