HUMANITA Summer School 2025: A Resounding Success in Environmental Monitoring Training and Empowering Future Nature Managers

The HUMANITA Summer School’s success marks a pivotal moment in strengthening nature-based tourism management. By empowering the next generation of environmental professionals with cutting-edge tools and transnational collaboration, the project ensures that protected areas remain resilient, accessible, and sustainably managed for years to come.

From 14–17 July 2025, the HUMANITA Summer School welcomed students and participants to Campus Villach and the Karawanken–Karavanke UNESCO Global Geopark. This immersive four-day program offered hands-on training in monitoring visitor impacts and managing environmental pressures in protected areas.

Through field workshops and campus sessions, participants explored innovative tools like visitor counters, drone surveys, camera traps, and citizen science methods. The training emphasized evidence-based, participatory strategies for sustainable tourism and biodiversity protection.

The Summer School marks a major milestone in the HUMANITA project’s mission to improve human-nature interaction across Central Europe. By combining academic rigor with real-world application, it laid the foundation for a transnational network of nature professionals ready to lead protected area management into a more resilient and sustainable future.