ERF Newsletter December 24
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Dear European rangers,
As the year comes to an end, I hope you all had a few quiet days to reflect on the news the year has brought – just as our press office did in Wadden Sea Transboundary UNESCO World Natural Heritage (see photo above). For my part, I would like to share with you the news from our ERF work that moved me most in 2024. Here and also in a video, which you find linked here:
To start with the latest: We are really happy to welcome Maria Gurscaia from Moldova not only as a new ERF Secretary, but also as another paid staff member: Thanks to the Greenpeace Environmental Foundation, we are firstly able to continue funding our ERF Press Office. On the other hand, the foundation helps us to engage Maria in professionalising our networking of rangers on crucial future topics – starting with the programmatic work for our next European Ranger Congress in Romania in October 2025!
And talking about networking: With our three ranger trainings in Romania and North Macedonia in 2024, we brought together more than 50 rangers from our continent and beyond, uniting more than 20 countries to learn about human-wildlife conflict, engage local people in conservation and train with the spatial monitoring and reporting tool SMART. But also to establish personal contacts and exchange specialised ranger skills. In addition, we celebrated a new twinning partnership between Moldova and Romania and welcomed the Moldovan rangers as new member.
We continuously reported on rangers, their work and their stories across Europe to raise awareness of this extremely important work for our planet's future and to create connection points between rangers. And from numerous reactions and requests at the World Ranger Congress in France, we learnt that the efforts of all of us on the ERF Board are achieving their goals. At all these and more international events, we made it possible for rangers without sufficient financial support to participate through our Ranger Leaf fundraising programme, with which ERF Finance Officer Michael Großmann in particular acquired sponsors for travel expenses and participation.
Rest assured: We will continue this work, which is far from being fully listed, in 2025 and are working hard to intensify our commitment to qualifying, networking and promoting rangers with strong partners. In the meantime, let us inspire you with another example of how Nature Interpretation, the rangers' very own language for connecting people with nature, and international ranger meetings show how much we can learn from each other: within the European ranger family, but also across professions and regions.
And join us in hoping with all our hearts for good news from ERF Ranger Ohad Yahalomi, held hostage for 15 months now, as for all the other rangers from our ranks who are affected by war and hostility.
With this in mind, we wish you and your loved ones a much more peaceful New Year!
Urs Reif, President of the ERF
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Nature Interpretation – rangers‘ very own language for environmental education: Long before today’s concepts, rangers in the USA used it to connect people with nature by offering them a personal, deeper meaning of natural phenomena and thus create emotional involvement. Exactly this nature and cultural heritage interpretation was once the hobby and now is the job of archaeologist Kjell André Brevik. Although he does not call himself a ranger, his duties involve important parts of ranger work as a mediator between people and nature. As a Certified Interpretive Guide in Norway, he takes young and old out into nature. And many times, his audience takes a new connection to nature back into everyday life. Read how Kjell hopes to help finding more nature-friendly ways!
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Advancing ranger efficiency and biodiversity conservation: This actually happens automatically when rangers exchange information about their work, especially across countries. Our ERF Board members Lars Scharfe and Adam Turner therefore did not have to think twice about joining the Swiss ranger exchange on the topic of apps for ranger work. As a certified trainer for the Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool SMART, Adam was invited to demonstrate how this digital application improves nature conservation results. For their part, the Swiss rangers introduced their ranger apps customised for the respective protected areas. Read more about the discussion of the different ranger app variants, their advantages and disadvantages in our report!
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A highly motivating meeting of rangers from Europe has finished end of November in Aberfoyle, Scotland: The Scottish Ranger Rendezvous 2024 with several dozen rangers from all over Scotland, Wales, Iceland and Spain (in person of our Training Officer Borja Díaz). The meeting of the Scottish Countryside Rangers‘ Association (SCRA) was packed with workshops, presentations and excursions, e.g. to Loch Lomond – among inventive leisure and networking activities. Legends from ranger history have not been missing either: Ruth Grant, for example, who set up and ran the very first Scottish ranger training course in 1974. After 13 weeks of training together, the Rangers decided to found the SCRA. Or Bob Reid, co-founder of the International Ranger Federation, colleague and close friend of the late Gordon Miller.
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Our Europe Regional Representative reports
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The 29th edition of the Memorial Danilo Re will be hosted by the Swiss National Park and takes place
- 16 to 19 January 2025
- in the Swiss National Park
- as sports competition (known as “The Danilo Re Trophy”), a theme-based seminar and a range of other activities for all participants to enjoy together.
Registration is open to all rangers & conservationists working in Alpine Protected Areas. For more information click here.
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The Portuguese Rangers are inviting all interested fellow rangers to their XXIV National Meeting of Portuguese Park Rangers and XVIII Technical Conference.
- 30 January to 2 February 2025 (arrival day on 29 January)
- in the Castro Marim and Vila Real de Santo António Marshland Nature Reserve
- Theme: Biodiversity without Borders
All details about registration, programme and more can be found here.
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The 2025 International Ranger Awards are open for nominations until 31st January 2025.
- Awardees will be announced during 2025 IUCN World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi (October 9 – 15, 2025)
- Winners will receive awards ranging from $25,000 to $10,000 to support the protected and conserved areas where they work
To nominate a ranger or a ranger team:
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The German National Association of Nature Guards, Bundesverband Naturwacht, invites to its 30th national conference in the Rhön Biosphere Reserve on the topic:
- Rangers – Networked in the region
Best practice examples from the Rhön region
- From 12 to 14 March 2025
For detailed information on programme and registration please check out this website.
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Please note our slightly adapted date for the next European Ranger Congress in cooperation with the Romanian Ranger Association and Foundation Conservation Carpathia:
- from 5 to 9 October 2025
- in Brașov County, Romania, in immediate vicinity of Piatra Craiului National Park
- on the topic
'Rangers – the voice of nature
Building a bridge between local communities and nature conservation'
Detailed information on programme and registration will follow soon. Please be aware that there may be further slight shifts in the course of planning!
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