Regulation (EU) 2024/1991 on nature restoration
National restoration plans (submitted in September 2026) and measures covering at least 20% of the EU’s area by 2030.
Read the document ↗Green Innovation Hub ·
AI biodiversity monitoring
Nature Restored.
Europe has moved from protecting nature to restoring it. Young people in Vrancea can contribute real data on soil, water and biodiversity — exactly what the new restoration plans require.
- Restoration
- Water
- Citizen science
- Natura 2000
The European model we are bringing to Vrancea
Listen to the Forest — AI acoustic stations.
Model: BirdNET (Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Chemnitz University of Technology) · BirdWeather citizen stations
Solar-powered microphones, installed by young people in forests and floodplains, listen day and night. Artificial intelligence recognises birds by their song, and the data become a sound atlas of Vrancea’s biodiversity.
In Romania we found no network of AI acoustic stations run by young people; bird monitoring here is done by observers.
✓What it has shown in Europe
- BirdNET recognises almost 1,000 European and North American bird species by sound
- Citizen stations send data to researchers in real time
- Free tools for NGOs, schools and researchers
The cause · why we are starting this programme
Protecting is no longer enough. We must restore.
The new European regulation requires concrete restoration plans, yet local data are missing. Citizen science can provide them.
20%
of the EU’s area must be covered by nature restoration measures by 2030
Regulation (EU) 2024/1991 on nature restoration, 2024 · [1]22.7%of Romania’s land is covered by Natura 2000 sitesEuropean Commission, Environmental Implementation Review, 2022 · [2]
46%of Romanian 15-year-olds are below the baseline level in scienceOECD, PISA 2025, 2025 · [3]
European alignment
What Europe asks. What we do in Vrancea.
The programme responds directly to the policies the European Union asks of Member States — applied at the level of Vrancea County, for all ages.
EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030
30% of land protected and citizens involved in monitoring nature.
Read the document ↗Council Recommendation on learning for the green transition
Education for sustainability at all ages, with hands-on learning and learning in nature.
Read the document ↗Launch readiness
How ready we are before day one.
We are not waiting for funding to start thinking about the programme. Here, openly, is what is ready and what comes next.
69%
Readiness indexCalculated from 8 launch criteria- ✓European model analysed and documentedReady
- ✓Alignment with EU policies checkedReady
- ✓Context data from official sourcesReady
- ✓Expert profiles definedReady
- ✓Activities and objectives plannedReady
- ◐Own resources identified: space and equipmentPartial
- ○Implementation partners confirmedIn progress
- ○Funding securedIn progress
- Sept. 2026Analysis & European model
- Q4 2026Partners & funding applications
- 2027Pilot in Vrancea
- 2028+Expansion, under the new 2028–2034 EU financial framework
What we will do
One main activity and three that support it.
Listen to the Forest — AI acoustic stations
Solar-powered microphones, installed by young people in forests and floodplains, listen day and night.
BioBlitz Vrancea
Species-counting days, open to all ages.
Soil and water sensors
Monitoring streams and eroded soils in the Subcarpathians.
Planting native species
Restoring degraded habitats, with support from the BGCI network.
Project status
In preparation · launch 2027- 1ConceptAnalysis & partners
- 2PilotFirst activities
- 3OngoingActive in the community
- 4ExpansionRegional scale-up
✓What we already have
- 100 young people who have built air, water and soil sensors
- Monthly expeditions in the Vrancea Subcarpathians
- Member of the BGCI network; “Green Guardians” application under evaluation (2026)
→Programme objectives
- First “Listen to the Forest” acoustic stations in the Subcarpathians (2027)
- First BioBlitz Vrancea (2027)
- Water and soil sensor network in natural areas
- First restoration plantings with native species
How it connects
How it connects to what we already do.
No programme stands alone: each one uses the equipment, people and data of the others.
Connected programmeEnvironment & biodiversityThe parent programme for our field research.See →Connected programmeSensors in Protected AreasThe acoustic stations complement the air, water and soil sensors.See →Connected programmeAgentic AIAI in the service of nature.See →Connected programmeGreen Case-Law ObservatoryData becomes evidence for protecting nature.See →
Our role · how we work
The programme starts with experts, not improvisation.
The same five steps as in all our programmes: data, experts, equipment, community, public results.
