The biodiversity, intended as the variety of the life form existing on the planet, at any level of organisation (genes, species, populations, communities, ecosystems), is threaten by various factors, including: land consumption, change in the intended use of areas, degradation of the habitat with negative effects on the survival of species to survive, simplification of agro-ecosystems, use of pesticide, environmental pollution, climate change, spread of invasive alien species, hunting pressure and poaching.

Essential tools for biodiversity conservation are the protected natural areas. The protected natural areas can be represented as “containers” and laboratories for the conservation of biodiversity. Together with Natura 2000 Network sites, these areas constitute the node and “stepping-stones” of the ecological networks. Protected natural areas put into practice and perfect knowledge on natural resource management and integrated planning. The protected natural areas provide supervision of the ecosystem components that are fundamental for the generation of ecosystem services; they promote the dissemination of scientific research; contribute to the enhancement of good practices and traditional cultures; they play an important role in information and education on sustainability in the field of biodiversity and nature conservation. The protected natural areas experiment models of sustainable use by having to combine the frequentation and use of the territory with the objectives of conservation and protection.

One of the objectives of MADE IN-LAND is to develop innovative management models of fragile inland areas. The protected natural areas play an important role in this challenge, because they promote integration path between biodiversity conservation and sustainable local development.