An ancient and sustainable way of life in danger

Sinjajevina’s rich ecology and outstanding landscapes is not only a product of nature. It is also the inherited and cumulated work of pastoralist activities over millennia. Indeed, this area represents an increasingly rare symbiosis between human societies and the environment, and it stands as a marvelous example of sustainable development and cultural resilience for Europe and the world as a whole.

These complex ecosystems with their unique bio-cultural diversity exist because of the thoughtful use and concerted governance by local communities through generations. The ecosystem itself has been molded by - and fully depends on – the wisdom and traditional knowledge of these communities. 

The highland pastoral settlements, or “katuns”, scattered over the territory of Sinjajevina belong to eight major tribal groups. Each group has designed specific management rules to regulate access to pastureland over annual cycles through rotations that protect their sustainable uses.

In fact, Sinjajevina concerns also the climate emergency, where protection of locally managed ecosystems is an urgent concrete answer to climate change. And in this context, as several scientific evidences show, pastoralist systems cause no net emissions and have a much lower fossil fuel footprint, plus carbon storage in soil is able to mitigate the emissions formerly attributed to them.

And yet, a project to install a military training and weapon testing polygon on a large portion of Sinjajevina’s territory now critically threatens not only its distinctive natural and cultural landscapes but, equally importantly, the livelihoods of thousands of people and a unique biodiversity that is deeply dependent of the pastoralists’ way of life.