- Local diagnosisWe start from data: the schools, the villages and the real needs of young people in Vrancea.
- A programme built with expertsCurriculum and activities designed together with specialists and teachers.
- Training & equipmentWe bring kits, laptops and mentors wherever they are missing.
- Working in the communityFree, hands-on activities at school, in the village or out in the field.
- Measurement & public reportingWe count the results and publish them — verifiable figures, not promises.
Who we work with
The experts beside the children.
The specialist profiles we start and run the activities with. Their names appear in the project reports.
Botanists and ecologistsChoose the native species and priority areas.Involved from the start
IoT engineersBuild the water and soil sensors with young people.Involved from the start
Protected area managersPartners for access and data validation.Involved from the start
Biology teachersBuild the field trips into their lessons.Involved from the start
What we hope for · how you can help
Be among those who launch the programme.
The programme is ready. You choose how to help, and your support goes to this programme. This page shows what is ready and what comes next, and we will publish the first results after the 2027 launch.
Fund a BioBlitz day
Transport, equipment and guides for a day of science in nature.
Donate →Saplings and tools
Native species for the restoration plantings.
Donate saplings →Planting volunteers
Families, pupils, older people: a morning for nature.
Come and plant →Environmental institutions
Let’s build the restoration database together.
Let’s talk →Sources and methodology
Where the figures come from.
Our own figures (young people trained, schools, localities) come from the association’s records and are published in the impact report. Context statistics come from official sources, with the year of the latest available edition.
- Share of EU land and sea area that must be covered by restoration measures by 2030Regulation (EU) 2024/1991 on nature restoration · 2024. See source ↗
- Share of Romania’s land area covered by Natura 2000 sitesEuropean Commission, Environmental Implementation Review · SWD(2022) 271 · 2022. View source ↗
- 15-year-olds below the baseline level in science, Romania (OECD average: 26%)OECD, PISA 2025 · 2025. View source ↗
Portfolio 2026–2027
Living labs where young people restore nature.
Nature Restored is part of the 2026–2027 portfolio of Asociația Grupul Verde: 43 programme lines in which young people build technology for nature, protected species, climate and democracy, with partners from Romania and the EU through Horizon Europe, LIFE, Erasmus+, the European Solidarity Corps and CERV.
Living labs for nature and climate
Soil living labs: Continental, Black Sea (Pontic) and Steppic regions
Three of Romania’s biogeographical regions, one protocol: young people measure soil moisture and carbon with sensors they build.
Target programme: Horizon Europe · Soil Mission
Linked to: Sensors in Protected Areas, Environment & biodiversity
Living labs for nature and climate
Soil living labs — the full proposal
The consortium, methodology and work plan for the soil living labs, ready to discuss with universities, farmers and authorities.
Target programme: Horizon Europe · Soil Mission
Linked to: For funders, About the Hub
Living labs for nature and climate
Living labs for ecosystem restoration
Meadows, riverbanks and forest edges restored with the community; young people track results with cameras and AI acoustic stations.
Target programme: Horizon Europe · Nature
Linked to: Environment & biodiversity, Sensors in Protected Areas
Living labs for nature and climate
Biodiversity monitoring — Area A: pollinators
Bee and butterfly transects, photos verified on iNaturalist and an AI model that helps with identification, all run by pupils.
Target programme: Horizon Europe · Nature
Linked to: Environment & biodiversity, Sensors in Protected Areas
Living labs for nature and climate
European network of living labs for nature restoration
The Vrancea living labs connect with labs in other countries: the same data, compared, and young people learning from each other.
Target programme: Horizon Europe · Nature
Linked to: Partners & UNESCO, About the Hub
Living labs for nature and climate
Living labs: inclusive governance for nature
Farmers, local councils, schools and young people decide together how land is used. Young people bring the data, the community brings experience.
Target programme: Horizon Europe · Cluster 6
Linked to: Green Case-Law Observatory, Civic and legal education
See all 43 programme linesPropose a partnershipProtected species
Support Nature Restored
Help this pilot get started.
Your donation goes straight into the activities of Nature Restored in Vrancea — materials, kits, trainers and transport for children and young people. Every amount counts.
Bank transfer with no fees · 3.5% of your tax · sponsorship with a contract