One man’s quest to protect Romania’s virgin forests for all
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Loading... - Sergiu Deleanu
- 02 May 2023
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Florin Stoican tirelessly worked to create Romania’s first citizen-led national park in a country that’s home to 65% of Europe’s virgin forests.
A Romanian environmentalist connects people for the sake of nature and for our sake, too. Florin Stoican, 47, is a geologist with 20 years of experience in biodiversity and geodiversity conservation. He established the first citizen-led National Park in Romania, Buila-Vânturarița, and the only urban Natural Park, Văcărești. Romania is one of the most biodiverse countries in Europe, with a third of the Danube River and half of the Carpathian mountain range.
One of the most bio-diverse regions in Europe
Romania contains 65% of Europe’s virgin forests and has the highest density and population of large carnivores. The Romanian government designated 24% of the land as protected areas, but 55% of them are in public neglect. And here comes Stoican’s work. Stoican grew up in Costești, a small village in Vâlcea county. As a teenager, he used to go hiking with his friends and became interested in the biodiversity of the region. “Buila Vânturarița is a mountain that formed 1,400,000 years ago,” Stoican said. “It is built from the skeletons of marine organisms.” Read More…
