Ecologists' congress in Struga: 170 papers about nature, and science asks for someone to turn them into decisions

Nature usually makes the front pages when something burns, collapses or stinks. In Struga, it was discussed for four days with numbers, measurements and field studies. The Seventh Congress of Ecologists of Macedonia with international participation, held from 15 to 18 October, brought together more than 180 speakers and guests from the region and 170 papers and poster presentations, organised by the Macedonian Ecological Society (MED).

The topics are the ones we live with every day and rarely understand: air, water and soil pollution, biodiversity, forestry, agriculture and changes in ecosystems. Bulgarian professor Irina Karadzhova spoke about plants that accumulate nickel and can be used to clean up contaminated land. Dr Tim van der Schriek used the example of Lake Prespa to talk about protecting nature in the middle of a climate crisis, and Dr Jovana Devetaković from Belgrade spoke about how vulnerable four oak species are to drought.

Perhaps the most important sentence of the congress came from Prof. Panayotis Dimopoulos of the University of Patras: the technical assessment of ecosystem services has to be turned into concrete decisions. How often does an assessment like that get any further than the book of proceedings here? "Twenty-eight years after the first congress, we are still here," said MED's executive director, Robertina Brajanoska. A sentence that sounds like both pride and a warning.

More than 200 pupils from 14 primary schools presented their research on habitats from Šar Mountain and Prespa to the Pešna cave, and biology students gave 18 presentations. The congress was dedicated to Prof. Dr Ljupčo Grupče, one of its founders, who did not live to see the seventh edition. Generations of ecologists have the knowledge. The question is whether anyone who signs urban plans and permits will read what they have written.