DaWetRest started with a meeting of the partners in the city of Ruse

From July 4 to 6, the first partnership meeting was held in the city of Ruse within the framework of the large-scale international project with the participation of the Association of Danube River Municipalities "Danube" - "Restoration of Danube wetlands and flood plains through systemic, community-engaged, sustainable, innovative activities" (DaWetRest), financed under the Horizon Europe Program. Representatives of the multidisciplinary consortium, consisting of 26 partners and 20 associate partners from 12 countries (Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Portugal, Serbia, Slovakia, Ukraine, Moldova), gathered in Kanev Center, for to launch of the 48-month project, which is being implemented as part of the Restore Our Oceans and Waters Mission, a European Commission initiative to protect and restore marine and aquatic ecosystems and biodiversity, to prevent and eliminate pollution, to introduce a sustainable, carbon neutral and circular blue economy.

Three demonstrators with main pilot sites in Croatia (Municipality of Draž), Bulgaria (Kalimok-Brashlen Protected Area) and Romania (Danube Delta) will develop, test in real-world conditions and validate innovative technological, business, organizational and social solutions to recovery challenges of wetlands and floodplains. Validated solutions will be prepared for scaling.

The consortium includes organizations and institutions from the public sector, academia, the non-governmental sector and business. The coordinator of the project is the Institute for Climate, Atmosphere and Water Research at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, and the other Bulgarian partners are the Association of Danube River Municipalities "Danube", the University of Ruse, REWI - Ruse and Skortel Ltd. The associated partners from the Bulgarian side are the municipalities of Silistra, Tutrakan and Slivo Pole, the Directorate of NP "Rusenski Lom", Donau Transit Ltd.and the Regional Academic Center of BAS in Burgas.

A familiarization trip was organized for the participants of the meeting to one of the Bulgarian sites of the UNESCO World Natural Heritage - Biosphere Reserve "Srebarna", where they were welcomed by the Mayor of the Municipality of Silistra and Chairman of the Board of ADРМ "Danube" Dr. Yulian Naydenov. In addition, the guests visited the Ethnographic Museum "Danube Fishing and Boat Building" in the town of Tutrakan.