{"id":725,"date":"2026-06-01T16:32:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-01T16:32:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/?p=725"},"modified":"2026-09-16T14:37:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-16T14:37:20","slug":"the-true-luxury-is-the-silence-of-buljarica","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/the-true-luxury-is-the-silence-of-buljarica\/","title":{"rendered":"Pravi luksuz je ti\u0161ina Buljarice."},"content":{"rendered":"
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The warning signals from Durr\u00ebs, Albania, are more than clear\u2014and yet, investors continue to persist with their rhetoric about the “untapped potential” of Buljarica.\u00a0What would you say to an investor who claims that there is only uncultivated land here waiting to finally be “utilized”?<\/b><\/p>\n

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I see everything except emptiness.\u00a0I see one of the most complex ecosystems in the entire Adriatic.\u00a0Here, we are talking about the largest bay in Montenegro, with a brackish water wetland covering an area of 58 hectares.\u00a0It is a biological “engine room.”\u00a0In our data, we have recorded 178 bird species, 93 of which nest here.\u00a0Among them are magnificent species like the Egyptian vulture and the golden eagle.\u00a0But this is not exclusively about the ecosystem.\u00a0Buljarica is an ancient cultural space with traces of settlement dating back to prehistory, a Roman Villa Rustica, and the Gradi\u0161te Monastery.\u00a0When an investor plans a golf course there, they only see prices per square meter.\u00a0I see a network of 36 habitat types and a population of 200 people whose economic security is directly tied to these resources.<\/p>\n

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Despite this, there is an official “Special Purpose Spatial Plan” that defines Buljarica as a zone for exclusive tourism. Why is this plan dangerous from a sociological perspective?<\/b><\/p>\n

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Because it creates a massive conflict between national strategies and the reality on the ground.\u00a0On one hand, Buljarica is listed as a monument of nature and a potential “Natura 2000” area, while on the other hand, it is slated to be sacrificed as a construction zone for villa complexes and yacht marinas.\u00a0Sociologically speaking, this means the local community loses control.\u00a0A luxury complex of this scale would marginalize the residents.\u00a0They would no longer be the creators of their homeland, but at best, auxiliary labor in an enclave.\u00a0We call this “development through displacement.”<\/p>\n

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The media often promotes the narrative that large luxury hotels bring jobs and prosperity.\u00a0Why do you believe this model makes no economic sense for the people of Buljarica?<\/b><\/p>\n

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That promise of prosperity through mega-projects is a classic delusion that we have been able to observe for decades on various coasts around the world.\u00a0The profits from such resorts are not reinvested in the region; instead, they flow directly into the accounts of international investors.\u00a0For the locals, often only the proverbial crumbs from the table remain.\u00a0The promised jobs ultimately only arise in the precarious, low-wage sector as seasonal auxiliary labor, while managerial positions are filled by outsiders.<\/p>\n

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Added to this is a massive “leakage effect”\u2014meaning that such a hotel procures all its goods, from wine, meat, and fish to vegetables, through global wholesale logistics chains instead of involving local agriculture or craftsmanship on the ground.\u00a0The paradox is that while profits are privatized and taken out of the country in this manner, the municipality often has to bear enormous costs for infrastructure, such as water supply, the electrical grid, and waste disposal, funded by taxpayer money.\u00a0In the end, the local population actually pays extra, while their centuries-old living space is sacrificed for a project that exists entirely apart from them economically.<\/p>\n

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Koji model bi po Va\u0161em mi\u0161ljenju bio alternativa?<\/b><\/p>\n

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Today, the majority of households in Buljarica engage in subsistence farming, which is why a model of sustainable use would make particular sense here.\u00a0If Buljarica is developed as an eco-village, the value-added chain remains local.\u00a0Guests would stay in family guesthouses or small boutique hotels, and buy products from local beekeeping, fishing, and organic farming.\u00a0Furthermore, local nature guides could be trained for hiking tours across Pa\u0161trovska Gora.\u00a0With such a model, every euro stays in the municipality.\u00a0That is economic resilience.\u00a0A luxury resort is empty at the very next global crisis, whereas a diversified ecosystem made up of agriculture and quality tourism sustains itself into the future.<\/p>\n

