Ecotourism / Related projects

06 Jul

06/07/2023

Since the beginning of the 1990s, the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) has undertaken a series of initiatives in environmental awareness raising and ecotourism, aiming to promote tourism development, in a way that would not have negative effects on the natural and socio-economic environment of Prespa. In this context of information sharing and ecotourism, the project "Strengthening the ecotourism identity of Prespa" started in 2016, financed by the...

05 Jul

05/07/2023

Since the beginning of the 1990s, the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) has undertaken a series of initiatives in environmental awareness raising and ecotourism, aiming to promote tourism development, in a way that would not have negative effects on the natural and socio-economic environment of Prespa. A milestone in these initiatives was the opening of the first Visitor Information Centre ever to operate in a National Park in...

05 Jul

05/07/2023

The operation of the information centre was undertaken by an NGO which was established by the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) for this purpose, the Women’s Association of Lesser Prespa. As a capacity-building measure, in order to help foster environmental awareness and thus contribute to preserving the valuable natural and cultural values of this side of Lesser Prespa Lake, local people were trained as eco-guides and to run...

05 Jul

05/07/2023

In 2009, the SPP published a beautifully illustrated guidebook to 14 hiking trails in Greek Prespa, which has proved highly popular with tourists who wish to explore the area. The aim of the project was to promote the natural and cultural wealth of the area to visitors, as well as demonstrate their added value to the local tourism sector and wider community. The guidebook was developed with several SPP staff...

04 Jul

04/07/2023

The project entitled "Enhancing the cultural touristic product of the transboundary area of Prespa through the promotion of the natural and cultural heritage", or “Holy Water” for short, was an attempt to comprehensively approach tourism development in the transboundary area of Prespa through the promotion of cultural and environmental values. The project partners (Municipality of Prespa, Municipality of Resen, Ephorate of Antiquities of Florina, Bitola Museum and the Society for...

14 Jun

14/06/2023

In a nutshell, this project addresses a large proportion of the programme of the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) for the overall conservation and protection of Greek and transboundary Prespa, as foreseen in the organisation’s Strategic Framework for the period 2023-2027, as well as support for core administrative and managerial work. These efforts aim to contribute to achieving the long-term goals set out in the previous strategic framework,...

13 Apr

13/04/2023

Prespa’s local authorities, farmers, schools, sports-cultural associations and other local bodies joined forces to implement a major project (2018-2023) that set out to create an innovative model for the development of the country's protected areas. The core of the ambitious multi-partner PoliPrespa project was the parallel strengthening of Prespa’s social and institutional capital and the sustainable utilisation of the region's valuable natural and cultural resources, incorporating environmental values in productive...

07 Jul

07/07/2023

The Society for the Protection of Prespa was established in 1991 by two visionaries, Dr Luc Hoffman and Thymios Papayannis, who wanted to create an organisation that would work collaboratively to protect Prespa's remarkable nature and culture, through scientific principles and dialogue, ensuring that all those who strived for the conservation of this incredible and biodiverse corner of SE Europe spoke with a single and effective voice.Many partners and donors...