First pentalateral UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in the World

The submission of the international protected area project Mura-Drava-Danube is on the way.

The 5-Country Biosphere Reserve Mura-Drava-Danube (TBR MDD) is the first and only one in the world to link so many countries. It will extend over Austria, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia and Slovenia and will cover an important European river system of almost 1,000,000 hectares.

The preparatory work is largely complete. They were supported and accompanied by E.C.O. “We coordinated the UNESCO submission between the representatives of the participating countries,” says project manager Daniel Zollner. “Thus, the project not only contributes to the protection of biodiversity and sustainable development in the areas but has also built and strengthened bridges between the participating nations”.

In a joint mission, the partners from the participating countries now want to secure and promote sustainable development in the areas. The goals are the preservation of ecological diversity and ecosystem services, the promotion of the socio-economic development of the regions, mutual logistical support and capacity building as well as transnational management and good cooperation.

In line with this, E.C.O. has prepared a study on ecological connectivity in the Danube region in the Interreg project DANUBEparksCONNECTED. It is available at: https://e-c-o.at/files/publications/downloads/dabu19_guidingprinciples_klein_191029.pdf

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