There was a great turnout for the Hvanneyri Festival, which was held last weekend. Peatland LIFEline was there with project staff attending the stand in the old sports hall in Hvanneyri on Saturday, 8 August.

At the Peatland LIFEline stand, visitors could learn about the project, and there was a variety of entertainment for all ages. The purpose was to introduce the project and discuss the importance of wetland restoration and its positive effects.

Staff from the Nature Conservation Agency, a partner in the project, were with us and informed visitors about the Andakíll conservation area, among other things.

Various things going on

The programme for the Hvanneyri Festival was excellent this year. The Ferguson Society held an event where old machines drove around Hlaðið, haymaking from days gone by was demonstrated, and tractor skills were on full display by the church hill, to name but a few things. The food and craft market was in its usual spot in the barn, and you could get coffee in a festive atmosphere.

“A perfect opportunity for us to meet local residents”

Elisabeth Bernard, project manager for Peatland LIFEline, says that it was a huge amount of fun to take part in the festival. “This was a perfect opportunity for us to meet and discuss with local residents about the project, and a great experience to hold our presentation in the old gymnasium, one of the oldest houses of the villages. People have shown great interest and we are happy to have received very positive feedback on our activities, but what was most exciting was to see children wanting to interact so much with our educational activities focusing on the biodiversity of wetlands and their restoration.”