The European Project Center (EPC) of our UAS has received approval for a new project as part of the Interreg SouthBaltic program. The idea behind “Back2Woods” is to combine forest therapy, environmental education and sustainable tourism in order to strengthen regional attractiveness and the health of children, adolescents and young adults in particular.
Back2Woods strengthens the profile of Wismar University of Applied Sciences in the Baltic Sea region, primarily in the “Southern Baltic Sea” region, which includes the coastal regions of Denmark, Germany, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden.
Dr. Laima Gerlitz, head of the EPC, was significantly supported in the project application by Geertje Wehry. “For one of the first applications, this is an above-average achievement,” says Dr. Gerlitz about her new project manager. "We are proud that our regional partners, such as the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Spas Association in this case, approach us and come up with ideas to get us started. This also shows that we have been able to bundle good research and project management skills at the European Project Center and Wismar UAS."
The project is expected to start in mid-September 2025. It was financed with a total of 2,039,720 euros from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the South Baltic Program 2021-2017. With the co-financing, the project budget amounts to 2,549,650.00 euros.
The Minister of Economic Affairs of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Dr. Wolfgang Blank, said in a press release on the occasion of the approval of a total of 13 cross-border projects: "We are making consistent use of the opportunities offered by European cooperation. European funds will be used for the selected projects to promote innovation, sustainability and social cohesion in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern." The “Back2Woods” project is described in the press release as citizen-oriented.
learn more (in German) »