In a short video series, first released from 8 to 17 March 2023, five representatives of the animal and plant world of the Wadden Sea turn the tables and visit our homes.

“With these very short and illustrative clips, we wanted to hold up a mirror”, says Annika Bostelmann, editorial support to the video creators and Communications Officer at the Common Wadden Sea Secretariat. “I believe, everyone can think of a moment where they misbehaved or witnessed misbehaviour in nature and did not speak up. But we need to keep in mind that this is actually someone’s home, lifeline, sanctuary. And we should act accordingly.”

The campaign "You are a guest - this is where I live. The Wadden Sea." is a cooperation project of WWF Germany, the Common Wadden Sea Secretariat and the Wadden Sea National Park Authorities of Lower Saxony, Hamburg, and Schleswig-Holstein. It was produced in the framework of Interreg VB project PROWAD Link. 15 project partners in Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, and the United Kingdom working with interested SMEs used the “nature-business-benefit-cycle” concept to develop new, sustainable products and offers in tthe Wadden Sea, Geiranger Fjord, Wash & North Norfolk Coast. The 2018-2022 project is co-funded by and carried out in the framework of the Interreg North Sea Region Programme under the Programme Priority 1 “Thinking Growth”. The programme is funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) of the European Union.

To summarise the activities and results of the project, an information package was now created. It includes, a link to EcoPorts / green ports best practices compilation, a report about the status of the Wadden Sea as Particularly Sensitive Sea Area and a link to the joint document which was signed during the 14th Trilateral Governmental Conference, which took place in Wilhelmshaven in November 2022.

The information package is available in the different languages of the trilateral cooperation (English, Dutch, German, and Danish). It was created by Stichting De Noordzee (The North Sea Foundation) in cooperation with Bund für Umwelt and Naturschutz Deutschland e.V. Landesverband Niedersachsen and Danmarks Naturfredningsforening, who jointly presented it to the participants of the 14th Trilateral Governmental Conference.

The English version of the information package is available via this link.

While naturally dark sky night skies play a significant role in supporting the ecosystem, latest trends also show that Dark Sky Tourism can offer unique and sustainable tourism experiences, alongside numerous benefits for local communities. Dark Sky can help tourism and hospitality businesses develop sustainable tourism experiences that can increase the attractiveness of the region also during low season. These offers also have the potential to attract new type of tourists. Moreover, this new and immersive approach to experience nature can boost psychological health and well-being. At the same time, dark sky and astro-tourism is an important supportive tool to increase awareness about light pollution, especially in nature protected areas.

The analysis gives an overview on the current situation and potential developments of dark sky tourism in the partner regions, taking into account environmental, economic and social aspects of Dark Sky Tourism. General information on Dark Sky Tourism, references to relevant literature and well as inputs directly collected by interviewing SMEs in the five partner regions are included. The background analysis was realized by a group of students from the NHL Stenden University of Applied Science

The overall objective of the NSSIC was to offer a chance to anyone who wanted to contribute  to a happier and healthier North Sea region to submit his/her/their sustainable and innovative ideas. The local development of sustainable entrepreneurship and  tourism were the main objectives of the NSSIC.

A now published white paper outlines all the steps undertaken and the details regarding how the NSSIC was designed, managed, and executed. This includes the timeline, an overview of the internal and external stakeholders involved, and an assessment of  the final outcomes.

Across the board there was concern that ferries and especially water taxis operating trilaterally are far from climate- and nature-friendly. Recommendations for action were developed during the workshops, taking into account a series of expert interviews conducted during the two-year project.

Outdated diesel ferries run on about 60% of the more than 80 ferry connections in the trilateral Wadden Sea, including Helgoland. Five ferries run on gas and there is only one E-ferry currently in operation (Fanø) and another one planned for Norderney. Large catamarans with speeds of up to 35 knots operate on about 20% of routes. Two catamarans out of a total of 19 run on gas. There are no electrified catamarans in operation. The workshop participants were particularly concerned about the emerging trend of water taxis, which run on about 10% of routes. The carbon emissions per passenger are about 12 times higher for water taxis compared with a conventional ferry. In addition, the disturbance and underwater noise caused by these very fast small boats is considerable.

The project on sustainable ferries was coordinated by NABU and is part of the Partnership Hub’s project “Sharing and developing knowledge to strengthen the contribution of shipping to a well-protected Wadden Sea World Heritage”.

As light pollution can have a wide reach and the issue remains partially under-acknowledged, the Trilateral Dark Sky Initiative was established to connect and further support the many local initiatives across countries and sectors. The Initiative brings together municipalities, universities, research institutes, nature management organizations, NGOs, small and medium-sized businesses, as well as ports, and the tourism sector on their shared interest in reducing light pollution. The advantages of which include a reduced impact of Artificial Light at Night on the environment, increased possibility to observe the starry sky, improving human well-being, and saving energy.

The now-signed Vision is intended to guide and further strengthen our combined efforts to preserve nocturnal darkness and enjoy starry skies in the Wadden Sea Region through awareness raising, stakeholder engagement, sharing of best practices, supporting the development of policies, knowledge, and monitoring activities.

Within PROWAD Link, 15 organisations from the Wadden Sea World Heritage area, the Wash/ North Norfolk Coast, and Geiranger Fjord World Heritage partnered up within the Interreg VB project “PROWAD Link” to work towards engaging local stakeholders in nature protection. The goal: creating a nature-business-benefit-cycle, in which stakeholders gains advantages through the nature area brand and give back to nature protection through their sustainable entrepreneurship.

During a side event on 28 November 2022, the results were showcased in a side event and at a buffet dinner in the evening.

PROWAD Link was also involved in initiatives presented in the framework of the Partnership Hub, such as the signing of national park partnership and ambassadors programmes in Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands to the Hub and the presentation and signing of the Trilateral Dark Sky Vision. Furthermore, a Joint Statement for “Sustainable Shipping and Ports Initiative for a well-protected Wadden” was signed by ports, NGOs, and ship owners.

“The Partnership Hub is one of the main results which will be continued after the end of PROWAD Link. It is safe to say that PROWAD Link will not be out of everyone’s minds come 31 December”, says Harald Marencic, Deputy Executive Secretary of the Common Wadden Sea Secretariat and lead project manager.

Tailored for SMEs located in protected areas, researchers and students from the University of Groningen – Campus Fryslân have now developed a Nature Business and Community Development Toolkit in the framework of the Interreg project PROWAD Link. The aim of the toolkit is to help SMEs and entrepreneurs map the existing benefits delivered by their business, identify new or additional benefit streams, and identify stakeholders needed to implement sustainable benefits in the business.

The radar is a tool that can be used to inquire, along defined criteria, whether current tourism activities at the study site are negatively impacting habitat quality for people, animals and plants and endangering those values for which the Wadden Sea has been recognized as a World Heritage Site.

In this way, the "Wadden Sea Tourism Radar" – available in English and German – can and should serve as a navigation aid on the course towards sustainability and nature compatibility in tourism.