RURAL DEVELOPMENT IN OLONETS, SOUTHERN KARELIA
(OLONIA project)

WWF Sweden,
Baltic Fund for Nature,
Karelian Research Center of RAS
Ancient City (Olonets)

The project is financed by Swedish International Development Agency

Coordinators:
Dr. Ola Jennersten (WWF Sweden),
Vicki Lee Wallgren (WWF Sweden), 
Sergey Resvyi (BFN)
Nadia Alexeeva (BFN)
Inga Gurilova (Ancient City)

Project implementation: 2003-2004 (first stage), 2005-2006 (second stage)

Results of the project "Improvement of agricultural practices in Eastern Ladoga", realised in Olonets in 2000 - 2002 are both impressive and promising. The project demonstrated that agriculture and rational use of natural resourses constitute the basis for the Olonets district wellbeing. That's why main idea of the new project is to support the wide range of activities aimed at sustainable development in the district.  The specific project aim is to activate the economic interest of the local people and thereby increase their level of involvement and motivation to preserve their local natural treasures.
Within the current project main stress is made on the training of local people and dissemination of the ideas of nature conservation and sustainable way of life.

Initially the project included 5 components:
Agriculture - development of nature friendly agricultural practices to maintain rural landscapes with rich biodiversity. Organisation of seasonal reserve for migrating geese.
• Grasslands management
• Monitoring of migrating and nesting bird species on Olonets fields
•  Seasonal reserve for migrating geese.
At present the Agricultural component has grown into the Olonets Grazing Project - Sustainable Agriculture and Powerty Alleviation through Grassland Management

Tourism - development of small-scale nature and cultural tourism, based on sustainable use of local natural values and providing additional income opportunities for local people.
• Local network building, development of partnership between ecotourism enterprises and entrepreneurs, education for local entrepreneurs.
• Development and marketing of nature and cultural tours in Olonets area

Handicrafts - development of traditional local handicrafts,  based on sustainable resources use and providing additional income opportunities for local craftsmen and artisans.
• Local network building and development of partnership, education for local craftsmen and artisans.
• Marketing of local products.

Environmental education - improvement of environmental education for school children  - attraction of children's and teachers' attention to local nature, involvement of teachers in outdoor, hands-on environmental education.
• Local network building and development of partnership within the Olonets districts and other areas.
• Information materials and educational methodics for local teachers.

Public awareness - Heighten local environmental awareness. Dissemination of information about local natural values, need for their conservation and sustainable development principles.
• Annual environmental festival in Olonets " Olonia - the Goose Capital".
• Publication of information materials, information in local media, publication of the Green Magazine "Rostok" ("Sprout").

To the project wep-page ->
Project results in 2003-2004
Project activities in 2005-2006

Main project activities and results (2003-2004):

Agriculture

Seminars for local farmers and administrators on environmentally friendly grassland management - adaptation of Swedish experience (seminars were prepared and leaded by Niklas Bergman - Scanagri, Sweden).
- 27-28 September 3003, Olonets
- 03-04 April 2004, Olonets
 

Study tours:
- 15-20 June 2004 - Sweden
- 15-20 August 2004 - Estonia (experience of Väinameri project - joint project of WWF Sweden and Island and Coast Research Centre Arhipelaag, financed by SIDA)
30 persons participated in the seminars and study-tours - among them are employees of large farms (previous sovkhozes), individual farmers, representatives of other agricultural enterprises and Government of the Republic of Karelia.

Long-term monitoring of migrating and breeding birds on Olonets fields is realised by Karelian Research Centre of Russian Academy of Science (Petrosavodsk, Karelia, Russia ), scientific group leader: Dr. Vladimir B. Zimin.
The principal conclusions of the survey is that both migrating and breeding birds positively react on restoration of agricultural lands on the study area. Migrating birds prefer to stay on the fields where a drainage system is restored and bushes along the drainage ditches are cut out. During the last 4 years (after starting the field restoration made by Iljinskoe farm with a support of WWF Sweden) the number of geese on the improved fields has grown. Fields which are not restored but still exploited show the slight tendency of decreasing bird numbers. Fields not exploited during the last decade became now useless for geese and other birds of opened landscapes.

