I developed the Concept of Territories of Full Ecological Tranquility (TFET) — a project aimed at transforming the existing global protected area system. This is a significant effort focused on preserving the Earth's last natural ecosystems and creating conditions for their self-recovery.
The problem with the current protected area system is that protected areas are often scattered, surrounded by industrial sites, hunting grounds, and areas of economic development. Even if nature is strictly protected within a reserve, habitat destruction continues beyond its borders. This leads to population isolation, disruption of migration routes, and a reduction in the genetic diversity of animals.
The TFET Concept proposes to connect existing reserves by including the areas between them and additional natural masses. This would result in large natural complexes that significantly exceed current reserves in size, with a unified special legal and economic regime.
In these areas, industrial development, resource extraction, logging, and hunting would be excluded. Nature should be allowed to exist without constant destructive human interference. Scientific research and monitoring would continue, and special support and development programs for local populations in buffer zones are planned.
However, the scale of the Concept is much broader than individual areas. It proposes the creation of an international TFET Union, a unified mechanism for funding, scientific support, and state coordination. In the future, this should be a global network of large natural refuges protected by common principles.
Currently, we are conducting independent research, studying protected systems in different countries, developing a methodology for determining TFET boundaries, and creating an interactive map of the future system. Based on this work, we plan to prepare specific projects for countries, starting with the most significant natural regions.
Our goal is to achieve the first practical decisions, after which the creation of TFETs can gradually spread to other countries. This is a decades-long effort that could determine the preservation of vast natural systems and thousands of animal and plant species.