War and Parks
EVERY SPRING, UKRAINE’S Desna floodplain comes alive as tens of thousands of ducks, storks, cranes, and other birds pass through on their seasonal migration. In the wetland’s lakes, fish dart below yellow water lilies, while east of the floodplain, pine forests shelter large herds of elk. Bison, lynx, and bear meander through trees tangled in moss, while beavers busy themselves along the rivers. These days, however, much of this vibrant landscape, which makes up Ukraine’s Desnyansko-Starogutskyi National Protected Park, is littered with landmines, carved with craters, and charred by fire. The park, which shares a 30-kilometer border with Russia, has been on the frontlines of the Russo-Ukrainian war since Russia launched its invasion on February 24, 2022. Desnyansko-Starogutskyi is one among many Ukrainian parks that have suffered deeply since the invasion. Nearly 40 percent of the country’s protected or ecologically important areas have been occupied at some point since the war first began in 2014 in Crimea, though most of the damage occurred after the 2022 invasion. Even those farther from the front have not escaped unscathed. As Mykhailo Drebet, head of science and research for Western Ukraine’s Podilski Tovtry National Park, puts it, “There is no park that is not influenced by war.” The war has claimed an estimated one million lives, devastating built and natural spaces alike. Yet, despite the immense damage that’s already been done and the bleak prospect of more to come, many Ukrainians are already looking to the future. They are envisioning what recovery may look like, for the country’s people and its ecosystems. Journal Managing Editor Zoe Loftus-Farren shares the stories of four individuals who are working to support the country's national parks amid the war in our Winter magazine's cover story.
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