Year: 2019

Following a relevant decision, the project has been included for co-financing by the Green Fund for the implementation of the actions of the Municipality of Andros. The projects approved by the LIFE Program of the European Commission, serve the priorities of the European Union (and respectively of Greece, as a Member State) for the protection of the environment and in addition, are in line with the purposes of the Green Fund.

The participants of the mushroom tour, organized by the teams of LIFE Andros Park, the Andros Routes initiative and the Cultural Association of Arni at the area of Arni and Remata on Saturday 30th of November, equipped with baskets, searched for mushrooms and collected many and interesting mushroom specimens. In total, 45 walkers participated, originating from all corners of the island, as well as visitors from Athens and Syros Island, who arrived exclusively for the excursion. The weather of the previous days favored the growth of mushrooms and lead to a rich "harvest". The participants were initially welcomed by a representative of Andros Routes initiative and presented shortly the area of Arni and the hike of the day that would follow at the marked routes. The project coordinator, Mr. George…

The LIFE Andros Park project team in collaboration with volunteers of the Andros Route initiative and the Cultural Association of Arni organize an excursion to search, collect and identify mushrooms of Andros and invite you to join. The excursion will take place on Saturday, November 30th, at Arni and Remata regions. The meeting point will be the church of Virgin Mary at Arni, next to the headquarters of the Cultural Association of Arni, at 10.00 am. Our hike will be divided into two parts: First we will drive with our vehicles to an area near Remata that hosts habitat with alders, where we will take a short ride at route No 13. Once back at Arni with our vehicles we will walk the circular route of Arni (Ar1), through chestnuts…

The project team participated in a two-day workshop organized by LIFE-IP 4 Natura and Greek LIFE Task Force for the networking of the LIFE Nature and Biodiversity projects implemented in Greece (Athens, 23-24 October). At the workshop, the LIFE Andros Park project was presented by the project coordinator Professor G.Zervakis (AUA), experiences were exchanged, while possible synergies and collaboration opportunities with other projects being implemented across Greece were identified. More information here (in Greek).

The project team participated in the meeting successfully held by the Management Body of Cyclades on Andros Island on the 21th of October. Its thematic was "Acquaintance with the Natura 2000 Areas: Sustainable Management, Challenges, Sustainable Solutions". In the workshop, the biodiversity of the Natura 2000 protected sites of the island was introduced, I.Nikolaou (Municipality of Andros) and T.Dimalexis (NCC) presented the LIFE projects implemented on Andros, while P.Dendrinos (MOm), presented information on the Mediterranean monk seals that the island hosts. The work carried out by the Management Body and its actions were presented. Furthermore, the participants were briefed on the procedure for the conduction of the Special Environmental Studies for the Natura 2000 sites of the island and the consultation to be carried out was made by the study…

We were delighted to read the thank you letter from the Arni Cultural Association for the removal of debris from the Vori stream carried out by the LIFE project! The fact that the removal took place in good time led to the prevention of floods during the recent bad weather and to the protection of both, the wetland and the residents’ properties. If the intervention had not been carried out on time, it is estimated that the damage from the heavy rainfall would have been great and corresponding to those in the neighboring areas (Achla, Bourkoti, Apoikia, Ateni), as well as to the damage caused at Vori in 2012 that lead to the destruction of part of the riparian alder forest.

LIFE Andros Park participated in the 2nd Andros on Foot Festival. On October 15, Dr. Elias Polemis (Agricultural University of Athens) accompanied the hikers on the Apikia-Pithara waterfall-Katakalei-Vourkoti route, guiding them to the plant and mushroom world along the route. The occasion for the participation was the crossing of an area with alder clusters, a habitat for which the project implements conservation actions on the island. On October 16, the festival’s day started with a visit to the Agadaki estate at Apikia, where Dr. Panagiotis Trigas (Agricultural University of Athens) guided the participants to the project's Botanic Garden, as well as the project’s alder nursery, while the tower (traditional mansion) and the estate were presented by Mrs Eirini Dabasi of the Kaireios Library. October 5, 2019 We followed the path…

The project participates in a meeting organized by the Management Body of Cyclades Protected Areas on: "Getting to know the Andros’ Natura 2000 sites: Sustainable Management, Challenges, Sustainable Solutions". The meeting will take place on Monday, October 21 2019, from 18:00 to 21:00 in the Municipal Council Hall of Andros. In the meeting the management body, its activities, the importance of the protected areas of the island, the problems they face will be presented, while solutions will be sought in collaboration with local authorities, production and scientific bodies and local and national organizations that are active on the island of Andros. The conference schedule is available here (in Greek). The meeting is being held in the context of the Green Fund's "Financial support of outreaching activities 2019" program. [envira-gallery id="1045"]

More than 8,000 alder seedlings, germinated and developed at the Agricultural University of Athens, were transported and are now at Agadaki Estate (Apoikia Village) of Kaireios Library, where they will remain until the end of the year, in order to further grow and to get accustomed to the island's conditions. They will then be used for the restoration of the alder forests at Vori and Lefka. The transplantation work at the Agadaki estate was carried out under the supervision of the Agricultural University of Athens and the Kaireios Library, in collaboration with the local team of the project by the Municipality of Andros. [envira-gallery id="1022"]

The Kaireios Library presents the exhibition by Yianna Andreadis with paintings and drawings inspired by the landscapes and phrygana of Andros Island. The visual performance of nature's energy is an issue that Yianna Andreadis explores in her work, during her artistic career, in connection with her travel experiences. The African savannah, the Namibian desert, the legendary for painting Mont Sainte Victoire in France, the ocean in the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific or the Aegean Seas are some of her painting stations. She has been visiting Andros for fifteen years and had as her base Korthi, and the summer dry landscape of the island is what inspires her. The shades of yellow ocher, the special dry stones, the richness of the bare landscape. The blacksmiths, the greek spinh spurge, the Jerusalem…