A river makes history

"I have to fly" - grudgingly I realise that a journey by train from southern Germany to Albania takes days rather than hours, and so I get on the unpopular plane - the starting signal for my first business trip to the Balkans since I have joined EuroNatur! Once my ecological conscience has calmed down a bit, I gradually feel an excitement rising inside me. After more than ten years of tireless work of EuroNatur and numerous other local and international nature conservation organsations within the campaign Save the Blue Heart of Europe, as well as various other stakeholders and activists, it is finally offical: The Vjosa will become Europe's first Wild River National Park - and I am right there, in the middle of things!

The trip to the hotel gives me a little fortaste of what to expect on the next day. The red-yellow evening sun glows. And then I see it for the first time: the Vjosa, Europe's last great wild river. I am overwhelmed by its beauty, its magnitude, and how, so it seems, it effortlessly makes its way through the Albanian mountains. Overwhelming is also the joy of the participants at the common dinner. People talk, laugh and even sing together. Before I can digest all the new impressions, it is time for me to do a final camera check for tomorrow, and then off to bed.

15 March 2023: The fact that today is a very special day can be felt everywhere, especially in the small town of Tepelena, where the festive ceremony with invited guests is taking place. Many journalists from all over the world are represented and once again I realise how grateful I am being part of this historic moment. The atmosphere is cheerful, almost familiar. And then it gets quiet. Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama and his Minister of Tourism and Environment, Mirela Kumbaro, are approaching the scene. Excitement is in the air. Unimpressed, the River Vjosa in the background shows its most beautiful side, its crystal blue-green water shimmering in the sunlight - and this despite of the fact that only rain was forecast for this day. Finally, the moment has come! After long speeches, action follows: Minister Kumbaro puts her signature on the National Park Declaration, followed by Prime Minister Rama. Surprisingly, he takes Ryan Gellert's hand and even goes as far as letting the CEO of Patagonia do the signing. It almost seems as if Rama would like to say: 'Here's your National Park!'

In fact, there is still a lot to do: parts of the Aoos, as the Vjosa is called on the Greek side of the border, are still unprotected and therefore exposed to the threat of hydropower plants. In addition, the illegal construction of an airport in the middle of the nature reserve in the Narta lagoon near the Vjosa Delta threatens countless bird species, some of them highly endangered, as well as the local population. For the construction, large areas that would otherwise soak up water like a sponge had to be drained. Floods are thus more likely to occur, also due to the progressing climate change.

But for now, a toast is being raised to the Vjosa National Park - and that it is worthwhile to stand up for nature, the basis of all our lives.

Anika Konsek