OUR BLOG

The role of shepherds in maintaining the biodiversity of protected areas cannot be overstated, playing a crucial role in preserving the …

An innovative approach for the management of tourism impacts in protected areas was introduced to PONT by the NGO Build Green …

The agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and Target 22 of the recently adopted Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework recognises the vital role …

This morning PONT was at the offices of the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) in the Prespa National Park …

At the heart of the Shebenik National Park, lies a village surrounded by mountains, providing it with a natural seclusion which …

Financial resources are essential for nature conservation today because they enable conservation organisations and governments to fund important conservation initiatives and …

With the approval of the new 627.05 km2 National park, Shar Mountain, North Macedonia is the latest to offer the world …

With the additional donations received in the summer of 2022 we managed to hire consultants to identify and describe the Connectivity …

Following on from the Call for Proposals in September 2022, PONT is pleased to announce it has awarded grants to 5 National-Level …

All protected areas in the PONT Focus Region, currently eligible to receive PONT grants, have successfully completed the first phase of …

Have you heard about monitoring of aquatic ecosystems based on the benthic macroinvertebrate organisms that live in lakes or rivers? I …

In an effort to continue coordinating transboundary conservation, the authorities of the Protected Areas (PA) in the Transboundary Prespa Park (TPP), …

Have you ever heard of the seven principles of Leave No Trace? Maybe yes, maybe not. But what do they mean?  …

On the 9th of November 2022, the PONT Executive Director and the Executive Director of Eko-svest ceremonially signed the new Grant …

This week PONT hosted a KfW mission in Galicica National Park, North Macedonia. Janis Müller-Späth of the KfW office in Frankfurt, …

Resen Municipality is responsible for managing two protected areas, the Ezerani Nature Park (NP) and the Lake Prespa Monument of Nature. …

Call for submission of Concept Notes by Non-Governmental Organizations involved in conserving the Korab-Shara/Albanian Alps areas and the ecological corridors connecting …

The region of Ohrid and Prespa has a high concentration of natural values. The protection, conservation and management of these values …

Five years ago, in the early days of PONT and CNVP’s cooperation in the Prespa area, a group of women was …

For the last four years, PONT and Connecting Natural Values and People (CNVP) have successfully cooperated in the areas of Non-Timber …

Over the summer four of PONT’s partners successfully closed their grants and applied for follow-up grants. We are delighted to announce …

Developing educational resources for cave and bat protection in Galicica National Park. “I am really happy that for the first time …

Shebenik National Park is one of the largest parks in Albania, about 34’000 ha, which means it requires a great number …

Implemented by Eko-svest in the period between November 2021 and June 2022 Eko-svest in partnership with Natura MK initiated a project …

The “Bushtrica River” is an important natural ecosystem of the Shebenik National Park. This river has special ecological values, the microclimate …

Living in Pogradec, pampered by Nature, you can become a poet or an environmentalist, or both! Living in Pogradec, gazing at …

We are pleased to announce that the National Agency for Protected Areas (NAPA) and the (RAPA) Kukes, RAPA Shkoder, and RAPA …

At the start of the 2022 summer holiday season, the first Via Ferrata in Galicica National Park was opened. This new …

Estimating the abundance of brown bears in the wild is a daunting task. It’s virtually impossible to directly observe the bears …

We are pleased to announce the successful NGOs in Albania from our first call for grant proposals launched back in March …

“How do we unearth the stories that want to be told? What makes us remember a story? How do we balance …

Reinout Vos, Ambassador of the Netherlands to Albania and his wife visited Shebenik National Park on the 4th of June. The …

Back in March 2022, PONT launched a call for applications for locally based non-Governmental Organisations involved in conserving the Korab-Shara and …

The week of 23rd to the 25th May saw the PONT board visit Albania. We kicked off the visit with an …

Following the expansion of the grant activities to the Korab-Sharra-Albanian Alps areas in Albania and North Macedonia, PONT is exploring the …

The new revenue generation model of the Public Institution Galicica National Park (PIGNP), excluding direct use of natural resources, has paved …

On April 14 2022, PONT joined the journalists’ trip to German Development Cooperation (GDC) projects that contribute to improving people‘s living …

Together with representatives of the Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning, PONT visited the Shar Mountain National Park and Mavrovo National …

