Working with stakeholders at eight sites across Europe, we are gathering first-hand information on rewilding solutions for nature and people.
A hare sitting in tall grass.

wildE case studies

The research on our case study sites is taking place across a mixture of urban, peri-urban and rural landscapes, in areas where rewilding is already being carried out locally either as an unintentional consequence of land use changes or as an outcome of active conservation management, as well as in areas where commercial enterprises are testing innovative restoration solutions to combining carbon sequestration with biodiversity support.
 

Our outputs

From our case studies, we will produce reports to effectively:

  • Document rewilding actions, assess their enablers and constraints, and analyse rewilding outcomes for mitigating and adapting to climate change and enhancing biodiversity.
  • Assess the impact of rewilding for the resilience of landscapes to climate-linked disturbances, and provide a catalogue of intervention actions for enhancing it.
  • Analyse rewilding politics in terms of institutions, interests, perceptions, conflicts and their management.
  • Quantify and compare stakeholder-specific costs of local rewilding interventions.
  • Estimate and compare societal benefits (including economic values) of rewilding.

Through consistent local stakeholder engagement, we will be able to understand the degree of climate-smart rewilding in terms of mitigating and adapting to climate change, biodiversity support, and benefits to local livelihoods.

Case studies

Gelderse Poort, showing an area of grassland and water between the river and built up area.

Gelderse Poort, Netherlands

The Gelderse Poort case study site is managed by Staatsbosbeheer, the Dutch government organization in charge of management and conservation of forests and nature reserves. Research at this site is coordinated by researchers at the Netherlands Institute of Ecology NIOO-KNAW.

Gelderse Poort is ta one pioneering site where Dutch river floodplain rewilding started in the 1990’s. It is a peri-urban network of rewilded areas (~3,000 hectares) located at the beginning of the Dutch Rijn River delta. Trophic rewilding with Konik horses and Galloway cattle has been imposed from the 1990’s alongside abiotic rewilding of flooding regimes and riverbank dynamics to restore key natural processes.

An industrial tower shown through blades of grass.

Ruhrgebiet

The Ruhrgebiet case study in Germany is made up of five different sites, each with different owners and cooperation partners.

All the sites are characterized by natural forest regrowth after a history of heavy industrial use and mining. The terrain itself is “artificial” in the sense that it is formed by, among others, slag heaps, pithead stocks and brown fields. 

In part, specific conservation measures are applied to maintain open habitats. After wildE, the partners hope they can safeguard the areas for further natural development, and possibly increase them.

The Sabor river with a wooded hill behind.

Sabor, Portugal

The Baixo Sabor case study site, managed by BIOPOLIS-CIBIO, the Portuguese Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, is located mainly in the municipalities Torre de Moncorvo and Alfândega da Fé, Portugal. 

The case study area, covering about 150,000ha, has a history of rewilding which has mainly resulted from progressive land abandonment since around the 1960s. Therefore, rewilding is likely to continue in the future through unplanned land abandonment.

A wetland with pine woodland behind.

Sveaskog, Sweden

The SVEASKOG Ecoparks case study is managed by SVEASKOG, a Swedish state-owned forest company. The 37 Ecoparks are located throughout Sweden and cover 2470 km2. The Ecoparks are zoned and contain both areas designated for conservation and production. 

Within these Ecopark landscapes, ecological, economic, and social goals are combined and managed for ecological integrity over over commercial interests. 

After wildE, Ecoparks will be maintained according to management plans, though agreements between the Swedish Forestry Agency and SVEASKOG run for 50 years. Discussions are ongoing regarding transforming a few Ecoparks into national parks.

A rocky river channel with steep sides that are wooded.

Antarr, Portugal

The Antarr case study is managed by the Sustainable Productive Forests company Antarr and encompasses three sites located in the mountainous landscapes of central Portugal, namely in the municipalities of Seia, São Pedro do Sul and Góis. 

This mountainous landscape is characterised by rocky outcrops and high-altitude plateaus cut across by rivers and streams. This area includes important populations of endangered species and priority habitats listed in the annexes of the Habitats and Birds Directives, although little now remains of the archetypal mountain vegetation.

Antarr aims to increase the tree species diversity by planting fire-resistant trees and reducing shrub encroachment.

Barcelona's block development with tree lined streets.

Barcelona Metropolitan Region, Spain

The Barcelona Metropolitan Region (BMR) case study site is managed by CREAF Ecological and Forestry Applications Research Centre. It is located in Catalonia, north-east Spain and is characterized by a fragmented landscape embedding multiple competing land uses. 

The BMR underwent extensive agriculture abandonment during the second half of the 20th century, leading to the spontaneous establishment of secondary forests in formerly cultivated areas. Ultimately, this has resulted in an increase in forest surface by around 30% over the last 50 years. 

After wildE, CREAF’s future rewilding plans mostly concern urban spaces (e.g. city parks and peri-urban forests).

The Tatras mountains viewed from a flat glacial plain.

Tatras, Slovakia

The Tatra Mountains, the highest mountains of the Carpathian range, present an unrivalled opportunity to study and appreciate a uniquely preserved mountain natural environment. Situated at the borders of Slovak and Polish territories, these mountains encompass a significant conservation area within the framework of the NATURA 2000 network.