SPNI’s Deputy CEO Dan Alon reports on Start Up Nature and the compelling story of how SPNI is re-wilding failed fish farms into wetland nature reserves.

Start-Up Nature, is one of SPNI’s most recent and ambitious projects. As a land bridge between 3 continents, Israel is the bottleneck in the the world’s most important bird migration fly route – virtually all migrating birds of the entire Eurasian landmass fly over Israel on the way to and from Africa – 500 million birds in each direction!

95% of Israel’s historic wetland habitats – such a vital niche for biodiversity in a semi-arid country – were destroyed in the first half of the 20th century. Start Up Nature identifies opportunities to recreate lost wetlands, by re-wilding former fishponds into wetland nature reserves, a nature-based solution to climate change which will impact habitats on three continents.