Living Lab Beskydy: Connecting Communities and Nature Across the Border
Beskydy LL recently joined a series of events bridging communities and nature in the Czech-Slovak Beskydy region. In the first half of August, Velké Karlovice hosted a varied programme catering to all generations and interests.
The major event of the week was certainly the opening of the exhibition “Our Beskydy – Coexistence of Humans and Nature”, which opened on Saturday, 15 August, at the Museum in Velké Karlovice. The exhibition is the result of collaborative work involving scientists from the Institute of Forest Ecology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, CETIP, and the Beskydy cross-border community, forming part of the COEVOLVERS project. It will remain open at the Information Centre in Velké Karlovice until the end of September, allowing residents and visitors to explore the changing relationship between people and nature in the Beskydy Mountains.
“The exhibition, which is the result of co-creation with the community, explores the question of how the landscape of the Beskydy Mountains is changing and what role humans play in these changes,” said Tatiana Kluvánková from IFE SAS at the opening. Martin Špaček from CETIP highlighted that, instead of presenting the landscape merely as a backdrop for human activities, the exhibition encourages visitors to view it as a shared space shaped by interactions between people, water, forests, soil, plants, and animals. Similarly, Mária Kozová, Chair of the National Consultation Group of LL Beskydy, explained that through interactive elements and stories, the exhibition presents the Beskydy landscape as a living and interconnected system.
“Visitors and the community are encouraged to think about how human activities influence the landscape, but also about how people depend on the many other forms of life and natural processes with which they share it,” added Miroslav Koňařík, Mayor of Velké Karlovice.
Furthermore, a diverse group of Virtual Commons members introduced stories of good practice collected on the platform beskydyonline.eu. Original “Letters from Nature” and their audio versions are physically presented at the exhibition, enhancing the management of shared goods, communication, and the exchange of practices in the Beskydy Living Lab.
Tailored for younger audiences, ‘Coexistence in Nature’ introduced children to the idea that people are not separate from nature, but part of a larger ecosystem. Through activities designed for children, the event created an opportunity to explore questions of coexistence in an engaging and accessible way.
Another important part of the programme was the traditional discussion symposium in Velké Karlovice, organised for young scientists and doctoral students of the SlovakGlobe CETIP Network across the CZ-SK border. Dedicated to the memory of Prof. Jiřina Jílková, co-founder of CETIP, the symposium provided a space for discussion, critical thinking and creativity. Bringing together early-career researchers from different backgrounds, it encouraged participants to exchange ideas and reflect on contemporary environmental and societal challenges.
The symposium is traditionally donated by an original ceramic statue of the Angel of Hope from the Keramika Mili workshop located in the Leaving Lab, highlighting the importance of local knowledge and creativity. Milena Hošťálková creates original handmade ceramics with nature-culture symbols and becomes one of the stories on the Beskydy virtual platform.
