Louis J. Frankenhuis was appointed Chairman of the PAN Parks Foundation's Board to replace Cees F. J. Slager who had spent 11 years in this position and is one of the founders of PAN Parks.

Louis J. Frankenhuis who is also Chairman of the Board at Oad Reizen B.V. joined the PAN Parks Board on 22 January 2010. Mr Frankenhuis has extensive experience having spent several years as chief officer at TUI Nederland and also having run his own business for 17 years. He is member of the advisory board of several organisations such as the alliance TUI - ANWB, the joint venture TUI - V&D or Travel-Net and he gives business lectures at different universities in the Netherlands.

Mr Frankenhuis explained "I was glad to take this position as I believe that wilderness protection and tourism go well together. I also find it very challenging to take PAN Parks Foundation into its next stage of development after the first 10 years of establishing the organisation. My first impressions of PAN Parks are excellent as I see very motivated and professional people working for Europe’s wilderness. After visiting PAN Park Fulufjället in Sweden I can confirm wilderness protection is on the right track.”

Cees F. J. Slager is saying goodbye to PAN Parks after having spent 11 years on its Board. Let us share here a short interview with him on his experiences and relation to PAN Parks:

What motivated you in founding PAN Parks and also taking the position of Chairman?
Personally I was keen – as a businessman - to show the world that business people can take responsiblity for a green and better world. At that time it was fairly rare to have a businessman as chairman in a nature conservation organisation.

How did you see the development of PAN Parks?
I will never stop being a supporter of PAN Parks. I predict a super future for this combination of nature conservation and ecotourism. It has a bright future and people will realise that being in real nature is a great value of life.

What were your best, most interesting, most memorable experiences?
My best experience was working with so many dedicated people all over Europe. I remember the establishment of Fulufjället National Park and the certification of the first three parks in 2002 as a highlight. That was a good start after many years of preparation. To welcome Majella NP (Italy) and Paanjärvi (Russia) is another highlight as their certification took us many years to prepare. And of course my warm feelings are for the team of the Foundation and of course Zoltan (Zoltan Kun, Exceutive Director), who is not only the spin doctor but also a good friend.

Which certified PAN Parks have you been to?
I have been to Fulufjället (Sweden), Archipelago and Oulanka (Finland), Paanjärvi (Russia), Rila and Central Balkan (Bulgaria), Majella (Italy) - I always enjoyed being in these parks.

Would you like to share anything else about your PAN Parks years?
I would like to thank all people involved for the overwhelming support in the last 12 years. It was not always easy to believe in PAN Parks but thanks to all of you, we are where we are at the moment.


For further information:
Edit Borza, Communications Manager
eborza@panparks.org