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However, there are also voices on the ground who view the wetland primarily as a burden and who are bothered by the croaking of frogs and mosquitoes.\u00a0In particular, mentioning the “triton” (newt), a protected aquatic creature, is often met with ridicule rather than enthusiasm.\u00a0For many, the word “swamp” simply sounds like a source of problems.\u00a0Why do you call what others laugh at an economic advantage?<\/b><\/p>\n

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You know, it’s almost ironic (laughs).\u00a0While in some places people laugh at the croaking of frogs or the “triton,” ecological tourists in other parts of Europe pay hundreds of euros a day to experience precisely such untouched ecosystems.\u00a0Anyone who sees only mosquitoes in a swamp has not understood modern tourism economics.\u00a0A functional wetland is not a source of mosquitoes, but a regulated system.\u00a0If we have dragonfly habitats there\u2014and Buljarica is home to 41 species\u2014then we have the best natural mosquito hunters in the world right outside the front door.\u00a0Nature solves the problem on its own if we don’t throw it out of balance with half-baked embankments and stagnant brackish water.<\/p>\n

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What some perceive as noise pollution from frogs is, in reality, an acoustic stamp of quality for a healthy environment.We must move away from the idea that “exclusivity” consists only of marble floors and air-conditioned lobbies.\u00a0The true luxury of the 21st century is the silence of civilization, accompanied by the music of nature.\u00a0Ridiculing the triton is an economic own goal.\u00a0In international marketing, the conservation status of these species is worth gold.\u00a0It is a unique selling point compared to the interchangeable concrete deserts in Budva or Be\u010di\u0107i.<\/p>\n

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Dakle, ako isu\u0161imo mo\u010dvaru da bismo u\u0107utkali \u017eabe, istovremeno gasimo najve\u0107u besplatnu atrakciju u zalivu?<\/b><\/p>\n

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Exactly.\u00a0In a world where such habitats are rapidly disappearing, Buljarica becomes an exclusive destination for nature observers.\u00a0Did you know that birdwatching tourism is one of the fastest-growing niches globally?\u00a0These tourists are educated, affluent, and\u2014crucially\u2014they don’t just come during the hot month of August.\u00a0They come in spring and autumn, during bird migration.\u00a0This solves the biggest problem of the Montenegrin coast: extreme seasonality.<\/p>\n

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Many people in the region do feel that the concrete plans of investors are the wrong path.\u00a0However, locals often still lack a concrete vision of how Buljarica can be sustainably valorized instead.\u00a0What does your concrete counter-proposal look like, and how do we make nature financially profitable for local citizens instead of foreign investors?<\/b><\/p>\n

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Our plan is based on three pillars that directly channel more money into household budgets.\u00a0First, we turn protection into our own exclusive brand.\u00a0By officially declaring the bay and Kati\u010d Island a Marine Protected Area, we position Buljarica on the international map of premium tourism destinations.\u00a0This attracts precisely the tourists everyone is looking for: high-spending guests who are willing to pay good money for untouched nature, true peace, and authentic products.<\/p>\n

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To ensure these guests leave their money right here, we build low-impact, smart infrastructure.\u00a0Instead of sinking millions into concrete embankments or marinas that destroy the ecosystem and bring nothing to the locals, we invest in a first-class network of cycling and hiking trails.\u00a0We help citizens equip their private homes with solar energy to drastically reduce their own fixed costs, and we solve the painful wastewater problem through modern, ecological purification systems instead of simply discharging filth into the sea.\u00a0A clean bay is, after all, the best selling point for any accommodation provider.<\/p>\n

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The absolute core and most important point for the community is a local fund.\u00a0We propose an ecological tax of just 50 cents per guest per day.\u00a0This won’t hurt any tourist.\u00a0But with the thousands of visitors Buljarica hosts throughout the year, a huge sum accumulates.\u00a0And the best part of all is that this money does not go to Podgorica, to some anonymous ministry, but into a foundation managed by the citizens of Buljarica themselves.<\/p>\n

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\u0160ta bi jedna takva fondacija mogla da uradi s tim novcem?<\/b><\/p>\n

