Protest - educative camps
Every year since 2022, the Save Komarnica team, with the support of nature enthusiasts, locals, and experts from Montenegro and abroad, has organized annual protest-educational camps from May 1st to 5th. These now-traditional events take place in various areas around the Komarnica Canyon, aiming to raise public awareness about the canyon’s immense value and significance. The camps also explore and showcase sustainable ways to coexist with nature, enhancing the socio-economic well-being of local communities while preserving the river and its canyon.
This year's fourth annual protest-educational camp was held from June 6–8 and was more significant than ever. It was more than a camp – it was a meeting of wild nature and freedom, energy and community. As always, our beloved Komarnica welcomed us with crystal-clear waters, steep cliffs, and the scent of the forest.
New faces, young energy, and fresh ideas enriched the gathering. We explored together: hiking, canyoning, e-biking, visiting chamois habitats, and swimming in the river’s cold, clear waters. Evenings were filled with homemade pizza, firelight, music, and long talks under the stars.
We continue the campaign until the planned hydropower plant becomes a thing of the past, a symbol of misguided decisions and missed opportunities for sustainable development.
This now-traditional camp was once again held on the Šavnik municipality side, as the fate of Komarnica largely depends on this municipality. It welcomed national and international participants, including some who had never seen a wild river before. A key component of the camp was a networking event that brought together national and international experts from various fields supporting the Save Komarnica initiative. This gathering provided an opportunity for them to meet in person and develop a cohesive plan and strategy for addressing the Komarnica case.
The organisation of the camp was supported by EuroNatur within Save the Blue Heart of Europe campaign.
This camp welcomed participants from 17 nationalities, demonstrating the success of our international campaign and, more importantly, highlighting that Komarnica is a river and natural treasure belonging to everyone. Its future is a shared responsibility. We owe immense gratitude to the Euronatur Foundation, which recognized the event’s significance and decided to support it. While the first camp was held on the Plužine municipality side, this one took place on the opposite side, in Šavnik, aiming to showcase how this area could and should become one of the Balkans’ premier outdoor adventure hubs, with the wild Komarnica at its heart.
The organisation of the camp was supported by EuroNatur within Save the Blue Heart of Europe campaign.
The first protest-educational camp aimed to bring the Komarnica case into the spotlight as one of the country’s most talked-about issues. Before the camp, many people in Montenegro were unaware of Komarnica’s location or the plans to build a hydropower plant there. The event brought together participants from across Montenegro, gained support from prominent figures such as actors and singers from the Balkans, and even attracted a visit from the country’s newly appointed Prime Minister and Minister of Ecology. During their visit, they promised that Komarnica would remain untouched. However, just days later, they signed the concession papers for the project.