The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) launched the ‘Man and the Biosphere’ program in 1970, as an intergovernmental scientific program that emphasizes the importance of establishing a balance between the preservation of biodiversity on one side and the development needs of the local community on the other.

As part of this Program, a worldwide network of biosphere reserves was established, as internationally recognized areas that promote solutions for a harmonious relationship between the protection of biodiversity and its sustainable use, through the fulfillment of three basic functions of biosphere reserves:

• Protective function – reserves contribute to the preservation of landscapes, ecosystems, species and genetic diversity;
• Developmental function – reserves encourage economic and social development that is socio-culturally and ecologically sustainable;
• Logistical function – reserves provide support for research, monitoring, education and exchange of information on protection and sustainable development.

The Man and the Biosphere program was among the first in the world to emphasize the importance of establishing a balance between preservation of biological diversity and development needs of the local community, which is why it was supported by the World Parks Congress, and today it greatly contributes to the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity , and the UN Millennium Development Goals.

The basic task in the management of the biosphere reserve is the establishment of close cooperation between different experts and groups of people in planning the protection and development of the area, i.e. scientists and experts from the sphere of natural and social sciences, actors from the environmental protection sector, representatives of the public sector and members of the local community.

More details about UNESCO MAB designation process can be found here:
en.unesco.org/biosphere/designation