Every year, on 24 May, Europe celebrates national and natural parks: those spaces where biodiversity, culture, local communities, and the work of specialists come together. They are places that protect nature, but also help us better understand the relationship between people and the territories in which they live.

In Romania, the celebration of the European Day of Parks 2026 took place on 21 May, at Romsilva – Vânători Neamț Natural Park, under the theme “Connected Through Nature”. Propark – Foundation for Protected Areas was present at the event, alongside representatives of parks, organisations, and institutions working for nature conservation.

For Propark, the European Day of Parks is more than an anniversary in the calendar. It is a moment of reflection and recognition of collective work that often takes place quietly: the work of the people who manage protected areas, who work with local communities, who explain, negotiate, educate, plan, and make decisions for the future of nature.

For 17 years, Propark has been working alongside specialists from Romania’s natural and national parks, as well as from the international community, providing them with the tools, knowledge, and support they need so that protected areas can be living, relevant, and well-managed spaces.

Where Are We After 20 Years?

An important moment of the meeting in Vânători Neamț was dedicated to presentations delivered by representatives of several parks. It was an opportunity to look back at the path travelled over the past 20 years: where park administrations started, what has been built since then, what has been learned, and what challenges remain open.

It was an honest and moving reflection, because the history of protected areas is not written only through laws, maps, and management plans. It is written through teams, difficult decisions, collaborations, projects that have grown over time, and people who have stayed close to nature even when their work has not always been visible.

Why Do Parks Matter?

For Propark, parks are not just areas on a map. They are places where Romania’s biodiversity is preserved, but also spaces where people can learn to live in balance with nature.

A natural or national park means protected ecosystems, valuable species, cultural landscapes, local communities, trails, visitors, education, research, and responsibility. At the same time, it also means the daily work of specialists who try to hold all these dimensions together.

This work is often invisible, but essential. Behind every well-managed protected area there are people who know the land, who understand the needs of communities, who work with data, management plans, visitors, authorities, and partners. People who make conservation possible, day by day.

Supporting these people and these places is Propark’s mission: yesterday, today, and in the years to come.

Connected Through Nature

The theme of the European Day of Parks 2026, “Connected Through Nature”, speaks about something we constantly see in our work: protected areas create connections. Between people and places. Between communities and biodiversity. Between generations. Between professionals working in different contexts, but with the same responsibility towards nature.

At Vânători Neamț, this idea became concrete through the meeting between park administrations, organisations, specialists, and partners who share the same concern: how can we make Romania’s protected areas better understood, better supported, and better managed?

The European Day of Parks reminds us that nature connects us not only through beauty, but also through responsibility. And the future of parks depends on how well we manage to work together for these places.

The meeting was made possible through the “Green for the Future” programme – “Ținutul Zimbrului: Conservation, Education and Tourism in Vânători Neamț Natural Park”, funded by the OMV Petrom Foundation and developed by the Civil Society Development Foundation and Propark – Foundation for Protected Areas.

The project is implemented by the Romanian Ecotourism Association – Discover Eco-Romania, in partnership with RNP Romsilva – Vânători Neamț Natural Park, Mioritic Association, and the Association for the Conservation of Biological Diversity.

Connected through nature, every step of the way.