We travelled to Albania with Cesvi to tell the story and future of the Vjosa river, one of the last free-flowing rivers in Europe. The podcast is available on all streaming platforms.
In Europe, there is a river that still flows free. For 272 kilometres, from the Pindus mountains in Greece to the Adriatic Sea in Albania, its course has never been interrupted by dams or large artificial barriers. Its waters continuously shape the landscape, creating gravel islands, braided channels, riparian woodlands and habitats that change with the seasons. This is the Vjosa, considered one of the last great wild rivers on our continent.
Along its course thrives one of the most precious river ecosystems in Europe. The basin is home to more than 1,100 species of flora and fauna, including numerous globally threatened species, and serves as a vital ecological corridor for fish, migratory birds, amphibians, insects and mammals. Here, the river is the thread that binds together biodiversity, landscape, local economy and the cultural identity of communities that have lived along its banks for centuries.
In March 2023, the Vjosa became the first national park protecting a wild river in Europe — a historic recognition born after years of mobilisation by citizens, environmental associations, local communities and institutions. But protection on paper is not enough: its future continues to be threatened by water resource exploitation, pollution, infrastructure and models of tourist development that risk compromising the delicate balance of this territory.
To tell this story, we travelled to Albania together with botanist and conservationist Benedetta Gori, following the course of the Vjosa and meeting along its banks local communities, researchers, guides and development cooperation workers, gathering their voices and the sonic landscapes of the river alongside audio documentarist Marco Rip.
From this journey was born Vjosa. Europe's Last Wild River, the new podcast produced by LifeGate and Cesvi, with the support of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation as part of the VITA-Vjosa project, funded by Aics. Promoted by Cesvi and Celim, VITA-Vjosa is an initiative that combines environmental protection and local development, supporting responsible tourism and enhancing the natural and cultural heritage of the valley together with the communities that inhabit it.
Following the Vjosa from the mountains to the Adriatic, the audio documentary is a sonic journey through landscapes, voices and stories that recount the deep bond between the river, its biodiversity and the communities that have inhabited this territory for centuries and today watch over its future.
The episodes alternate between scientific insights and everyday accounts: the memories of those who grew up along the river, the work of those who produce honey, preserves and local goods, the testimonies of researchers, environmental guides and development cooperation workers all illustrate how the protection of nature also passes through the people who call it home.
The story of the Vjosa thus becomes a broader reflection on the relationship between human beings and nature: is it possible to imagine a development model that does not consume the ecosystems we depend on, but instead recognises them as the foundation of our future?
What does it truly mean to speak of a "wild" river? In the first episode we go in search of the Vjosa and the ecological value of rivers that still flow free, retracing the long campaign that led to the creation of Europe's first wild river national park, and discovering the deep bond between the river and the communities that have built their identity around its waters for generations.
The ecosystem of a river is shaped also by what surrounds its banks — from the agricultural and tourist activities of local communities to the habitats that flank and accompany its course. Realities marked by the rhythm of "avash avash", which therefore promote a slow, family-oriented form of tourism, in contrast to attempts at rapid transformation. In this episode we discover the Vjosa as a treasure — at times fragile — that the community has learned to safeguard over time, and intends to keep doing so.
Declaring a territory a "protected area" does not automatically mean it has been saved: it means creating the conditions for a process of daily management and monitoring to begin, even beyond the park's boundaries. In this episode we discover the unique habitats of the mountain forests and the wetlands of the Narta lagoon, along with the species they shelter and what threatens them — from waste and pollution to the economic pressures of overtourism.
To preserve the future of a territory, we must protect the relationship between all the elements that keep it alive. Among these are the people who carry forward a development rooted in its protection. Activities that build concrete alternatives to the extractivist model, that choose to stay and create economy and value. In this final episode we discover the strength of community at the heart of protecting the future of a great ecosystem — not an empty one, but one full of life.
Vjosa. Europe's Last Wild River is a podcast produced by LifeGate and CESVI, with the support of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), as part of the VITA-Vjosa project, funded by AICS.
Written by Benedetta Gori and Marco Rip
Editorial supervision: Camilla Soldati
Direction and audio production by Marco Rip
Artistic supervision: Giacomo De Poli
Special thanks to Simona Carpinelli, Mattia Borelli, Simona Denti, Julian Elezi and Elidijon Thanasi for Cesvi.
The project "VITA-Vjosa – Valorisation of initiatives for tourism and the environment along the Vjosa river basin" is funded by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation and implemented by CESVI and CELIM, together with AITR – Associazione Italiana Turismo Responsabile, AKT – National Tourism Agency, AKZM – National Agency for Protected Areas, Comune di Milano and Juvenilia.