• The initiative seeks to promote the region's natural spaces in collaboration with voluntary companies and the Ecotourism Club in Spain.
• Eight Local Action Groups are participating in this LEADER regional cooperation project.
• The goal is to offer 34 ecotourism experiences in the protected areas of the Natura 2000 Network of Castilla-La Mancha.

In 1992, the Natura 2000 Network was created within the European Union (EU) . This is the European ecological network of protected areas for the conservation of biodiversity, which seeks to ensure the survival of endangered species and habitats. Now, 33 years later, the Local Action Group (LAG) of the Alcudia Valley and Sierra Madrona aims to promote some of the SPAs (Special Bird Protection Areas) and SACs (Special Areas of Conservation) into which the network is divided, through attractive ecotourism experiences.

In this way, they have developed the Ecotourism project in the Natura 2000 Network of Castilla-La Mancha , which they already presented during the 45th International Tourism Fair ( FITUR ) . This initiative offers visits to the mountains, rivers, forests, steppes and pastures—all areas belonging to the Natura 2000 Network—that characterize the region, in order to get to know them in an environmentally responsible way. In the words of Antonio Manzanares Gijón , Rural Development Technician of the GAL Valle de Alcudia and Sierra Madrona and project coordinator, "the product and the experiences designed improve the use of natural and cultural heritage, positively influencing the economy of the participating territories."

In addition, they have created a catalog that provides comprehensive information about each of the ecotourism experiences featured in the project. The website also offers a search engine that serves as a support tool for finding the destination, experience, or service you are interested in.

Goals

The initiatives coordinated over the years by the Alcudia Valley and Sierra Madrona Local Association (GAL) seek to boost the economy and retain the population in their territories. Therefore, it has promoted the Ecotourism project in the Natura 2000 Network in Castilla-La Mancha, which has the following objectives:

• Promote the areas that are part of the Natura 2000 Network by offering ecotourism experiences and working together with tourism companies .
• Promote ecotourism not only at the regional level but also nationally, by joining more spaces in this network and more tourism companies that position Castilla-La Mancha as a benchmark in ecotourism.
• Link the project and its companies and destinations to the Ecotourism Club to ensure its survival and continuity.

Provisional results and difficulties

The initiative has successfully included 294 municipalities in Castile-La Mancha, covering a total area of 33,950 km² and with a population of 325,419. Thirty-eight ecotourism and accommodation companies have also joined the initiative, and another 55 tourism companies are hoping to join the Natura 2000 Network's Sustainable Nature Tourism Recognition System , a tool designed by the State Secretariat for Tourism .

Antonio Manzanares Gijón defines it as “a process of training and supporting companies to help them create their own ecotourism offerings.”

Although the project has been successful, it has not been without some difficulties in "the management and alignment of all the stakeholders involved, both from the public and private sectors," explains Antonio Manzanares Gijón, who lists the main challenges they have had to face:

• Diversity of actors with different interests and approaches .
• Territorial coordination in five provinces.
• Reconciliation between environmental protection and tourism activity.
• Joint promotion and marketing.

Participants and funding

The Alcudia Valley and Sierra Madrona Local Action Group (GAL) is coordinating the project, which also involves eight other Local Action Groups representing the five provinces of Castilla-La Mancha:

• GDR Sierra de Alcaraz and Campo de Montiel (SACAM)
• GAL Alto Guadiana Mancha
• GAL Association for the Development of the Oropesa Region (ADECOR)
• Between parks
• ADR Molina de Aragón-Alto Tajo
• GAL Montes de Toledo
• Serrano Promotion and Development Association (PRODESE)
• Sierra del Segura GAL

Each of them is responsible for the nine protected areas included in the Natura 2000 Network, where visitors can enjoy 34 ecotourism experiences in up to 13 categories, such as astrotourism and photography in fully natural spaces. This LEADER project also has the collaboration of the State Secretariat for Tourism (SETUR) .

The agencies responsible for financing this initiative have been the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Rural Development of Castilla-La Mancha and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food , which have invested 270,000 euros for the entire project. through the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development ( EAFRD ) , within the framework of the LEADER 2014-2020 programme . The budget is allocated to activities such as the preliminary phase, institutional presentation, preparation of protected areas, implementation of experiences, product promotion, and network management of destinations.