FLUVIUS — Floodplain Ecology & River Basin Management, Vienna · Feasibility Study Lead

Head of FLUVIUS, founded in 1999 and specialising in river basin management, floodplain ecology and nature conservation across the Danube region.

Relevant experience — Drava River, including the Upper Drava

• In 2007, carried out a pilot study on the hydromorphological survey and mapping of the Drava and Mura Rivers (IAD Report, FLUVIUS); the rivers were selected partly due to already existing data for the upper reaches in Austria (Upper Drava).
• Analysed the glacial hydrological regimes of the headwaters of the upper Drava and its main tributary, the upper Mura.
• In 2013, prepared a restoration-potential assessment for WWF Austria in the transboundary UNESCO biosphere reserve "Mura-Drava-Danube".
• In 2017, authored the technical report for the LIFE project "DRAVA LIFE – Integrated River Management" (Action A.2, LIFE Drava Map).
• Since the campaign's launch in 2013, has served as the lead scientific author behind "Save the Blue Heart of Europe" — producing the hydromorphological river surveys and the recurring hydropower-plant dataset (most recently the 2024 update) that document the state of the Balkans' last wild rivers and underpin the campaign's advocacy.

REVITAL Integrative Naturraumplanung GmbH, Lienz · Water Management & River Restoration

Studied landscape ecology at BOKU Vienna and founded REVITAL in Lienz in 1989, one of the first offices for integrative natural space planning in western Austria.

Relevant experience — Upper Drava River

• Acted as one of the head engineers of the EU-co-funded rehabilitation project "Life Upper Drava", which transformed the face of the river.
• The project removed dykes, purchased land to allow erosion, and installed groynes to channel river flow and encourage the river's course to undulate — an approach not previously attempted in Europe.
• The aim was to restore natural river dynamics, allow bank erosion, gain new sediments, and reconnect the river to floodplains and remnant forests.
• The team used 18th- and 19th-century maps to identify former side branches, then used heavy machinery to reopen and reconnect them to the river.
• The project involved extensive engagement with the local population, particularly farmers affected by land reshuffling.

REVITAL Integrative Naturraumplanung GmbH · Lead Hydraulic Engineer

A hydraulic/river engineer educated at the University of Innsbruck, and one of REVITAL's managing directors, responsible for cultural engineering and water management, heading the business area of hydraulic engineering and natural hazards — flood protection, hydraulics, sediment transport.

Relevant experience

• Took part in a gathering of river engineering experts from across Austria dedicated to experience with the Upper Drava and Isel Rivers, addressing nature-based river engineering — river widenings, side arms, targeted bank erosion.
• As REVITAL lead, directed the residual flow determination project for the Gail/Schütt hydropower plant (client: KELAG, 2011–2012), including habitat modelling of aquatic and semi-terrestrial habitats.
• Co-author of a scientific article on the development of otter-safe habitat structures in flowing waters (2023).

BOKU University, Vienna · Scientific Expert — River Geomorphology & Sediment Connectivity

Senior Researcher at the Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, BOKU Vienna, and head of the HI-CONN research group. In March 2026 he completed his habilitation in physical geography and river system research; his research focuses on water and sediment connectivity in river catchments.

Relevant experience

• Involved in the "DANube SEdiment Restoration" (DANSER) project addressing sustainable sediment management across the Danube River basin, led by Prof. Thomas Hein.
• Deputy head of the expert committee of the Austrian national committee of the International Association for Danube Research (IAD).
• Author of 120 scientific publications, cited 1,808 times, including work on connectivity in geomorphology and the effects of in-stream large wood on water and sediment connectivity in streams.

University of Maribor, Faculty of Arts · Sustainable Development & Public Engagement

Full professor at the Department of Geography, University of Maribor, and an internationally recognised expert in sustainable development, environmental education and inclusive spatial planning.

Relevant experience

• Led a study by Maribor students on public attitudes toward pumped-storage hydropower plants in connection with the Kozjak pumped-storage project, highlighting the importance of engaging the local community from the outset.
• Developed new approaches to experiential education for sustainable development and initiated the Dravinja Valley learning region and the Dole self-sufficiency demonstration site.
• Fields of expertise include physical geography, hydrogeography, pedogeography, and anthropogenic soil change.
• Authored a 2024 article on nature-based solutions for reducing flood impacts, published in a special journal issue devoted to Slovenia's catastrophic August 2023 floods, which hit the Savinja river basin hardest.
• Author of the guide "From Maribor to Bela Krajina: A Guide to Field Recognition of Slovenia" (2018) and numerous scientific publications.

Independent Consultant · Nature Conservation & Protected Areas

A protected-area expert trained as a civil engineer specialising in hydraulic engineering, who went on to specialise in wetland management and ecological restoration and holds a doctorate in protected-area systems.

Relevant experience

• For 15 years (2002–2017) headed the Sečovlje Salina Nature Park and three Natura 2000 sites.
• From 2012 to 2025, served as European Vice-Chair of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA), coordinating a network of more than 600 protected-area experts across the region.
• Contributed to preparing the technical basis for the conservation and protection of the Vjosa River, the last undammed large river in the Balkans.
• As a consultant, works with government agencies and NGOs preparing management and strategic documents for protected areas and sustainable use of natural resources.
• Lectures on protected-area management at universities in Koper, Klagenfurt and Ljubljana; also an ornithologist and author of a monograph on the birds of Slovenia.