With the additional capital contribution donated by the German Government at the end of 2021, the PONT Focus Region has further …

PONT provides much of the financing for the Society for the Protection of Prespa’s (SPP) 5-year strategic framework (2018-2022), a selection …

A public consultation on PONT’s Strategic Framework is taking place in Albania and North Macedonia! Following on from the extensive public …

PONT had the honour to meet Mr. Naser Nuredini, Minister of Environment and Physical Planning (MOEPP) of North Macedonia, during his …

Bridging achievement with lessons learned is a crucial principle of PONT’s success and one that underpins its five-year cross-border work in …

Prespa National Park is a treasure trove of biological diversity. Recent research conducted by the Iliria Association has revealed very valuable …

The PrespaNet partners strengthened cross-border co-operation by working together to map and assess wetland habitats in Prespa, producing a transboundary plan …

In implementing PONT Supervisory Board’s decision to extend its conservation programme to the Wider Ohrid area, and complementing the support provided …

School children from Bitola visited Pelister National Park on 25 October to celebrate the Day of Climate Action. A recent temperature …

The rich and important forest biodiversity of the Galicica Mountain was the principal reason for declaring it a National Park, back …

The Protected Areas (PAs) are the main pillars in PONT’s programme aiming at conserving nature for a sustainable future of the …

Early in 2021, the PONT Supervisory Board decided to start the process of expanding the operations of PONT to the Wider …

What started as a joint call for proposals for small grants for the Wider Prespa Area has evolved over the past …

The Management Board of the Public Institution Galicica National Park formally approved the new Management Plan for Galicica National Park, for …

In June 2020, PONT and CEPF awarded a grant to the Balkan Foundation for Sustainable Development in North Macedonia concerning the …

The implementation of the first programme for long-term monitoring of biodiversity in Galicica National Park goes back to 2011 and the …

Following the formal approval of the new Management Plan for Pelister National Park (2021-2030) in November 2020, developed with support from …

In May 2020, PONT and the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) awarded a grant to Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Art …

The recent dramatic water level decrease of Lake Prespa, in combination with the continued and unabated human pressures (water abstraction, pollution, …

The sustainable use of Non-Timber Forest Products holds the potential to improve livelihoods of local communities in Prespa while contributing to …

Nature-based tourism in protected areas in the Wider Prespa Area holds a great potential to contribute to the local economy, reduce …

National and local stakeholders, representing central and local government, Protected Area staff, CSOs, local communities and the private sector in Prespa, …

Following the easing of the border restrictions, the PONT team visited some of its beneficiaries in North Macedonia. The trip started …

The transboundary network of NGOs in Prespa – PrespaNet, recently published the results of the “Preliminary assessment of Human-Large Carnivore Conflicts …

Elaine Chen and Charlotte Walter’s creative adventure into raising awareness of at-risk species and their campaign #OurVulnerableEarth2021  came to an end …

As soon as most of the snow melted on the mountains of Prespa National Park in Albania,  the PONT Executive Director …

In early April, the Albanian Centre for Environmental Governance (ACEG) invited donors and tour operators to enjoy the beauty of Prespa …

The most important event of this two-year grant funding provided by PONT and the Aage V. Jensen Charity Foundation was the …

As we all know 2020 has been a challenging year for the entire world but the COVID 19 pandemic has had …

Conserving Prespa is impossible without transboundary collaboration at all levels of governance. The project ‘Working towards transboundary conservation of the Prespa region …

During 2020, we continued working on the maintenance and signage of the network of hiking trails with the help of local …

PONT provides much of the financing for the Society for the Protection of Prespa’s (SPP) 5-year strategic framework (2018-2022), supporting its …

The two-year process for developing the new Management Plan for Galicica National Park for the 2021-2030 period culminated with a formal …

Complementing the recently approved three-year grants for the Protected Area Authorities in the Wider Prespa Area in North Macedonia and Albania, …

Three-year grants for all the Protected Area Authorities in the Wider Prespa Area in North Macedonia and Albania were recently launched …

The ongoing dramatic water level drop of Lake Prespa has prompted the Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning of North Macedonia …

The Macedonian Ecological Society (MES) and Resen Municipality, managing Ezerani Nature Park and Lake Prespa Monument of Nature, have recently embarked …

