The Terrestrial Ecosystems Management Lab at the Open University of Cyprus (OUC), coordinated by Professor Ioannis Vogiatzakis, and researchers, Dr. Elli Tzirkalli, Dr. Paraskevi Manolaki, and Dr. Savvas Zotos, has secured funding of €0.5 million from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) – DARWIN Plus Fund of the United Kingdom for the implementation of the project: "Enhancing Resilience of the Akrotiri Salt Lake ecosystem".
This 3-year project, coordinated by OUC in collaboration with the University of Kent and the Environmental Department of the British Sovereign Base Areas in Cyprus, aims to enhance the resilience of the Akrotiri Salt Lake ecosystem, enabling it to withstand the pressures it faces, with the ultimate goal of its long-term preservation. The impacts on the wetland and the broader environment are already significant, requiring immediate protective measures. The researchers' goal is to quantify the degree of natural and anthropogenic threats to the surrounding "pressure zone" of the Akrotiri Salt Lake, and to implement specific actions and sound ecological and conservation practices to increase the resilience of ecological functions.