The First Milk Festival was orginised in Olonets on  the 28 August 2004. The festival was initiated by local project partners and was supported by the Government of the Republic of Karelia and district administration. 
Baltic Fund for Nature welcomes this initiative,  as we are sure that such events are very important for the  promotion of rural areas, uniting local people and attraction of attention of the wide audience to the agricultural issues.

Small-scale tourism  

Study tours for local enterpreneurs dealing with tourism
- 23-28 August 2003  - Estonia (Väinameri project area)
- 23-29 May 2004 - Sweden

 Seminars on tourism development in the district using Swedish and Estoinian experience

- 27-28 October 2003, Olonets (seminar was prepared and leaded by Jan Wigsten - Nomadic Journeys Ltd., Sweden; Lia Rosenberg - Centre Arhipelaag, Estonia)
- 11-12 December 2004, Olonets (seminar was prepared and leaded by Jan Wigsten - Nomadic Journeys Ltd., Sweden)
16 persons interested in tourism development in the district (owners of village houses willing to accommodate tourists, nature interpreters, hotel managers and designers) took part in seminars and study tours.
 
Several families in different villages around Olonets started to accommodate tourists in their houses in 2003-2004. Two nature trails have been elaborated: to the goose fields and in the vicinities of Nurmolitsy village.

Nature and ethnographic tours around Olonets district were developed and presented on international tourist exhibitions in Petrozavodsk, St. Petersburg and Helsinki. 
 

Traditional handicraft production

Seminars for local craftsmen on traditional handicrafts development in the district using Swedish and Estonian experience (seminars were prepared and leaded by Eva Anderson and Charlotte Hellsten-Husman - Stockholm County Council, Local Government of Culture, Sweden).
- 6-7 November 2003, Olonets
- 28-30 August 2004, Olonets

Study tour for Olonets craftsmen devoted to expierience of local handicrafts revival - 13-18 September 2003, Estonia (Väinameri project area)
32 local craftsmen and artisans as well as specialists from Olonets National Museum participated in seminars and study tour.
 

Environmental education
Organisation of seminars for local school teachers.

Teachers from Olonets district were trained on seminars organised in April-May 2003 within the framework of international program NatureWatch Baltic.

Using experience from international seminars they prepared and conducted in August 2003 - December 2004 nine seminars in Olonets. Local school administrators, primary and secondary school teachers, kindergarten teachers and school librarians participated in seminars (in total 83 representatives from more than 25 educational institutions).  Excursion to the Nizhne-Svirsky Nature reserve was organised for schoolchildren who actively participated in the program.

Public awareness

Annual environmental festivals "Olonia - the Goose Capital" became traditional in Olonets.
Presentations of representatives of nature conservation and scientific organisations, perfomances of folk ensembles,  competitions for children and adults, excursions to the goose fields guided by professional ornithologists are included into the festival program.  
Traditionally agricultural fair is organised in Olonets within the framework of the festival.
In 2004 during the festival first boat races on Olonka river were organised.
- 26 of April 2003 - third festival
- 08 of May  2004 - forth festival
 

International Symposium "Management and conservation of waterfowl populations in Norhtern Eurasia" was held in Olonets in 23-28 of April 2003 and focused on the development of cooperation of scientists, conservationists and hunetrs from Russia and West European countries.
It is jointly organised by the Institute of Biology, Karelian Research Centre, Russian Academy of Science and Goose, Swan and Duck Group of Northern Eurasia - NGO focused on waterfowl research and conservation activities in Russia and NIS. The Symposium was also supported by the project.

Publishing of Green magazine "Rostok" ("Sprout") was started in Olonets. Articles devoted to natural heritage of Olonets land written by scientists, conservationists, schoolteachers and children are presented in the magazine. 4 issues of "Rostok" were published in 2003-2004.

A number of information materials were prepared and published within the project including ornithological guide around Olonets fields for beginners, informational tourist leaflet, calendat devoted to Olonets handicrafts.