Protecting Lake Ohrid, Albania and Macedonia

Talking about tourism in Macedonia almost always leads the conversation towards  Ohrid . The Ohrid Lake and the  town of Ohrid  are protected by the  UNESCO  as a world natural and cultural heritage site – the lake was listed for its environmental value in 1979, and the town for its cultural value a year later. Therefore, it is no wonder that the Ohrid Lake is considered as the main tourist site in Macedonia. However, over the last few years, so-called alternative tourism is thriving as one of the possible areas for further economic growth. Together with hiking, biking, and ecotourism, paragliding is among the most promising areas for development of the country’s alternative tourism. Kruševo and its paragliding opportunities were recently listed as one of  Macedonia's top natural and historic treasures  by National Geographic. In the top-ten list, right after the Ohrid Lake and before the painted mosque in Tetovo, Kruševo's “prime conditions for paragliding” are emphasized. T

By Irina Bokova, Director General of UNESCO Lake Ohrid biodiversity For more than 70 years, UNESCO has been working to foster scientific knowledge and cooperation on biodiversity and ecosystems, such as tropical forests, oceans, mountains. In recent years, the effect of human activities -- magnified by population growth and global climate change -- has reduced deeply biodiversity in ecosystems around the world. We need to join forces and find new ways to protect and promote biodiversity as our shared heritage, and a condition for a sustainable future for all.  Sustainable tourism is a powerful tool to raise awareness on biodiversity and to protect it for present and future generations. This is the spirit of the Cancun Declaration, adopted at the  Thirteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity  held in Mexico in 2016, which states:  “there are pathways for ensuring the long-term sustainability of tourism while also ensuring that it

Cameras, kayaks, test tubes, tree saplings, and lawyers: this is how civil society is coming together to save the blue gem of the Balkans..from Lake Ohrid and Prespa, to lake Skadar, from Drini River to Vjosa. Freshwater habitats in the Balkans are unique... By Birdlife.org Photo of Prespa Lake: Shkelzen Rexha As cloud forms, the first raindrop falls from the sky and splashes from a flower petal into alpine soil. Here the droplet is joined by more and is pulled downwards, beneath paw tracks of the elusive Balkan lynx and into a woodland stream, pauses for a moment in a marsh, then, gushes over smooth limestone, past dancing dragonflies and into a strong torrent that feeds into ice cold Lesser Prespa Lake, on the southern border of Macedonia, pierced by heron beaks searching for fish. The droplet has become a lake. But the journey is not over, this is just the beginning of the Drin River Basin: the water then flows underground past white cave-dwelling creatures to ancient La

Visit to Saint Naum Monastery is without a doubt great experience. It's a place where you can fully spend your day and enjoy many attractions... In addition to many fun activities and enjoying beautiful surroundings, the monastery complex is a wonderful place for relaxation, enjoyment and resting. A blog by Traveling is Awesome One of the nicest monastery complex in the region. It has been very crowded, even in the morning on the first day of the year. Lots of people come to visit this place through the year, because of it`s beauty and cultural heritage. Built by the St. Naum of Ohrid himself, it was established in the Bulgarian Empire in year 905. St. Naum is also buried in the church. The Monastery of Saint Naum is an Eastern Orthodox monastery in the Republic of Macedonia, named after the medieval Saint Naum who founded it. It is situated along Lake Ohrid, 29 kilometres south of the city of Ohrid. The Lake Ohrid area, including St. Naum, is one of the

A three day course on   "Heritage, driver for sustainable development in   LakeOhrid   region"   took place in   Pogradec ,  Albania  from 25-27 April 2017 .   25   people from    two countries working and living in d ifferent   areas of Lake Ohrid region   participated.   The training course aimed at    Increasing appreciation of shared heritage values and building awareness on the potential of heritage, both cultural and natural, as a supp ort for sustainable development among   small-scale entrepreneurs   and sharing knowledge on how to   build and sustain successful micro-enterprise based around the values of the area.   Case s tudies   and examples   on how heritage can support sustainable opportu nities in the Lake Ohrid Region were presented on the first day   by UNESCO and its advisory bodies representatives like ICOMOS and IUCN   to lead the discussion and inspire.   At the end of the day participants   were organized   in groups,   agriculture group, fo restr