Concrete Actions for Biodiversity (CONABI) -hanke – Pohjois-Karjalan biosfäärialue

Concrete actions for biodiversity

In 2024–2025, the Association for Rural Culture and Education will implement the Concrete actions for biodiversity (CONABI) project, which will be used to take concrete actions for biodiversity. The project operates in the North Karelia Biosphere Reserve area, i.e. Lieksa city, Ilomantsi municipality and Joensuu city’s Tuupovaara district. The project is funded by the European Green Belt Association, whose BESTbelt funding programme promotes biodiversity actions and awareness of the European Green Belt.

Awareness and interest on nature conservation is increasing and many rural villages, associations and enterprises would like to act on improving nature biodiversity. But they need more know-how, guidance and encouragement to carry out concrete environmental actions.

Main objective for CONABI -project is to change the attitudes of the actors in the area and to increase awareness, interest and know-how in caring for the environment. Goal is to activate and instruct local people, villages, farms and enterprises to do concrete actions for conserving species, biotopes and cultural environments and to use gained know-how on developing their community.

Project consists of series of workshops that offer training and know-how on specific topics and always contain concrete actions to conserve or improve biodiversity. Project organizes 15 full day or two-day workshops with local villages and communities. Aim is to involve especially young people to concrete environmental work. Workshop topics vary from making biochar to preventing invasive species from spreading, creating living environments for birds and insects to planting seedlings and building traditional wooden and stone fences. As a result of the workshops, also a network of sites presenting concrete environmental actions will be created. Network will be utilized in environmental education and monitoring the effects of actions in the future. Project is carried out in close co-operation with North Karelia Biosphere Reserve area.