Collaboration for SDG Best Practice (17.2.4)

Green connections – Nature-Based Solutions and Sustainable Land Management in the Austrian-Hungarian Border Region.

Széchenyi István University leads the Green Connections – Nature-Based Solutions and Sustainable Land Management in the Austrian–Hungarian Border Region project, which aims to strengthen the long-term conservation of biodiversity through research, education, and practical measures. The project addresses sustainable land management challenges by generating evidence and translating research findings into practical guidance for stakeholders. The project combines scientific comparison with the development and dissemination of practical approaches to sustainable land management,

As part of the programme, biodiversity assessments are conducted on 80 agricultural sites, providing comparable data on the effects of organic and conventional farming practices on biodiversity. Based on the results, practical recommendations for farmers are developed and published in a bilingual guide, supporting the transfer of sustainable agricultural and biodiversity conservation practices. The project also includes the establishment of demonstration areas featuring endangered wildflower species in both Austria and Hungary, accompanied by science outreach activities that involve local communities. These actions promote biodiversity awareness and encourage public engagement in environmental stewardship.

The project is implemented through an international partnership involving: Széchenyi István University (Hungary) – Project Lead; Biosphere Reserve Wienerwald Management (Austria); Esterhazy Betriebe AG (Austria) and Pisztráng Kör Waldorf Nature Conservation and Hiking Association (Hungary).

DALIA Project

Széchenyi István University participates in the international Horizon Europe project DALIA – Danube Region Water Lighthouse Action, which promotes cross-sectoral cooperation for sustainable water management across the Danube region. The consortium brings together 22 partner organisations, public authorities, universities, research institutes, SMEs and non-governmental organisations from several European countries to jointly address freshwater management, flood resilience and ecosystem restoration challenges across the Danube River Basin.

A central objective of DALIA is the collection and replication of good practices and the wider dissemination of knowledge generated by the project. The demonstration sites develop approaches to different environmental challenges, while selected replication areas adapt methodologies developed at these sites to other geographical contexts.

At the Szigetköz demonstration site, the established water-replenishment system provides a concrete good-practice case for the DALIA partnership. Developed and operated with stakeholder involvement, the system dynamically controls water discharges and restores more natural water levels across a 40 km-long active and historical floodplain river-branch system along the Danube, while supporting habitat diversity and ecological connectivity through fish passages. DALIA’s Knowledge and Monitoring System identifies lessons and success factors from the Szigetköz approach, including stakeholder collaboration, the integration of flood-protection and ecological-restoration objectives, dynamic discharge control, ecological connectivity measures and ongoing monitoring. The case is therefore documented not only as a local intervention, but as a source of transferable learning within the project’s wider international replication framework.