The DANUBEPARKS STEP 2.0 Project builds up on the success of three years of transnational cooperation between the Protected Areas along the Danube River. On October 23, the Kick-Off Meeting took place in Ingolstadt, Germany.
The project partners – 14 in this project – were welcomed to the most upstream Protected Area of the Network by the Hosts from the Landkreis Neuburg-Schrobenhausen, the City of Ingolstadt, and the Ingolstadt City Museum, as well as the DANUBEPARKS Spokesman Carl Manzano. Following this, Georg Frank (Project Manager) gave an overview about the projects activities, as well as the history of the Network so far and its objectives for the future. The press was also invited to this first part, and was given opportunity for personal interviews with the Directors of the numerous Protected Areas afterwards.
During the rest of the Kick-Off Meeting, the Work Packages were presented by their respective leading partner: Danube-wide activities such as a transnational White-tailed Eagle winter count with public involvement, the establishment of a Black Poplar cadastre including genetic analysis, the planning for a DANUBEPARKS visitor centre, and the development of an Action Plan for River Morphology, were presented. The most important open questions were discussed, and the general process, timelines, and contributions expected by the whole partnership were outlined. Additionally, the anchoring of the network e.g. by enlargement and collaboration with important stakeholders, and communication to the public with numerous festivals, exhibitions and joint communication tools, will play an important role. It got quite clear at this point, that the intensive cooperation during the last years has paid off: Only three weeks into the project, most activities are planned in a lot of detail already!
After the Kick-Off Meeting, the first Steering Committee Meeting of the STEP 2.0 project was held. The most important result was the election of the Chairperson and two Vice-Chairpersons. Carl Manzano (Director of Donau-Auen National Park) was re-elected as Chairman and Spokesman of the Network, while Eszter Buchert (Vice-Director of Duna-Dráva National Park) and Grigore Baboianu (Executive Director of Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Authority) act as Vice-Chairpersons and will represent the Network especially in events at the Middle and Lower Danube.
The occasion of the Kick-Off was used for several other meetings and workshops as well: On Monday (October 22) already, a Bavarian Stakeholder Workshop of the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR), Priority Area Biodiversity, was held with the participation of the DANUBEPARKS Network. At the same time, new partners in the project gathered for an information session on reporting and other formal procedures in the project implementation, and the Tourism Task Force already held its first workshop. On Monday afternoon, a joint excursion of the DANUBEPARKS STEP 2.0 project partnership and the Bavarian biodiversity stakeholders of the EUSDR was offered, with two options: One on biodiversity to the restoration project in the Danube Riparian Forest Neuburg-Ingolstadt and the Nature Reserve Schnöderwasser, and a second one on tourism to the Weltenburger Enge, offering a striking natural landscape with historico-cultural sights. On Wednesday morning, the DANUBEPARKS STEP 2.0 project managers gathered to hold a leadership seminar, preparing themselves for the task to lead certain activities during project implementation, and further improving communication and understanding within the team.
The Kick-Off Meeting with all adjacent meetings and workshop proved to be a real success and very good omen for the remaining 23 months of project implementation.
