Protected areas serve the purpose of safeguarding species and habitats. In addition to environmental protection, national parks, parks, stands, landscape protection areas, and individual natural objects with historical and cultural value also aim to preserve cultural heritage. This is a collaborative effort between the Estonian Environmental Board, the Heritage Board, the Ministry of Culture, local governments, and landowners.
By studying and preserving cultural heritage, we learn how to preserve the biodiversity that has developed over the centuries. Cultural heritage can be, for example:
- the way we preserve old houses and build new ones;
- historically formed settlements, building patterns of villages and farm sites, architecture of buildings and historical land use;
- road network, bridges, gardens, small harbours;
- military heritage;
- sacred natural sites;
- tradition of place names, legends, stories, and songs of a region;
- tools, commodities, and handicrafts;
- dialects and local language use.