The complex policy decision-making situation around nature conservation requires examination of the operational environment. This study develops and tests a three-phase analytical framework for the evaluation of operational environment factors influencing nature conservation policy implementation. The four important operational environment factors (legal, policy, economic, and social) have been identified, to build up a framework. The framework was tested in selected countries and includes experts’ opinions. Experts (n = 44) from five EU countries (Bulgaria, Croatia, Italy, Slovakia, and Slovenia) and four non-EU countries (Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia) defined and evaluated the factors and sub-factors that affect the operational environment related to nature conservation policy implementation. The results show policy changes arising from the new governance requirements introduced by changed political regime and Europeanization are key driving factors for changes in the nature conservation operational environment. For nature conservation, these wide-reaching changes have led to new political and legal frameworks, new institutional set-ups and multilevel governance frameworks, new establishment of protected areas and Natura 2000 network, and the re-allocation of financial resources and inclusion of non-state actors in policy decision-making. However, there are also some challenges and unsolved problems that need further attention from policy decision-makers and institutions, especially related to the institutional gap, sustainable financing of nature conservation, transposition of the EU Directives into legal systems, designation of sites or improving their implementation, implementation of innovative funding schemes, and a transparent participatory process. This analytical framework can be applied to various problems related to any environmental issues or other policy implementation or management, and other sectors where public decision-making is combined with stakeholders’ engagement.

Droughts accompanied by high temperatures are becoming increasingly frequent across Europe and globally. Both individual trees and entire forest ecosystems are exposed to drought stress, with prolonged drought periods leading to increased tree mortality. Therefore, continuous monitoring, data collection, and analysis of tree mortality are essential prerequisites for understanding the complex interactions between climate and trees. This study examined the effects of short-term and prolonged (multi-year) droughts on the mortality of individual trees and forests in Serbia. The analysis was based on datasets from our previous research on the influence of drought and drought duration on individual tree mortality in Serbian forest ecosystems, supplemented with new data collected through the International Co-operative Programme on Assessment and Monitoring of Air Pollution Effects on Forests (ICP Forests). Additionally, we incorporated data from the public enterprise (PE) “Srbijašume”, which manages forests in Central Serbia, focusing on random yields resulting from natural disasters (droughts). These data enabled a comparative assessment of the findings on increased mortality and drought impact at both the individual tree level and the stand level. This study identifies key similarities and differences in tree mortality trends based on drought duration and examines their correlations within the same time frame (2004–2023). By analysing climatic conditions across Serbia, we provide evidence of the interaction between drought periods and increased forest mortality, which we further confirmed by calculating the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI). We also address the tree species that were most sensitive to the effects of drought. Our findings indicate that prolonged (multi-year) droughts, accompanied by high temperatures, have significantly contributed to increased tree mortality over the past decade. Successive multi-year droughts pose a substantial threat to both individual trees and entire forests, producing more severe and persistent responses compared to those caused by single-year droughts, which forests and individual trees are generally more capable of tolerating. Moreover, due to prolonged drought stress, trees weaken, leading to delayed mortality that may manifest several years after the initial drought event. The observed increase in tree mortality has been found to correlate with rising temperatures and the growing frequency of prolonged droughts over the past decade. Especially, intense droughts in the growing season (April–September) have a very negative impact on forests.

Protected areas are essential for biodiversity conservation, ecosystem services, and protecting different cultural heritage. They are legally designated and managed to safeguard habitats, species, and ecological processes. The EU aims to protect 30% of its land by 2030, while in Serbia 9.74% of land is under protection. One of the important categories of protected areas represents national parks, which cover 17.3% of all protected areas in Serbia. In order to understand the mechanisms of financing national parks in Serbia, the period from 2008 to 2022 was analyzed. The 15-year period was selected due to the availability of data and the necessity for long-term analysis. All revenues are divided in four groups: business, fee, grant and other business revenues. The results of regression analysis show that the growth rate of business revenue is the most significant contributor among the revenue sources, with a very strong positive impact on the growth rate of total revenue in all four national parks. The growth rate of grant revenue also contributes positively to the growth rate of total revenue. However, its impact is much smaller than the growth rate of business revenue and fee revenue but still highly significant. A strong negative correlation (−0.82) is present between the growth rate of business and fee revenue in National Park Kopaonik. This suggests that with an increase in fee revenues, business revenues decrease. The results of this research show that business revenues are the most important, followed by fee and grant revenue.

In the last ten years significance of biomass is growing, due to exhaustion of fossil fuel reserves and their negative impact on climate and environment. In the region of Southeastern Europe, biomass is the most significant renewable energy source, due to abundance of forests and agricultural areas. Serbia is one of the countries of Southeastern Europe with significant potentials for using biomass from forests and wood processing industry in the form of wood residues. Despite its potential, the use of wood biomass in Serbia is not efficient. Significant amounts of wood residue produced in the course of tree felling and timber assortment production are left unused in forests. It is necessary to improve the national legislative and regulatory frameworks and support mechanisms for the rational use of biomass, make a precise assessment of its potential and promote the importance of the circular bioeconomy in Serbia in the coming period. The paper presents the results of a complex analysis of the current state of the circular bioeconomy in Europe Union countries, comparing with state in Serbia, the goals and initial results of the CEE2ACT project, and highlights the importance of the formation and long-term functioning of the National Bioeconomy Hub.

