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Budva - The first regional meeting of the EU platform on the coexistence between people and large carnivores in the Dinaric region was organized by WWF Adria, IUCN-LCIE, Park Dinarides, Center for Protection and Research of Birds of Montenegro and EuroNature. Fifty participants from fifteen countries concluded that cross-border cooperation, exchange of knowledge and experience, as well as population management across the entire area of the Dinaric region are of key importance, regardless of the current different practices.

"The Dinaric region is one of the richest European regions in terms of biodiversity, including three species of large carnivores - brown bear, wolf and lynx. Since there is currently no common dialogue and systematic cross-border cooperation in protecting and managing large carnivore populations, this meeting is an important step in establishing a regional platform. The Dinaric platform will be a unique example of joint management of such a large population, across 10 countries, which is an excellent example for the rest of Europe", said Luis Suárez from WWF Spain.

Dinara-Pindos-Balkan is an area where stable populations of wolves and bears, a fragile population of Eurasian lynx and a critically endangered species of Balkan lynx live. The region includes ten countries, EU members and non-EU countries: Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Albania, Kosovo*, Macedonia**, Bulgaria, and Greece. Currently, the wolf, bear and lynx management is conducted within national frameworks, but animals do not know state borders.

Moreover, the legal framework of some of the countries is not yet aligned with EU and international standards, management plans do not exist or are not applied, presenting difficulties for countries in the processes of integration into the European Union. The European Commission has encouraged the establishment of an EU platform to facilitate the implementation of the EU nature conservation regulations and enable the dialogue between all interested parties – scientists, nature conservation associations, hunters, farmers, and private landowners.
 
"In order to improve the coexistence of people and large carnivores, especially in rural areas of the region, systematic cross-border cooperation, uniform monitoring methods, and common databases are necessary for better population management. With the cooperation of all stakeholders on an international level, we will achieve successful conservation of charismatic species such as the wolf, bear and lynx, and find best solutions for coexistence between people and large carnivores in our region”, concluded Andrea Štefan from WWF Adria.