The PANORAMA – Solutions for a Healthy Planet has recently shared PONT’s experience in strengthening management effectiveness of protected areas in …

On 19 October certificates were awarded to 18 participants of the Youth Academy on nature-based tourism in Prespa. In June the …

Prespa Ohrid Nature Trust (PONT) aims to expand its work beyond the Prespa region to include protected areas within the Lake …

In 2007 a team from the Macedonian Ecological Society (MES), in cooperation with Serbian and French scientists (herpetologists and ecologists) commenced …

Following the successful completion of the first grant in August 2020, PONT and Resen Municipality continue their cooperation over the completion …

In January 2020, PONT signed a grant agreement with the Association “Sport for all – All for sport” – a non-governmental …

The challenge A Biodiversity Monitoring Scheme (BMS) is a long-term array of complementary surveys, censuses, surveillance and monitoring referring to a well-defined …

PONT and CEPF awarded two complementary grants to the Macedonian Academy of Sciences and Art (MASA) and ILIRIA – Protection and …

In 2006, the Public Institution Galicica National Park, in cooperation with the Macedonian Ecological Society, organized a workshop to address a …

A formally approved Management Plan (MP), meeting PONT’s requirements laid out in the Framework Agreements with the governments of Albania and …

PONT aims to expand its work beyond the Prespa region to include other areas such as the Ohrid lake basin. With …

In June the Albanian Centre of Environmental Governance (ACEG) published a call for applications for Prespa community members to participate in …

Since North Macedonia’s lockdown was lifted on 26 May 2020, Galicica National Park has been a popular destination for the people …

On 3 July the Korça Regional Administration for Protected Areas (RAPA) for Prespa National Park, Albania, met with PONT and the …

A large amount of data, information and knowledge is needed for the conservation and sustainable management of biological diversity, natural processes …

Following up on the previous full grant by PONT, the latest proposal from the National Agency for Protected Areas (NAPA) and …

PONT and CEPF have recently awarded two complementary grants that address Strategic Direction 4 – the conservation of plants, under the …

In January 2020, PONT and the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) published a joint Call for Proposals for grants inviting eligible …

Building upon the 2016 Review of Conservation Efforts in the Transboundary Prespa area, conducted by the PrespaNet NGO network, and in …

PONT provides much of the financing for Society for the Protection of Prespa’s (SPP) 5-year strategic framework (2018-2022), supporting its core …

Through the ongoing grant from PONT, the Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania (PPNEA) has recently completed the first …

A year after the opening of its local office, MES and PrespaNet continue to work alongside regional stakeholders for the protection …

Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania (PPNEA) recently opened a local satellite office in Albania. The country’s oldest environmental …

Improved staffing levels with sufficient technical and human capacity are critical elements required for improving the current management effectiveness of the Regional …

PONT grantees actively participated in the 54th count season of the annual International Waterbird Census that took place on the second weekend …

In December 2019 PONT signed a grant to the Public Institution Galicica National Park (PIGNP) to cover 50% of the total costs …

The Prespa Ohrid Nature Trust (PONT) and Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) recently agreed to combine their efforts in the Wider Prespa …

Since its launching in 2007 by WWF and the World Bank, the Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (METT) has become the world’s …

PONT recently commissioned a report, which recommended supporting communities and entrepreneurs in Prespa to focus on developing and delivering nature-based tourism …

Water quality monitoring scientists from the three sides of the Prespa basin met in Stenje, in October 2019, to build on …

The Hydrobiological Institute Ohrid (HIO) and the Municipality of Resen in North Macedonia have recently formalised their partnership through the signing …

PONT provides most of the financing of the 5-year strategic framework (2018-2022) of the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) …

PONT has identified two areas among its funding priorities that are not being addressed adequately by its current grants or actions …

The National Agency of Protected Areas (NAPA) and PONT have agreed on a follow-up grant for the Prespa National Park in …

PONT recently engaged the Connecting Natural Values and People Foundation (CNVP) to investigate the modest outcomes of past initiatives concerning ecotourism …

From 8-12 July many stakeholders joined forces in the Wider Prespa Area to work on the implementation of Natura 2000. PONTs …

Collaboration between governmental, scientific and civil society organizations is of critical importance for improving the quality and efficiency of natural resource …

PONT and Galicica National Park have been working together to create a video highlighting the recent reorientation undergone by the park …

