Helpers since 1985: Volunteering protects unique nature

Volunteers have been helping to preserve the unique nature in the Saxon Switzerland National Park for 40 years. There are currently 105 such helpers, nine of whom have been involved from the very beginning and have been there since 1985, according to the Ministry of the Environment.

"The silverware of German unity"

Their commitment was an important building block in preserving Saxon Switzerland's worthiness of protection, said Environment Minister Georg-Ludwig von Breitenbuch (CDU). This enabled the national park to be included in the unification treaty as one of five outstanding natural areas in the GDR and the "silverware of German unity".

The Saxon Switzerland National Park was founded in 1990; the region was previously a landscape conservation area. It is the only national park in Saxony and one of 16 in Germany. It reportedly attracts more than three million people every year. The volunteers help to contain the consequences of the many visitors, such as erosion and waste. They also supported the upgrading of the Caspar David Friedrich Trail last year,