Bari, 10.12.2025
Press Release
The Kick-off Meeting of the LASPEH 2.0 project marked the official start of a new cross-border initiative aimed at strengthening the resilience of ecosystems in the South Adriatic region. Hosted on 10 December 2025 by the Puglia Region – Department for Environment, Landscape and Urban Quality, the meeting brought together authorities and experts from Italy, Montenegro and Albania to coordinate the first operational steps of the project.
The South Adriatic is home to unique ecosystems – coastal lagoons, mountain massifs and wetland areas – that are increasingly exposed to biodiversity loss. Species such as the seahorse in the Mar Piccolo of Taranto, the Marsican brown bear in central Italy, and sensitive habitats in Montenegro and Albania face growing pressures from climate change, pollution and anthropogenic disturbances.
To address these challenges, LASPEH 2.0, co-funded by the Interreg IPA South Adriatic 2021–2027 Programme with a total budget of €870.156,33, will implement targeted conservation measures and actions across the three countries. The project focuses on strengthening ecosystem resilience and improving management practices in line with the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and the European Nature Restoration Law.
The planned actions include the protection of the seahorse in the Mar Piccolo Regional Nature Park in Taranto, enhanced conservation measures for the Marsican brown bear in the Natura 2000 site “Gruppo del Meta – Catena dei Mainarde” in Molise, the restoration of peatland habitat at Lake Barno in the Durmitor National Park in Montenegro, and dedicated interventions in the Narta Lagoon in Albania. These activities will deliver updated conservation methodologies, stronger monitoring capacities and more effective management tools, that can also be transferred to other protected areas within the Programme area.
The project will also implement training activities, awareness-raising initiatives, and a shared strategy aimed at strengthening the integrated management of protected areas and enhancing the capacity of ecosystems to respond to global environmental challenges. The expected results will deliver direct benefits to public authorities responsible for managing Natura 2000 sites, to conservation experts, and to regional institutions, by providing operational solutions and shared approaches for biodiversity conservation.
Through this cooperation, the project aims not only to enhance the natural capital of the Programme Area but also to reinforce the technical and managerial capacities of all participating partners.
During the kick-off meeting, partners aligned on project management procedures, communication requirements and the technical Work Packages that will guide the development of joint conservation actions throughout the project’s duration.
LASPEH 2.0 is implemented by a cross-border partnership composed of the Puglia Region – Department of Environment, Landscape and Urban Quality (Lead Partner), the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, the Public Enterprise for National Parks of Montenegro, the Organization for the Protection and Preservation of the Natural Environment in Albania, and the Municipality of Taranto.
Lead Partner, Communication Manager
Valentina De Pinto, [email protected]
Interreg IPA South Adriatic Communication Officer – Puglia Region
Carmela Sfregola, +39 3493916007, [email protected]
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The Interreg IPA South Adriatic 2021 2027 is a cross-border cooperation Programme co-funded by the European Union through the Instrument for Pre-Accession (IPA III), with a total budget of 81.258.768,19 euro (including 17,51% co-financing). It widely builds on the results of the Interreg IPA CBC Italy-Albania-Montenegro programme 2014-2020.
The programme is managed by Puglia Region, which participates together with another Italian Region, Molise; Albania and Montenegro participate with the entire territory. The objective is to promote a smarter, greener, more connected, more social and better governed South Adriatic and to intensify cooperation in the area, by implementing joint actions between national and regional institutional and non-profit actors and by fostering smart inclusive and sustainable development.
