Getting to know the Lithuanian wetlands: A day in Degučiai for World Wetlands Day 2023

On the occasion of this year’s World Wetlands Day, the Foundation for Peatland Restoration and Conservation, Grazute Regional Park of the Directorate of Aukstaitija Protected Areas and the NGO Innovators' Valley (LT) organized an eventful day in the Degučiai mire. Participants were invited to discover the area on a hiking tour through different peatland types – fen and raised bog habitats – and to get involved in ongoing protection and restoration work during a wetland clean-up. They enjoyed experiencing traditional crafts based on peatland-grown materials in a paludiculture workspace in the monastery of Antalieptė.

Approximately two thirds of Lithuania’s peatlands were damaged due to drainage during the twentieth century, with only about one percent having been restored to date. The Foundation for Peatland Restoration and Conservation works to preserve natural mires and restore degraded peatlands in a drive to tackle the global challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss at a local level. Find out more about its work here.

Photo credit - Jūratė Sendžikaitė