Landscape Fire Management in the Western Balkans

14/08/2026

🔥 Meet Arlinda Gashi, Country Project Staff representative within the LFMWB Programme in 🇽🇰

With more than 13 years of field experience at the Kosovo Forestry Agency, Arlinda brings practical knowledge and institutional experience to the LFMWB Programme. Through her work with the national LFM network, she contributes to strengthening cooperation among institutions and stakeholders and addressing key priorities for advancing Landscape Fire Management in 🇽🇰

Her experience highlights the importance of institutional coordination, long-term planning, research, and community engagement in building effective and resilient LFM systems.

👉 Explore her reflections on national LFM networks, community engagement, and the challenges of managing landscape fires in 🇽🇰

10/08/2026

🔥 The first half of 2026 offers important lessons on landscape fire risk across the Western Balkans.

Our latest analysis looks at the landscape fire situation across the region so far this year, highlighting key developments, trends, and the continuing importance of prevention and preparedness.

Read the full analysis on our website 👇

Key messages The first half of 2026 recorded a significant level of landscape fire activity across the Western Balkans, with almost 40 000 hectares affected by almost 100 fires between January and June. Although the most intense wildfire period traditionally occurs during the summer months, the firs...

07/08/2026

📸 Every photograph tells a story. Behind every story is a photographer.

🔥 Through their lenses, photographers can reveal the beauty of our landscapes while also reminding us of the challenges they face and the importance of protecting them. The winning photographs of our regional traveling exhibition “captured” the attention of the jury through their creativity, emotional value, and the meaningful messages they convey.

👉Through this interview series, discover the stories behind the award-winning photographs, the inspiration, the landscapes, and the people behind the lens.

In our first interview, we were talking with Goran Kuzmanovski, the photographer behind the first prize-winning photograph.

Read the full interview on our website 👇

Photography has the unique power to preserve moments, tell stories, and inspire action. Through their lenses, photographers can reveal the beauty of our landscapes while also reminding us of the challenges they face and the importance of protecting them. The winning photographs of our regional trave...

05/08/2026

📢 Public Call Announcement!

The Landscape Fire Management in the Western Balkans (LFMWB) Programme invites interested and eligible applicants to submit proposals under a new public call for the procurement of services.

🗓 Deadline: 20 August 2026, 15:00
📧 Submission & questions: [email protected]
📌 Subject line: For Public Call Ref. No: 03/08/675
✅ Who can apply: Legal entities registered in North Macedonia.

🔍 Public call details, including eligibility criteria and application requirements, are available at the following link: https://shorturl.at/oJRND

31/07/2026

🌲 Strengthening Wildfire Resilience in Serbia’s Protected Areas

🔥 Through the LFMWB Programme’s community-based project “FireGuard: Wildfire Resilience and Management for Serbia’s Protected Areas”, Biološko društvo "dr Sava Petrović" aims to enhance wildfire resilience and management capacities in protected areas across Serbia. The project is implemented through the Community-based Competitive Fund coordinated by Farmahem, within the Landscape Fire Management in the Western Balkans (LFMWB) Programme financed by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).

The initiative focuses on improving prevention, preparedness, and response through targeted measures, including capacity-building for protected area managers, development of fire management approaches, and strengthening coordination among relevant institutions and local stakeholders.

Activities also support risk assessment, knowledge exchange, and the promotion of integrated fire management practices, ensuring that protected areas are better equipped to address increasing fire risks.

By reinforcing institutional capacities and promoting proactive approaches, the project contributes to the protection of biodiversity and the long-term resilience of natural landscapes.

👉 Learn more about this project: https://lfmwb.net/project/fireguard-wildfire-resilience-and-management-for-serbias-protected-areas/

28/07/2026

🌳 World Nature Conservation Day serves as a reminder of the need to protect biodiversity, ecosystems, and natural resources for present and future generations.

