Birds know no borders, nor do the actions we implement to protect them. Only a few years after the kick-off of its operations, HOS had already formed strong ties and collaborations with scientific, environmental and governmental bodies both in Greece and in other countries. In 1994, just 12 years after its foundation, HOS became the national partner of BirdLife International, the largest partnership of environmental organizations worldwide.
With more than 110 partners in every corner of the planet, the aim of Birdlife is the coordination of all ornithological organisations around the world. The main goal of the partnership is not only to conserve birds and protect their habitats, but also to motivate society for the protection of the natural environment on a global scale.
A significant result of our partnership with BirdLife was the identification of Greece’s Important Bird Areas (IBAs) and their inclusion in the European Network of Protected Areas Natura 2000, as Special Protection Areas (SPAs).
The success of the partnership stems mainly from its emphatic dedication to producing scientific evidence and expertise but also through the establishment of committees involving experts and scientists from all partner organizations. This structure allows the partnership and each partner to be alert and active on a wide range of environmental protection issues and critical threats to birds and their habitats: from agricultural ecosystems and the marine environment to the illegal hunting and energy infrastructure.
Moreover, its democratic, multi-stakeholder nature allows the partnership to act as a multiplier, strengthening the voice of each organization by putting pressure on decision and policy makers for birds and the environment and by providing high-value scientific knowledge and support for the design of successful campaigns at the pan-European and global levels, such as Nature Alert, Ban Lead, 1Planet 1Right, Ocean Alert, Flight for Survival and the Restore Nature campaigns that led to a historic win for nature!
In 2022, the 40 years anniversary of the Hellenic ORNITHOLOGICAL Society coincided with the celebrations for 100 years of BirdLife International. At the partners' anniversary conference in Cambridge, England, HOS celebrated a century of conservation action together with friends, colleagues and partners from more than 40 countries. During this important event, HOS was honored with a speaker’s seat in "The Future of our Planet" panel, held in London, with a presentation speaking about the power of Environmental Education as an agent of change within society.