Sustainable nature-based tourism in the Wider Prespa Area is increasingly seen as a source of income to cover the cost of …

concerning sustainable, nature-based tourism in the Wider Prespa Area in Albania and North Macedonia PONT has identified two topics among its …

On 24 May 2019, the European Day of Parks, the Prespa National Park in Albania offered a guided tour for the …

Germany’s Lower Saxon State Government has provided funds to the Alfred Toepfer Academy for Nature Conservation for a project that aims …

On 7 May 2019, PONT was honoured by the visit of Achim Mortier and Maren Kneller of the German Federal Ministry …

PONT recently engaged the Connecting Natural Values and People Foundation (CNVP) to prepare a report that assesses the opportunities and challenges …

On behalf of PONT, the Connecting Natural Values and People Foundation conducted an assessment of the opportunities, and associated challenges, for …

2018 was an interesting year for Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment in Albania (PPNEA) and PrespaNet, with many activities focused …

Since its establishment in 1958, the management of Galicica National Park (NP) has been funded through revenues generated from the park …

PONT provides most of the financing of the 5-year strategic framework (2018-2022) of the Society for the Protection of Prespa (SPP) …

The importance of wetland habitats Wetlands are one of the most important environmental assets in Prespa, home to many plant and …

Learn more about PONT, the Pathfinder Award, Panorama Solutions and financing conservation projects. 

PONT has been selected, from over 200 submissions from around the world, as the winner of the 2018 Pathfinder Award that …

The objective of PONT as a co-funding instrument is to assist the management bodies of Protected Areas (PAs) in the Wider …

The German Government, through its Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the KfW Development Bank (KfW), has contributed …

Experts from the Protection and Preservation of Natural Environment (PPNEA), in cooperation with RAPA Korce, have just completed the first assessment of …

PONT has been selected, from over 200 submissions, as the winner of the 2018 Pathfinder Award. The Award, which recognizes outstanding …

PONT recently facilitated a successful exchange between the Society for Protection of Prespa (SPP), GIZ CSBL (Conservation and Sustainable Use of …

PONT has recently engaged an international independent consultant, Jernej Stritih, to support Protected Area authorities in the Wider Prespa Area in …

A team from the 100 Villages Academy, focusing on villages in the region of Lake Ohrid and Lake Prespa, presented initial …

Joint initiatives for the Prespa region were presented in Tirana on 25 September 2018. The event brought together approximately 50 stakeholders, …

Signed on 3 September, the Regional Agency of Protected Areas (RAPA) Korçe applied for a planning grant in close consultation with …

A Grant Agreement between PONT and the Public Scientific Institution Hydrobiological Institute Ohrid (HIO) was signed in Ohrid on 13 August …

A grant agreement between PONT and the Public Institution Galicica National Park (PIGNP) was signed on 3 August 2018, symbolizing the …

The official opening of the Macedonian Ecological Society’s (MES) new office in Resen took place on 9 July. Of great local …

The first Grant Agreement between PONT and the Municipality of Resen concerning the management of the Lake Prespa Monument of Nature …

Mirjam de Koning, Executive Director of PONT, and Amet Axhiu, Director of the Public Institution Pelister National Park (PIPNP) signed the …

Following an initiative of the Ministry of Environment and Physical Planning (MoEPP), a meeting was held on 28 June 2018 in …

The Dutch Ambassador to Albania, Dewi van de Weerd, visited Greater Prespa Lake on 19 May 2018, where she enjoyed a …

The Supervisory Board of PONT recently conducted a tour of the Prespa-Ohrid ecoregion. This was a fantastic opportunity to further develop …

A ceremony was held on 14th of May in Skopje to mark the launching of PONT’s grants programmes in the Former …

Integrated landscape approaches provide a basic framework for balancing competing demands and integrating policies for multiple land uses within a given …

In 2018, PONT granted the NGO, Protection and Preservation of Nature Environment in Albania (PPNEA) (www.ppnea.org), an initial one-year grant. The …

The Wider Prespa Region covers parts of Albania, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, and Greece. The transboundary area houses five …

As part of the development and establishment of PONT’s grant programme, PONT has conducted a conflict assessment. The study followed a …

Summer is nearly here and I’m so proud of all that we have achieved over the last few months. Since arriving …