moorgen

There were once one and a half million hectares of moorland in Germany. We have been able to preserve five per cent, the rest has been drained for economic purposes. Yet we need these areas for our climate, because peatlands store twice as much CO2 in their peat soil as all the world’s forests put together. If Germany wants to achieve the climate targets agreed in the Paris Climate Agreement, peatlands must be rewetted by 2050 at the latest. It is time to give the peatlands of tomorrow what they need to protect and renaturalise areas. This requires an immense structural change involving many stakeholders. But the rewetting of peatlands also offers opportunities: new economic sectors such as paludiculture are possible, where thatch and bulrush can be cultivated for various applications. There are also approaches to reclaiming and preserving these places as natural habitats. After all, moors are valuable habitats for numerous animal and plant species. But we humans can also experience all the positive things that moors have to offer and draw strength from them. They can offer us a peaceful retreat that allows us to connect with nature. Through positive experiences and adventures, we form an individual relationship with the moor and thus strengthen our sense of responsibility and protection for this space. Moorgen is a concept that focuses on renaturalised moors as areas for nature conservation and public relations work in the form of gentle local tourism. Does it always have to be a short trip to the seaside? At moorgen, you can experience and explore the moors of tomorrow in your neighbourhood! Take in different perspectives, linger and relax! To familiarise a young target group with the moorland environment, the three moorgen modules can be used to set up flexible infrastructures in the moor. 

These are transportable and can therefore be adapted to conditions such as conservation zones, the season and breeding times. Connected to hiking and cycling tourism, the modules based on the boardwalk offer the opportunity to extend the type and duration of the stay. There are footbridges and steps that run through wet meadows and thus open up places that are located in the middle of the meadow and in nature. These can be covered with messages and provided with leaning points, creating places to lie and sit at eye level with the valuable peat soil, plants and animals. The moorgen shelter in particular, which invites you to stay and can be booked for an overnight stay via the responsible nature conservation organisation, offers the opportunity to stay longer. It is made from local materials. Here, users can cosy up under a thatched roof and protect themselves from mosquitoes with a net. A large viewing window makes it possible to observe nature from the shelter. This blurs the boundaries between inside and outside. The canopy of the shelter serves as a large bench on which a short informative text about the moor can be read from the perspective of those seated. This creates positive memories that users associate with their experiences with their loved ones and the moor they have visited.