Financiranje upravljanja zaštićenim područjima (ZP) uključuje interakciju različitih dionika koji su uključeni u proces upravljanja i financiranja, tj. od okvira upravljanja do mehanizama financiranja. Upravljački okvir postavlja osnovne preduvjete za upravljanje ZP, dok mehanizmi financiranja predstavljaju načine financiranja ZP na temelju dugoročnih i održivih uvjeta. Upravljanje ZP može se delegirati organizaciji, pojedincu ili zajednici, koja funkcionira u skladu s nizom zakona, pravila i / ili tradicijom. Isto tako, upravitelji ZP mogu se podijeliti na temelju toga tko donosi odluke i može se smatrati odgovornim. Jedna od važnih komponenti upravljanja ZP predstavlja održivo financiranje, što predstavlja temelj za ostvarivanje zaštite prirode. Održivo financiranje definira se kao sposobnost pružanja dovoljnih, stabilnih i dugoročnih financijskih izvora. Upravljanje ZP u Srbiji uglavnom provode javna poduzeća, dok je krajem devedesetih godina u Srbiji upravljanje ZP po prvi put dodijeljeno nevladinim organizacijama. Danas upravljanje provode različiti upravitelji iz javnog sektora i privatnog sektora. Planirano povećanje ZP u Srbiji uključuje skoro dvostruko veću površinu od sadašnje pokrivenosti i ta će činjenica stvoriti dodatnu obavezu za postojeće i nove upravitelje u budućem razdoblju, jer je održivo upravljanje ZP postalo izazov, kako sa upravljačkog, tako i sa financijskog gledišta. Ovo istraživanje bavi se različitim mehanizmima financiranja koji su prisutni u ZP u Srbiji. Također, bavi se razlikama u financiranju između različitih grupa upravitelja, kako bi se uspostavile najbolje prakse financiranja u sustavu upravljanja ZP u Srbiji. U fazi prikupljanja podataka korištena je anketa od vrata do vrata. Istraživanje se provodilo u dvije faze. U prvoj fazi, populacija za istraživanje definirana je na temelju registra ZP, od čega su izdvojena 63 ZP. U drugoj fazi, uzorak za istraživanje definiran je na temelju primjera „dobre prakse“ upravitelja ZP i predstavnika javne uprave i službi, kao i organizacija u sustavu upravljanja ZP. Za obradu podataka korištena je deskriptivna statistika, frekvencijska analiza, Kruskal-Wallis-ov test i Mann-Whitney-jev U test. Kruskal-Wallis-ov test korišten je za određivanje razlika između svih grupa upravitelja, dok je Mann-Whitney-jev U test korišten za određivanje razlika između pojedinih grupa upravitelja. Rezultati pokazuju da javno poduzeće “Srbijašume” ima najmanji prosječan broj izvora financiranja, za razliku od javnog poduzeća “Vojvodinašume” (tablica 1). Što se tiče prosječnih iznosa financiranja, najveći dio financiranja imaju ostali upravitelji iz javnog sektora, dok ostala javna poduzeća bilježe najmanji iznos vlastitog financiranja (tablica 2). Na temelju rezultata prve faze istraživanja predloženi su elementi unaprjeđenja sustava upravljanja ZP za mehanizme financiranja (tablica 3). Predstavnici upravitelja ZP, javne uprave i službi, kao i organizacija, smatraju da politička volja donositelja odluka, kao i nepostojanje razumijevanja države za potrebe financiranja ZP, ima velik utjecaj na unaprjeđenje postojećih mehanizama financiranja. Također, predstavnici sve tri skupine vjeruju da lokalne vlasti nisu ni uključene u financiranje ZP-a i da postoji nedovoljna zainteresiranost drugih institucija. Kao problem u unaprjeđenju korištenja domaćih i međunarodnih izvora financiranja, predstavnici upravitelja ZP vide potrebu za dodatnim istraživanjima i problemom nedovoljne izobrazbe upravitelja, za podnošenje projektnih ideja, koje su vezane uz nedovoljnu informatičku pismenost.

The interaction between trees’ water needs during drought and the signals that appear in their canopies is not fully understood. The first visually detectable signs, which we describe as early warning signals in tree canopies, are often not noticeable at first glance. When these signs become widely apparent, tree decline is already underway. In this study, we focus on identifying early visible signs of drought stress in the tree crowns, such as very small leaves, premature needle/leaf discolouration and abscission, and defoliation. We provide guidance on recognising initial signs, offer specific examples, and comprehensively analyse each signal. Our focus is on signs in the tree crowns that appear during intense and prolonged droughts, which we confirmed by calculating the Standardised Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI). Our findings are based on 20 years (2004–2024) of continuous fieldwork and data collection from permanent sample plots in Serbia, which was conducted as part of the International Co-operative Programme on Assessment and Monitoring of Air Pollution Effects on Forests (ICP Forests). We also conducted a comprehensive review of the literature and key findings related to the early signs we address. This research was further motivated by the signs observed in the tree crowns during the summer of 2024 due to extreme climatic events, which classify this year as one of the hottest recorded in Serbia. However, we still cannot conclusively determine which specific trees will die back based solely on these early warning signals, as some trees manage to withstand severe drought conditions. Nonetheless, the widespread appearance of these indicators is a clear warning of significant ecosystem instability, potentially leading to the decline of individual trees or larger groups.