🦌 In the Western Balkans, landscape fire management is a key component of nature conservation efforts, helping to safeguard forests, protected areas, wildlife habitats, and valuable ecosystem services. The region's diverse landscapes support a rich variety of plant and animal species, many of which are vulnerable to the impacts of uncontrolled fires. Large landscape fires can destroy habitats, fragment ecosystems, reduce biodiversity, and affect water resources and soil health.

🔥 As temperatures rise and droughts become more frequent, the risk of severe landscape fires is increasing across the region. Integrated landscape fire management combines prevention, preparedness, monitoring, response, and post-fire recovery measures. It also emphasizes the involvement of local communities, land managers, researchers, and government institutions in reducing fire risks and improving ecosystem resilience. Restoration of burned areas and the promotion of sustainable land-use practices are essential for supporting long-term conservation goals.

🌿 Today, on World nature conservation day, we highlight the importance of investing in landscape fire management as a tool for protecting biodiversity, strengthening climate resilience, and preserving the natural heritage of the Western Balkans. Through cooperation, awareness, and responsible stewardship of the land, we can help ensure that these valuable ecosystems continue to thrive for generations to come.

23/07/2026

💚 20,000 followers. One shared commitment.

Our facebook community is growing, and with it, the awareness that protecting landscapes from fires is a shared responsibility.

Thank you to everyone who follows, supports, and shares the LFMWB Programme's mission. Together, we are building a stronger network of professionals, institutions, communities, and citizens committed to more resilient landscapes across the Western Balkans.

Every follower represents another person helping spread knowledge, promote prevention, and inspire action.

Let's continue building more resilient landscapes together! 🌿

21/07/2026

📷 Prishtina welcomed the opening of the traveling photography exhibition “Landscape Fire Protection through the Camera Lens”!

Featuring 20 powerful photographs, the exhibition showcases the region’s natural landscapes while highlighting the importance of prevention, cooperation, and collective action in reducing the risk of landscape fires. 🌳 🔥

The event brought together representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development, the Embassy of Switzerland in Kosovo, and partners dedicated to strengthening landscape fire management in the region.

Mr. Menderes Ibra, Chief executive of Kosovo Forestry Agency, operating under the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Development, said that resilient landscapes can only be achieved through joint efforts, timely prevention, and strong regional cooperation.

Ms. Judika Peters, Deputy Head of Cooperation at the Embassy of Switzerland, highlighted that Switzerland is proud to support the Landscape Fire Management in Western Balkans Programme, strengthening the prevention, preparedness and cooperation across the region.

Speaking at the opening, the Programme Team Leader, Mr. Cvetan Nikolovski, said that Landscape Fire Management in Western Balkans Programme is promoting an approach that looks beyond the fire itself.

The exhibition is open to visitors until August 2 at Hani I 2 Roberteve, Prishtina.

One fire can change everything. Let’s protect the Western Balkans from landscape fires.

Read more: https://lfmwb.net/2026/07/21/the-regional-photography-exhibition-on-landscape-fire-protection-arrives-in-prishtina/

Ministria e Bujqësisë, Pylltarisë dhe Zhvillimit Rural
Embassy of Switzerland in Kosovo

20/07/2026

📸 Today, 20 July, the traveling exhibition “Landscape Fire Protection Through Your Camera Lens” opens at "Hani i 2 Roberteve” in Prishtina.

Experience the 20 selected images from the regional photography contest, showcasing the consequences of landscape fires and inspiring awareness of prevention, resilience, and the power of communities working together.

The exhibition is organized as part of the Landscape Fire Management in the Western Balkans (LFMWB) Programme, funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and coordinated by Farmahem.

16/07/2026

🦌 Landscape fires pose serious and immediate danger to wildlife because they move fast, change direction unpredictably, and transform habitats in minute. They reshape entire ecosystems, and wildlife often faces both danger and unexpected opportunities as habitats burn and regenerate.

🔥 Fires can destroy shelter and food sources, forcing animals to flee or adapt quickly. Fast movers like deer or birds often escape, while slower species like reptiles or small mammals are more vulnerable. Even after flames die, soil erosion, water contamination, and lack of vegetation make survival difficult.