Ecological implications of changing recreational use during the COVID19-pandemic in recreational areas of the city of Vienna

Recreational uses of urban recreation areas are of enormous importance in our society. In the Covid-19 pandemic, this importance led to changed recovery patterns of humans and thus increased pressure on ecosystems, as human activities are also a major contributor to the ongoing rapid global loss of biodiversity. The current management approaches for urban recreation areas, which take into account ecological, recreational but also economic aspects are inadequately linked and harmonized. A better understanding of the interactions between humans and nature is therefore crucial for the conservation and management of ecosystems, but collecting relevant data remains a challenge. In modern times, however, more and more data sets are freely available, which represent an important basis for intrusive questions. In the #WienerErholungsgebiete project, social media data in the area of ​​Vienna and around are analyzed jointly with data about the status of ecosystems. By bringing together novel research approaches and data sources, we are trying to better understand how leisure activities, freshwater- and terrestrial ecosystems and their use are interrelated. The results of these analyzes provide important information which can help to make leisure activities in the city of Vienna and its surroundings more sustainable and enable further protection of ecosystems.