Nature conservation in remote rural areas: a win-win situation?

Nature conservation has a long and notable history in Estonia starting from the traditional roots of folk religion in the 1300s. The first national park in the Soviet Union was created in Estonia and today more than a fifth of the territory of Estonia is under some level of nature protection. The economy and legal system of Estonia have changed rapidly over the last 20 years since independence was regained in 1991. The development of protected areas has been affected directly and indirectly by a variety of inter-related political, social, economic and demographic factors. The changes have been rapid and extensive as in other Eastern-European countries. The main aim of this article is to discuss the socio-economic development of protected areas during the last two decades in Estonia. The article gives an overview of the history of nature conservation in Estonia, an analysis of socio-economic and demographic developments of protected areas and explores possible development paths for Estonia’s protected areas. Four scenarios: emptying, residence, exposition and research are discussed with their potential drivers and outcomes presented.