Euromontana is undertaking a survey on pastoralism and permanent grasslands in the European mountains in order to compare sustainable management practices.

Pastoralism - the raising of livestock - is an agricultural practice prevalent in mountainous areas. This is due to the fact that it enables the development of territories of low agronomic value; areas that are otherwise difficult to access or utilize. The continuation of pastoral activities faces several challenges however. These include difficulties linked to the economic context, climate change, land use pressure, and the challenge of organising grazing herds in the context of seasonal territory use.

As part of the Oreka Mendian LIFE project, Euromontana is currently undertaking a survey to collect information on the sustainable management of mountain pasturelands in Europe, and to gather details of permanent grassland management good practice. The responses gathered will help Euromontana carry out a study comparing the sustainable management practices of permanent grasslands across Europe. 

The online questionnaire should take no longer than 15 minutes, and is comprised of three parts:

•  The first section focuses on the most important functions of grasslands, the current challenges they face, the best ways to valorize grassland production, and useful conservation measures;
• The second section aims to identify the most important policy measures for pastoral activity on EU / regional and local level;
• The final section deals with large carnivores. 

If you are willing to contribute your opinion, public data sources, and examples of the diversity of pasturelands and management systems in your area, please fill in the questionnaire before 31 March 2018.

You can download a form to help you submit information about good practices here. Once it has been filled in, please email it to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Access the questionnaire.