"Nature Without Borders" – Motto of the Good Governance Initiative in the Protected Sharr-Korab Mountain Massif

"Nature Without Borders" is the motto of the good governance initiative in the protected Sharr-Korab mountain massif, undertaken by ALCDF with support from the PONT program, since animals and plants do not recognize borders. However, protected areas have their own boundaries, where human intervention is restricted and habitats and ecosystems must be protected. Those who ensure these boundaries of protected areas every day are rangers, who face illegal interventions, territorial control, and the protection and care of flora and fauna. Tourist identification, cooperation with residents and village authorities, population education, and emergency interventions for fire protection and other natural hazards are among their responsibilities. The opportunities and challenges faced by rangers in fulfilling their mission are numerous, ranging from lack of equipment, difficult terrain with large surface areas, confrontation with risk, and limited financial and human resources, which require coordination of their work beyond the boundaries of the park or the state to which they belong.

Promoting dialogue, cooperation, and exchange of experiences and information among teams of transboundary protected areas in the Sharr-Korab mountain massif is at the center of the project "Protection and Sustainable Use of Protected Areas in Shar Mountain, Mavrova, and Korab-Koritnik," financed by the PONT program and implemented by the ALCDF Foundation. Within this framework, on October 7th in the village of Rabdisht in Peshkopi, a meeting was organized for experience sharing among ranger teams from Korab-Koritnik Park, Shar Mountain, and Mavrova from North Macedonia, and Sharr National Park in Kosovo. During field visits, participants became acquainted with each other's experiences, work organization, preventive measures, communication with key actors and communities, and the challenges encountered during control and monitoring of protected area territories.

Interest in discussing measures against poaching, monitoring of wild ungulates and endangered species, indiscriminate collection of medicinal plants, uncontrolled movement of motor vehicles, human pollution in the park, monitoring equipment, and other issues related to ranger work constituted the main topics of this meeting. Meetings will continue in the future with the creation of joint patrol groups and patrol planning. This project is financed by the PONT program – Prespa Ohrid Nature Trust, implemented by ALCDF and partners CSCD and LAG Dibra Turistike. Prespa Ohrid Nature Trust - PONT; National Agency of Protected Areas; National Forestry Agency; Shar Mountain National Park; Parku Kombëtar Sharri; CSCD Adzm Diber; AdZM Kukes.