As part of their Master’s degree in Forest and Nature conservation at Wageningen University & Research, students Lucy Dötig and Fleur Bokma did a six months internship this year with Rewilding Europe, investigating habitat suitability for fallow deer, red deer and European bison in the Rhodope Mountains Rewilding Landscape. We checked in with them recently to see how they have been getting on.
The restoration of wildlife populations can play a game-changing role stabilising our climate. Rewilding is the best way to enable such a recovery.
People’s wellbeing is inextricably linked to the ecological health of the land where they live. In the heart of the Scottish Highlands, a progressive rewilding initiative is delivering diverse benefits for nature and local communities.
As a keystone species, vultures are an integral part of healthy ecosystems. The discovery last year of a cinereous vulture colony in the Greater Côa Valley is therefore good news for wild nature and local rewilding efforts.
The war in Ukraine is taking a terrible toll on people and nature. Yet despite facing many challenges, the resilient Rewilding Ukraine team continue to see their efforts bear fruit.
The EU has just published its proposal for legally binding nature restoration targets. We now have a huge opportunity to recover European nature, with rewilding playing a leading role.
Large mammals (megafauna) have crucial roles in ecosystems. Megafauna restoration is therefore a key element of rewilding. A new study finds that restoring Europe’s megafauna as much as possible is in fact a legal (and moral) obligation.
The removal of dams has proven to be the most environmentally efficient and cost-effective way of restoring rivers, bringing wide-ranging benefits to both people and wild nature. Dam Removal Europe’s latest progress report shows an increase of 137% of barriers removed compared to the previous year, confirming the growing movement and interest in restoring rivers in Europe.
Animals influence the carbon cycle in myriad ways. By enabling wildlife populations to recover in both number and diversity, rewilding could significantly reduce atmospheric carbon and move us beyond net zero.
On the constant lookout for environmental crime and damaging wildfire, Rewilding Portugal’s surveillance team travel thousands of kilometres every year to protect wolves and other wildlife south of the Douro River.