The Nature Park Barnim was opened on May 9, 1999 - one year after its official establishment. The park clearly shows the connection between Berlin and Brandenburg with regard to history and fantastic scenery. A unique landscape formed by the ice ages. The last ice age ("Weichsel ice age"), which ended about 10,000 years ago, touched the region only slightly. This influence, however, was strong enough to shape the landscape, which was left by the previous ice age ("Saale ice age"), with an impressive terminal moraine. This terminal moraine forms the Barnim plateau which today is the centre of the nature park.

Why nature park?
Nature parks are spacious areas that should be developed and tended consistently. Nature and landscape in these areas are regarded as being worthy of special protection.
Additionally, nature parks are intended for recreation and for tourism according to the aims of regional development. Tourism and nature conservancy in these parks are only possible with harmony between people and environment. This is why the tourism concept of the Land Brandenburg is especially attached to nature: Harmony of man and nature should benefit both sides. Nature Park Barnim hence is a pearl within this tourism concept.
Forests represent about 55% of the surface of the park. In combination with these forests, 2,000 hectares of inshore waters improve the quality of the air not only in the suburban areas of Berlin but also in the whole region and guarantee a pleasant climate. On the other hand it is possible to strengthen the production and selling of regional goods by promoting nature-friendly agriculture in the south-east part of the nature park.

A nature park consists of several nature reserves. Out of the 25 nature reserves in Nature Park Barnim, 10 reserves with approximately 710 hectares belong to Berlin. The remaining 15 reserves, or 50,750 hectares, lie in the Land Brandenburg. It is intended, however, to add 10 additional nature reserves to the nature park. According to different kinds of nature reserves in the park, the way and the intensity of the conservation varies among these reserves. The guidelines for nature conservancy are laid down by federal law and, in addition, by law of the respective Land. In Land Brandenburg, therefore, at the time of its foundation, 50 percents of a nature park have to consist of officially established nature reserves.

What is worthy of protection?
Due to the many inshore waters, it is not surprising that a diversity of different swamps, e.g. the fen in the Biesenthal-basin, can be found in the park. The lakeland district of the park, which is the result of melt-water gorges of the last ice age, is of special magnificence too and, therefore, it should get special protection.
Furthermore, the large forests in the park are nearly untouched and, hence, are also very valuable.
Historically evolved settlement schemes, however, can be found in the south-east of the nature park. This area is a ground moraine with extremely loamy and fertile soil. The close-to-nature agriculture in the Barnim-area with its so-called kettle holes provides an ideal habitat for toad and frog species that are threatened by extinction.
Kettle holes are water-filled hollows in a field which were formed by huge ice blocs during the ice age. The former sewage fields around Blankenfeld and Malchow which had nearly become aquatic will now be developed as recreational area. Therefore, still existent pollution of the ground will be cleared away.

How is nature conservancy carried out?
The active protection of flora and fauna in the nature park is based on projects classified into several levels. First, in order to maintain the region as a recreational area, tourism has to be developed in harmony with nature. Therefore, existing guidance systems and guidelines for hiking, cycling, horse-riding and for canoeing are completed and they are supplemented by the Rangers of the nature park who create fliers with descriptions of different tours through the park and of the region in general.
Furthermore, the workers of the nature guard and the administration of the nature park show extraordinary personal engagement and enthusiasm and they offer a broad catalogue of events in order to familiarise visitors of Nature Park Barnim with all the particularities of the nature and culture of the region.
Second, the nature-friendly economic use of this old and traditional, cultivated land in the region should be guaranteed and developed with the help of contractual nature conservancy and by supporting ecologically producing businesses. Areas that are particularly worthy of protection will be turned into nature reserves. This means that here flora and fauna can thrive without being influenced by man. One example of such a nature reserve is the "Schönower Heide" (Schönow Heath) - 200 hectares of open area situated north-west of the village Schönow. Until recently, this area, which is characterised by large sand-dunes, was used as military training area. In the 1980s, geologists found an until-then unknown layer of soil under the sand-dunes. They called it "Finowboden" (Finow-soil).
Today, this area is cultivated in harmony with nature by 250 sheep. Furthermore, the establishment of a circular hiking route now allows everyone to discover the area. Main attraction is when the heathland is in full blossom in the month of August