Implementation of the Carpathian convention in Serbia-the analysis of sustainability aspects

Abstract

One of the biggest and most important mountain ranges in Europe, the Carpathians, is being threatened by different human activities. The Framework Convention on the Protection and Sustainable Development of the Carpathians (the Carpathian Convention) represents one of the international efforts to protect the biodiversity of this area through multilateral cooperation. Serbia is one of the signatory parties, where the area protected by the Convention currently coincides with the Djerdap National Park (DjNP) boundaries. Serbia mainly lags in protocol and amendment ratifications, which is suspected to hinder the potential benefits regarding the sustainable development of this region. By analyzing the selected sustainability indicators for the years 2003, 2011, and 2019 we tried to enlighten if developments were sustainable. The data were also presented by the spider evaluation method. Despite certain limitations in data availability, research showed that there are positive economic and environmental changes, despite depopulation and aging of local inhabitants. However, major efforts are still to be undertaken, especially regarding environmental sustainability and implementation of national and international regulation.