Programme
Tuesday, 4 October 2016
08.30 – 09.00
Registration
09.00 – 09.30
- Welcome and opening of the Conference
- Opening address, Jan Plesnik, Adviser to the Director, Nature Conservation Agency (NCA CR) and Member of the bureau of the Standing Committee to the Bern Convention (Chair)
- Welcoming address, Igar Kachanovsky, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection of the Republic of Belarus
- Welcoming address, Philippe Bernhard, EU Delegation to Belarus
09.30 – 09.50 Establishing a coherent pan-European network of protected areas - the contribution of the Emerald network under the Bern Convention
Iva Obretenova, Secretary of Bern Convention, Council of Europe
09.50 – 10.30 The Emerald Network biogeographical evaluation: qualitative and quantitative results
Otars Opermanis, Scientific expert to the Council of Europe
10.30 – 10.50 Discussion
10.50 - 11.10 Coffee break
11.10 – 11.50 From Emerald data to information (viewer, mapper, data downloading, EUNIS, etc.)
Marc Roekaerts, Scientific expert to the Council of Europe
11.50 – 12.10 Discussion
12.10 – 12.30 Shaping the Emerald future: next steps
Jan Plesnik, Chair
12.30 – 14.00 Lunch
14.00 – 14.10 Presenting guidelines for the parallel working groups (WG) and introducing WG moderators and presenters
Jan Plesnik, Chair
14.10 – 15.40 Parallel working groups (WG)
WG1: Designation of new sites: towards a fully sufficient Emerald Network
Introduction: Ilona Mendziņa, Deputy Director of Department of Nature Protection, Head of Division of Species and Habitats Protection, Ministry of Environment, Latvia
Moderator WG1: Jan Plesnik, Chair
WG2: Managing species and habitats at the site level
Introduction: Roberts Šiliņš, manager of Engure Conservation Area (Natura 2000), Latvia
Moderator WG 2: Sandra Jen, Consultant Environmental Policy and Law
WG3: Communicating about Emerald at national and international levels
Introduction: Michael Hosek, vice President, EUROPARC Federation
Moderator WG3: Kaja Lotman, Manager of Hiiu-Lääne-Saare region Environmental Board, Estonia
15.40 – 16.00 Coffee break
16.00 – 16.50 Presentations of the WG discussion results at the plenary
16.50 – 17.30 Discussion and presentation of a draft road map on the establishment of a functioning Emerald Network in the target countries by 2020
Rapporteur General: Dave Pritchard, independent consultant
17.30 – 18.00 Conclusions and further steps
Jan Plesnik, Chair
18.00 Closure
Wednesday, 5 October 2016
Field trip to Berezinski State Reserve
Departure: 9.00 by bus from the Hotel Minsk lobby / Return: 18.30
Berezinski State Reserve (http://www.berezinsky.by/ru/) is located in the marginal zone of the last Viurms Glacier and is characterized by a young glacier relief with rare combination of moraine heights, lake-glacier plains and abundant deep hollows. The stages of the present surface natural evolution are observed in the reserve. The uniqueness of the reserve's territory is also determined by the fact, that it is situated on the plane watershed between the Black and the Baltic Seas and occupies a vast limno- and fluvioglacial plain.
In 1995, the Berezinski State Reserve was awarded the European Diploma of Protected Areas by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe.
During the visit, the participants will have an opportunity to interact with the management team of the reserve and learn from their good practices in area management and cooperation with local stakeholders
9:00 Departure to Berezinskiy Biosphere Reserve
11:00 Excursion in the museum of nature of Berezinskiy Biosphere Reserve (duration - 45-60 min)
12:00 Lunch in the "Serguch" Hotel
13:00 Excursion in the environmental path (duration – 1.5-2 h)
15:00 Excursion in animal enclosure (duration - 1-1.5 h)
16:30 Departure to Minsk
18:30 Arrival in Minsk
