| Researchers: |
Mgr. Haas Martina, PhD., Mgr. Pitoňáková Tatiana, Ing. Chromčák Jakub, PhD., Ing. Smrčková Daša, doc. Ing. Pecho Pavol, PhD., Ing. Masarovičová Soňa, PhD. |
| The increased demand and interest in outdoor activities are great opportunities but also challenges for every protected area (PA) to meet visitors’ expectations, but also to protect natural values. The project aims to support PA managers in Central Europe (CE) in the area of evidence-based and participatory management (still insufficiently present in practice), to help them implement the right measures in the right places, to make smarter decisions, to prevent negative impacts and human-nature conflicts and to reduce risks through a gradual approach. The key message of the project is that it is important to better manage visitors today, so that tomorrow’s visitors can also experience quality sites, their conservation values and to support the livelihoods and well-being of local communities. The project aims to jointly develop new complementary tools and methods for assessing the impact of tourists based on transnational exchange of experience in order to better assess environmental conditions and trends, to adopt explicit management responses and measures, to generate information for national and European policymakers and the public. . Jointly developed pilot actions and solutions will demonstrate the use of innovative approaches to measuring the environmental impacts of tourism in the protected areas. The involvement of tourists and local communities in project activities, including participatory monitoring, will not only bring new valuable data, but will also bring awareness-raising, trust-building and behavior change. For individuals (tourists and local residents), it is an educational activity, where they can critically analyze the world around them and identify practical steps to protect the environment. Partners will also reflect on existing stories and jointly create new ones to develop the “common heritage” story and its ability to support policy-making. Jointly developed project outputs and final recommendations will be shared among relevant stakeholders through accompanying communication activities. |
