Closer to Nature Rödåbygden is a place-based initiative exploring how ecological restoration, local participation and access to nature can strengthen one another. Through rewilding camps, guided activities, partnerships and support for local initiatives, we aim to reconnect people with the landscape while contributing to biodiversity, local livelihoods and long-term community resilience.
Strengthened biodiversity
Better conditions for recovery in waterways and surrounding habitats.
Increased local participation
More people taking part in camps, guided activities, dialogue and collaboration around the landscape.
More nature-based opportunities
New or strengthened initiatives, guided experiences and collaborations that can contribute to local development.
Broader societal benefits
A stronger relationship between people and nature – and a model that can continue locally and spread to more areas.
Background and project outline
In the Rödån catchment area, we want to develop an approach where ecological restoration not only strengthens nature’s own processes, but also brings people closer to the landscape. Closer to Nature Rödåbygden is Rewilding Sweden’s initiative to connect restoration, nature experiences and local participation in a shared effort.
Through rewilding camps, guide development, support for local nature-based initiatives and collaboration with landowners, associations, businesses and other local actors, we want to make rewilding something that people can experience, take part in and continue building together.
The goal is to develop a model that works in Rödåbygden – and that, over time, can inspire more landscapes in Sweden to allow nature’s recovery and people’s engagement to strengthen one another
Funding: Enetjärn Nature Foundation
Collaborating organisations: SLU Centre for Nature Interpretation, Tavelsjö- och Rödåbygdens utveckling, ek. för
Join a Rewilding Camp
Our rewilding camps bring people together to take part in hands-on ecological restoration, outdoor living and shared learning in the landscapes of northern Sweden. The camps combine practical restoration work with guided experiences, discussion, nature connection and community around the fire.
Whether you are curious about rewilding, work with people and nature, or simply want to experience a different way of relating to landscape and community, the camps are designed to be welcoming, participatory and grounded in real restoration work.
Amanda Lund
Koordinator – Natur för människan
Prerequisites
The challenge
When habitats deteriorate, waterways are affected and natural processes are pushed aside, biodiversity is weakened. At the same time, there are often no clear pathways for people to become involved in the work of restoring nature. As a result, nature conservation risks being perceived as something that happens alongside the local community, rather than something shaped together with the people who live, work and spend their everyday lives in the landscape.
Important restoration efforts are already underway in Rödåbygden. The next step is to strengthen the connection between nature’s recovery and people’s engagement, knowledge and opportunities. For restoration to have long-term impact, more people need to be able to understand what is happening, experience the change on site and feel that they themselves can be part of the work.
The solution
Closer to Nature Rödåbygden tests a model where restoration, local participation and access to nature strengthen one another. When people develop a closer relationship with the landscape, their engagement in caring for it also increases.
And when restoration becomes visible, accessible and relevant to more people, it can create value that is felt both in nature and in the local community.
The initiative is therefore built on several interconnected parts. Landscape restoration is the foundation, but the work also includes rewilding camps, place-based nature experiences, support for guides and local initiatives, and partnerships that enable the work to continue locally. In this way, we aim to contribute to richer nature, greater participation and more nature-based opportunities in Rödåbygden.
Step 1: Restoration as the foundation
The work takes its starting point in ongoing and planned restoration in the Rödån catchment area. When natural processes are given more space, the conditions for a more living landscape are strengthened.
Closer to Nature Rödåbygden does not replace ecological restoration, but builds on it by creating forms for participation, learning and local anchoring around the work.
Step 2: Rewilding camps that bring people closer to nature
Through rewilding camps and other place-based activities, participants get to experience the landscape up close. This may involve hiking, exploring waterways, understanding the rewilding work and encountering nature together with others.
The camps are a way to make rewilding concrete, engaging and relevant for both residents and visitors.
Step 3: Guides, initiatives and local value creation
We want to support local nature-based initiatives and create conditions for more people to contribute knowledge, hospitality and experiences connected to a living landscape.
Through guide development, networks and local collaboration, guides, associations and small businesses can become an active part of the work while also strengthening the attractiveness of the place.
Step 4: Partnerships and local capacity
An important part of the initiative is to build relationships between landowners, associations, local businesses, guides and municipal actors.
Through dialogue, workshops and joint development, we want to create a locally anchored structure that can carry the work forward over time. In the long term, the goal is for rewilding in Rödåbygden to become something people actively seek out and feel part of.
