WaterLANDS

WaterLANDS is a €23.6 million, 5-year EU Green Deal funded project that aims to restore wetland sites across Europe which have been damaged by human activity and to lay the foundations for protection across larger areas. Wetlands play a vital role in our ecosystems, from carbon storage to water purification and support for biodiversity as well as providing recreational, well-being and economic benefits to surrounding communities. When mismanaged, these essential services for landscapes and society are lost. Scaling up the restoration of isolated wetlands can work towards re-establishing former wetland landscapes and realising new opportunities for local communities. WaterLANDS will utilise lessons learned from ongoing and existing restoration ‘Knowledge Sites’ across Europe to inform hands-on restoration in six ‘Action Sites’ in Bulgaria, Estonia, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Interdisciplinarity, co-design, co-creation and stakeholder engagement are integral to the WaterLANDS approach at these sites, as is the aspiration to create a legacy which can be applied at scale in other locations.