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With that money, for example, local nature guides could be trained, infrastructure could be maintained, and the village could be beautified step by step.\u00a0Every tourist who spends the night here pays directly into the citizens’ collective treasury.This keeps the money in the community, ensures family independence, and allows prosperity to grow from the bottom up.Furthermore, the foundation could, for instance, buy or lease state land to prevent it from falling into the hands of investors who want to drain it.\u00a0It would fund the restoration of archaeological sites.\u00a0We are talking about a benefit-sharing model here.\u00a0When nature thrives, the citizens’ collective treasury thrives too.\u00a0This creates pride and identity.<\/p>\n

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Many landowners in the region, after years of economic stagnation, simply want to sell their property and close that chapter for themselves.\u00a0The prospect of immediate multi-million deals with investors is tempting.\u00a0How do you plan to overcome the skepticism of these people and demonstrate to them that your model is the financially smarter decision for them and their families in the long run?<\/b><\/p>\n

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Through education and figures.\u00a0This is exactly what the revolutionary 2017 CDE study, “Ecosystem Assessment of Biodiversity Values and Threats in Buljarica,” provides.\u00a0Selling land brings a one-time influx of money, but after that, you have lost your basis for livelihood.\u00a0If you keep your land and use it for ecological agriculture or sustainable renting, you secure an income not just for yourself, but for future generations.\u00a0We must show that Buljarica is the best-preserved habitat for the European pond turtle in the Eastern Mediterranean and a sanctuary for rare bat species.\u00a0These are not “obstacles” to development; they are unique features that save Buljarica from the interchangeability we see in other concreted places.\u00a0Such tourism strongholds around the world are already being dismantled and demolished to make room for a natural state once again.<\/p>\n

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\u0160ta mora da se dogodi na politi\u010dkom planu da bi ovaj proces \u201eodozdo prema gore\u201c (\u201ebottom-up\u201c) dobio \u0161ansu?<\/b><\/p>\n

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An end to centralized decisions in distant ministries.\u00a0The people who live close to the resources must set the agenda.Biomonitoring is needed so we can measure the impacts of actions, and we must halt contradictory construction plans.Buljarica has the potential to become the first village in Southeast Europe to prove that nature conservation is not a luxury one can only afford after becoming rich.\u00a0Nature conservation is the way a region becomes sustainably wealthy.\u00a0We offer a better alternative for the people, for the Adriatic, and for the future of Montenegro.<\/p>\n

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Da se sjutra pokrene ovaj proces, \u0161ta biste prvo predlo\u017eili mje\u0161tanima?<\/b><\/p>\n

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I would stop the planned auction of state land and instead invite the households of Buljarica and Petrovac to a major vision conference.\u00a0We must show people that they are sitting on a gold mine, but one that you do not have to dig up\u2014one that lies right on the surface, in the form of unique nature and culture.<\/p>\n

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\u00a9 2026 Na\u0161a Buljarica. Sva prava zadr\u017eana. Tekst i fotografije su za\u0161ti\u0107eni autorskim pravima.<\/p>\n

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The Bay of Buljarica faces an irreversible future.\u00a0When controversial investors, such as Mohamed Alabbar from Dubai, disparagingly refer to the pristine Adriatic bay as “untapped potential,” it is far more than a mere miscalculation.\u00a0What looks like an empty, worthless area from a distance is, in reality, the most valuable socio-ecological capital that Montenegro possesses.\u00a0Current developments, such as those in Durr\u00ebs, Albania, call for caution.\u00a0They demonstrate the risk of irreparable damage caused by profit-driven developers, whose consequential costs must ultimately be borne by taxpayers.<\/p>\n

However, an alternative exists that can serve as a revolutionary pilot project for the entire region.\u00a0As a proven top expert in sustainable regional development and biodiversity, Dr. Helmut R\u00f6scheisen brings international experience to this debate.\u00a0This doctor of social sciences and former Secretary General of the German Nature Conservation Ring (DNR) explains in a conversation with Tamara Gaji\u0107 (from the “Na\u0161a Buljarica” Initiative) the extent to which nature conservation is a far more profitable economic strategy for the common good.\u00a0He outlines what true progress should look like if it is not created for foreign investors, but rather as a national success model in the interest of the people.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":726,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/725","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=725"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/725\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1198,"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/725\/revisions\/1198"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nasabuljarica.com\/me\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}