Raising Awareness / Related projects

30 Aug

30/08/2023

While the two Prespa lakes are famous for their 9 endemic fish, these species are in fact adapted to spawn in running waters, with one, the Prespa trout, living in the Agios Germanos River. For centuries, this river partially discharged into Lake Lesser Prespa and served all the spawning needs of endemic fish. However, the branch to this lake was blocked in the 1930s, while the river’s hydrogeological morphology has...

29 Aug

29/08/2023

The placew in mainland Greece that have had the privilege of an authoritative and detailed description of their plants and vegetation gathered into a single volume can be counted on the fingers of one hand, and with this book Prespa is honoured to join their number. Prespa is equally distinguished by the richness of its plant diversity. Within its relatively small area - 275 km2 - the region has both the...

11 Jul

11/07/2023

In the words of its author, Giorgos Catsadorakis, the scientific consultant of the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) and one of Greece’s most notable conservationists, this publication is a “…book written with a fourfold purpose: to paint an all-round picture of Prespa, with enough information and technical data to make it intelligible and enjoyable for the lay reader while at the same time catering for more specialist interests;...

07 Jul

07/07/2023

The Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) 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...

07 Jul

07/07/2023

The project "Strengthening NGO-led Collaboration to the Transboundary Prespa Basin" was implemented between 2018 and 2021 by the partners of the PrespaNet network (SPP, Macedonian Ecological Society – MES, Protection and Preservation of the Natural Environment of Albania – PPNEA) with the funding of the Prespa-Ohrid Nature Trust (PONT) and the Aage V. Jensen Charity Foundation and support by EuroNatur. Against of background of long-term efforts to foster transboundary collaboration in...

06 Jul

06/07/2023

Mediterranean forests are under considerable pressure from a range of negative environmental trends. In the case of Grecian Juniper Woods (GJW), priority habitat type *9562 and a unique habitat within the Greek Prespa National park (also expanding in the neighbouring countries, Albania and North Macedonia), the major threat is the abandonment of traditional, low intensity human intervention. In the past, human activities like livestock grazing, pruning and cutting for fodder...

05 Jul

05/07/2023

The Prespa Integrated Ecosystem Management (IEMP) project was a large international project, carried out with Global Environment Facility (GEF) support. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) was the implementing agency, and the project was executed in three components, one each for Albania and North Macedonia, and a transboundary component that also referred to Greece. The overall project goal was “The conservation and sustainable use of globally significant biological diversity and...

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...