On 13 May 2019, the Regional Park of Coastal Dunes, lead partner of LASPEH project, organized an awareness campaign at Casa del Mare in Ostuni, Puglia. Many IAMB (Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari) students and project stakeholders took part in the meeting. After a quick presentation of LASPEH project, participants discussed about the critical issues related to the protection of Pseudo-steppe, one of the most singular and extraordinary habitats within Puglia and the area of the Park of Coastal Dunes. In particular, discussion focused on the concrete actions to implement, for example those related to grazing, as good practices for the conservation of this threatened habitat.

Awareness campaigns are one of the activities foreseen by LASPEH in order to share conservation measures about threatened habitats and species. Pseudo-steppe is among the habitats and species of great naturalistic and landscape value involved in the project, which aims at defining a common strategy to preserve the natural and landscape heritage of the Low-Adriatic area (in particular in Italy, Albania and Montenegro) in order to face the loss of biodiversity. Particular attention is given to species protected by directives 92/43/CEE and 79/409/ CEE, typical of these eco-regions and threatened by changing environmental conditions, caused by bad management and climate changes.

LASPEH Project, funded by the Interreg IPA CBC Italy-Albania-Montenegro Programme under the Priority Axis 3 (Environment protection, risk management and low carbon strategy) of the Programme, will implement a network of organisations cooperating for a better management of priority species in Natura 2000 sites, exchanging their best practices and developing a transnational common strategy to preserve common habitats and species.