SITUATION
The former farming and wine-growing villages of the Birs Valley are now part of the Basel agglomeration, with all the associated problems of traffic congestion, noise, urban pressure and a lack of recreational space. Reinach is a village in this agglomeration and is fighting with various means against the pressure exerted on the Reinacher Heide nature reserve by the growing population. They employ professional rangers to patrol the area and inform people. They have also created an ‘adventure pond’ to sensitize visitors to the nature reserve and its natural treasures. Right next to it, a recreation area with a river pool has been created so that residents can enjoy their leisure time in nature and to relieve the pressure on the adjacent nature reserve.
CHARACTERISTICS AND RESEARCH FOCUS
In collaboration with the municipality of Reinach (Marc Bayard, biologist), the Reinacher Heide Supervisory Commission (Prof. em. Dr. Andreas Erhardt, biologist) and the Rangers (Yannick Bucher, geographer), we developed the research questions and methods. The field study partners were interested in our bird and insect diversity studies and to learn more about the different human visitor types and their behaviors: e.g. age groups, interests, favorite locations, and activities. They wanted to find out if the new bath and recreation area relieves the nature reserve, whether their visitor guidance is working properly, and if the “adventure pond” is a good measure to improve visitor information.
Open landscape with dry meadows, dry scrub and paths that visitors are not allowed to leave.
Area around the new 'adventure pond' (outside the nature reserve), with infrastructure and information boards with rules for using the newly created natural swimming pool.
Research question of the field study: How can media-ecological infrastructures and communication formats help to promote a more responsible approach to nature and cultivate a new value system?
INTERVENTIONS
The following interventions were conducted in the field study:
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Ecosystem Studies:
Bird Diversity, Pollinator Diversity, Human Presence
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Communication Media:
Discover, WalkApp
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Participatory Installations:
Guidance System