Members of the Pandoteira project Team, from the Department of Environment, the Department of Forests and the Department of Fisheries and Marine Research, participated at the induction meeting of the European Nature Academy, which took place from 13 to 17 February, 2023 in Schneverdingen, Germany.
The European Nature Academy (ENA) is an innovative tailor-made training hub designed to help Natura 2000 and Protected Area managers achieve their priorities for nature. This is achieved through a dynamic learning platform with a range of practical courses and tailor-made learning activities, which enable participants to gain the knowledge and skills required to work effectively and efficiently in their field.
Induction meeting of the ENA
The Induction meeting was designed to bring the first intake of ENA participants together. The 3-day programme included a variety of interactive sessions to let participants get to know each other, connect and share their experiences from the Natura 2000 sites and Protected Areas that they manage. Through a World Café, participants introduced themselves and each other to their places of work and compared management challenges and practices.
The meeting introduced the ENA platform, which will offer online competence-based courses and capacity-building opportunities, especially for managers of Forests and Marine ecosystems. The courses are designed to provide a range of tailor-made modules that will enable Natura 2000 and Protected Area managers to become more effective, confident and competent practitioners in their everyday work.
Multiple interactive sessions enabled participants to unwrap core competencies that apply in their work, including Personal Communication Competencies, Communication Tools & Social Media, and Written & Presentation skills.
The ENA is funded under the framework of the LIFE ENABLE project and managed to gather 59 Natura 2000 and Protected Area managers from 24 EU countries. The organiser of the ENA is the EUROPARC Federation, which is also the coordinating beneficiary of the LIFE ENABLE project.
The networking and training continues
The participants of this ENA induction meeting will continue their training with online courses until June, covering the topics of forest and marine areas of the Natura 2000 network. Towards the end of 2023 they will all get together again for a practical face-to-face workshop.
