The seed of this movement can be traced back to the results of the report produced in 2021 by the XCN, titled “Study of motivations of private property to conserve nature: “And you, why do you conserve nature?”, in which 179 private landowners and managers participated.

This report showed that the majority of landowners not only show great interest in learning about the biodiversity of their area, but also feel a moral obligation to conserve nature and perceive this conservation as a valid strategy to ensure the sustainability of their farm.

Due to factors such as the lack of funding, the bureaucratic burden and the need to share and transfer knowledge between owners and managers of the farms, the need to facilitate an associative space for dialogue and work between these people became evident.

It should be noted that at European and global level there is a firm commitment to the role that private property can play in the conservation of nature and especially in the challenge to achieve the 30 x 30 objective of protecting 30% of the territory by 2030. Thus, as part of the LIFE ENPLC project Eurosite and European Landowners’ Organisation (ELO) are in the process to establish a European network. At the global level, the International Land Conservation Network (ILCN) is taking on that role. Elsewhere in Europe, regional private conservation networks are also starting to take shape, for example in Italy, Poland and Portugal.