Cultural and Spiritual Values of Alder Forests

On December 13, 2022, the closing day of the four-year LIFE_Alnus Project took place at the Forest Science and Technology Center of Catalonia, in Solsona, to develop an experimental, regional-level (Catalonia) alternative conservation strategy for Mediterranean alder forests to reverse the decline and deterioration of this riverside habitat and create a model that can be rolled out to the rest of the Mediterranean biogeographical region.

The last session was dedicated to the cultural, spiritual, educational and artistic values of riparian alder forests. Josep Maria Mallarach (Silene) spoke about the cultural and spiritual values of the vernedas; Roser Maneja (CTFC-UAB) of educational and therapeutic values; and Anna Gallés (Andrena Foundation) of the changes in its pictorial representation, since prehistory. The challenge is to get all these values integrated into the project manual, so that they are properly taken into account when appropriate and applied in the restoration and protection projects of riparian forests promoted in the future.