The growth of public commitment to nature conservation began about 200 years ago. Parallel to technological progress, industrialization and urbanization, social awareness of nature's need for protection grew during the course of the 19th century. What began as a social movement has been anchored in the political sphere since the beginning of the 20th century and is subject to corresponding influences. During the Nazi era, nature conservation in Germany was formalized and instrumentalized, and advanced further in both East and West Germany after 1945. After German reunification in 1990, certain military training areas were abandoned and those areas were secured for purposes of nature conservation within the framework of the National Natural Heritage (Nationales Naturerbe). The "Green Belt" nature conservation project was established along the former inner-German border.
These historical developments also shaped the sites administered by the German Federal Environmental Foundation's Natural Heritage division, DBU Naturerbe GmbH. Some of the areas, most of which were formerly used for military purposes, contain architectural relics from the National Socialism period and more recent history, which has led to a conflict over the areas' use: nature conservationists want to preserve rare animal and plant species there, while historians see them as place of remembrance.
"Many of today's DBU Natural Heritage sites were used as former military training grounds during the National Socialist era or even newly created at that time. Therefore, the areas also have a historical dimension. DBU Naturerbe GmbH is thus interested not only in nature conservation, but also in reflection on the history of these areas," says Prof. Dr. Werner Wahmhoff, Deputy DBU General Secretary and Technical Director, and authorized signatory for the DBU Naturerbe.
The DBU addressed this task in April in the Environmental Center at Wiesenfelden Castle, Bavaria. 25 experts from different disciplines, together with the DBU, discussed perspectives on the history of the DBU Natural Heritage sites and ways in which nature conservation and monument preservation could be meaningfully combined. For this purpose, a total of seven keynote speeches were given on two days of the event, and these were subsequently discussed. It was also significant that the event took place during the current European Cultural Heritage Year, which aims to share Europe's common cultural heritage and its potential for identification, participation and development.
In addition to a critical review of the history of nature conservation, two concrete examples were presented and discussed: the "West Wall", a former military defense system built by the Nazis along the western border of the old German Reich, and the DBU Natural Heritage site at Peenemünde. In the 25-square-kilometer former armament complex at Peenemünde on the island of Usedom, the National Socialists operated an army research institute (HVA) beginning in 1936 for the development, production and testing of weapons of mass destruction. After the end of the Second World War, the National People's Army of the German Democratic Republic took over the site until German reunification in 1990.
The discussions at Wiesenfelden Castle produced a "core message": Even though the protection of monuments and the conservation of nature on these sites have developed separately since 1945, these two concerns must be considered together. Above all, the maintenance of cultural landscapes requires the interaction of nature and monument protection. In this respect, interdisciplinary cooperation between nature conservation, monument preservation, and historians was seen as an important starting point.
Areas which have historical associations with the National Socialist (Nazi) period are also of particular interest to other groups of people, such as the local population, political educators, and those involved in memorial initiatives - but also to military enthusiasts and right-wing extremists. The question of the correct treatment of this history, as well as citizen participation and public discussions involving all interest groups, were therefore considered important by the event participants.
In his closing remarks, Wahmhoff summarized as follows for the DBU: "In the future, the connection between history, monument protection and nature conservation will have to be dealt with even more intensively as regards these individual sites. Especially in Europe, where cultural landscapes are almost omnipresent and where the history of the World Wars and in particular of National Socialism has left its traces, cultural history is of special importance".
Program overview, presentation slides and abstracts can be found at: https://www.dbu.de/550artikel37570_2441.html
