Since 2002, the Estonian national curricula have included the cross-cutting theme ‘The environment and sustainable development’ Aristokli Hrebtov, the inspector of the schools of Saaremaa and the founder of the Saaremaa Society of Friends of Nature (founded in 1913), prepared a detailed circular letter for schools, titled ‘For the preservation of nature works’, in which he called on people to...

Restrictions may seem incomprehensible and sometimes annoying, but they contribute to the preservation and enhancement of biodiversity and, ultimately, to the improvement of the surrounding environment There is a long list of restrictions. In a very general sense, they can be divided into the following categories: restrictions on movement in protected areas and species protection sites...

Grow plants whose nectar or fruit is also suitable for mammals, birds, and insects There is nature all around us. In both the wild bushland and near people – in city parks, waste lands, home gardens. In human-inhabited areas, which until recently were important habitats and sites for many species, there is now mostly low grass where many plant species cannot grow and where insects cannot find...

Spending time outdoors, climbing trees, playing with rocks, watching insects – all this makes a child notice the nature around them Getting to know nature begins with noticing and giving thought to the surroundings. Therefore, no one is ever too young or too old to discover for themselves the endless wonders of nature and the uniqueness of every moment. How do I make my children interested in...

When moving in nature, always remember that you are in someone’s home Many people consider hiking in the nature and discovering new places their favourite hobby. But it should be kept in mind that nature is our common treasure and we should take care of it while hiking – in this way, future generations can enjoy the beauty of nature as well. When moving in nature, always remember that you are in...

What is the Estonian nature conservation development plan? The nature conservation development plan until 2020 was adopted in 2012 and it defined the most important development directions in the fields related to nature conservation. The main objectives of the development plan are to promote nature education, to preserve the diversity of nature, and to preserve the functioning of the ecological...

Estonia has acceded to all major global and regional nature conservation conventions and other international agreements International cooperation on the environment aims to contribute to the improvement of the global environment, the implementation of the principles of sustainable development, and the growth of environmental awareness [1]. International cooperation on nature conservation is...

The Natura 2000 network aims to ensure the conservation and favourable status of habitats and species endangered across Europe Natura 2000 is a pan-European network of nature reserves, the meaning and content of which are set out in the 1992 European Union Habitats Directive (92/43/EEC). The same directive also included bird areas selected under the Birds Directive (2009/147/EC), which entered...

Environmental monitoring provides basic data for decisions concerning the environment and the society How are our eagles doing? Is the air in Tallinn more polluted today than ten years ago? How big are the fish stocks of Lake Peipsi? We get answers to these and many other environmental questions thanks to continuous environmental monitoring. Environmental monitoring means the planned and...

The main databases and distribution atlases on Estonian biodiversity of the last twenty years are available from the eElurikkus portal Species distribution atlases The species distribution atlas (formerly as a book, nowadays also online) reflects the distribution of species in Estonia over a period of time and has been compiled by species groups (for example, plants, mammals, birds). Published...