07/12/2023 Regional Workshop “Large Carnivores and Livestock Protection: best practice for protection measures”

The return of large carnivores, and especially the wolf, is an additional pressure on extensive agricultural systems and therefore receives much public and political attention, including continued demands to re-examine the conservation status of the wolf and to consider reducing its protection, especially in areas where pastoralism is culturally important. However, no matter your views on protection of the wolf, where wolf has returned to an area, protection of livestock is necessary.

The regional workshop examined examples of livestock protection in different geographical, climatic and agricultural contexts and discussed what lessons can be drawn from them.

The meeting agenda can be found here, the participants’ list here.

Presentations held at the meeting:

• Workshop introduction - Delphine Dupeux, European Landowners Organization (ELO) and Andrea Vettori, European Commission
• Welcome from the Park - Sophie Clesse, High Fens-Eifel Nature Park 
• Livestock protection and the wolf in Flanders - Joachim Mergeay, Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) 
• Livestock protection and the wolf in Wallonia - Alain Licoppe, Département de l'Etude du Milieu naturel et agricole, Service public de Wallonie
• EU Platform report on livestock damages - Katrina Marsden, EU Platform Secretariat  
• EU Policy actions on large carnivore conservation and management - Marco Cipriani, DG Environment, European Commission
• Livestock and large carnivores: Funding opportunities to improve coexistence under the CAP - Veronika Madner, DG Agriculture, European Commission 
• LIFE wolf alps overview of damage prevention in the Alps: example of Slovenia - Rok Cerne, Slovenian Forest Service / WISO chair, LIFE Wolfalps 
• Navigating Livestock Owners Towards WolfResilient Practices in Flanders - Pepijn T'Hooft, Wolf Fencing Team Belgium, WWF Belgium 
• Sheperding in the German speaking Alps - Max Rossberg, LIFEstockProtect