Europe’s Yellowstone? An analysis of the social impacts of forest conservation in Romania
Authors:
Romana Puilet (RISE project); Marcus Erridge (CES); Eleonora Piccardi (CES); Irina Velicu (CES)
Abstract:
This case study examines the social impacts of large-scale conservation in Romania’s Carpathian Mountains, focusing on the Foundation Conservation Carpathia’s (FCC) ‘Europe’s Yellowstone’ project. It addresses a critical research gap in understanding how green transition policies around forest conservation, under the EGD and Biodiversity Strategy, affect rural communities. Through mixed methods —including policy analysis, media review, and stakeholder interviews— the study investigates whether ostensibly progressive conservation agendas perpetuate green-grabbing and sacrifice zones. Findings reveal significant socio-environmental trade-offs: increased biodiversity protection and rewilding coincide with dispossession, criminalization, cultural erosion, and economic marginalization of local communities. The research contributes to broader literature on environmental justice by applying a ‘green sacrifice zone’ framework to non-extractive contexts, demonstrating how fortress conservation exacerbates inequalities. It concludes that convivial conservation can help prevent the risk of EU-backed transition policies replicating colonial patterns under a green guise.
