Background The Retezat Mountains is one of the most species-rich areas dedicated to nature protection in Romania and has great significance for the conservation of Europe’s natural heritage. The first nature reserve in the targeted area was established in 1927, and the Retezat National Park was created in 1935. Later the area was declared as Biosphere Reserve (1979) and as an Important Bird Area for Europe (2000). Two prime Butterfly Areas for Europe were also identified in the area in 2000. At the establishment of the Retezat National Park Administration in 1999, a Global Environment Facility (GEF) project facilitated the capacity building of the park administration and the drawing up of a management plan for the area. Retezat National Park is the only national park in Romania that has a management plan, which is fully approved by the central public authority for environment. However, information is lacking on the distribution of habitats and species in the park and management is not always adequate – some habitats are threatened by overgrowth following abandonment of traditional pastoral activities and by the invasion of alien species. At the same time, tourism in the area leads to deliberate destruction of valuable mountain pine (Pinus mugo) habitats and the scattering of waste throughout the area. Objectives The main objective of the project was to improve the conservation management of the alpine habitats in the Retezat Mountains. Onsite activities to halt habitat destruction would be implemented along with a campaign promoting conservation, especially the long-term preservation of the alpine habitats. An overarching aim of the project was to get the targeted area included in the Natura 2000 network when Romania acceded to the EU. The efforts to conserve the unique alpine habitats would be based on a survey, gathering information on the alpine habitats and species depending on them. A specific alpine habitat management plan would be proposed and implemented, and a comprehensive monitoring scheme would assess the effectiveness of the project actions. Restoration works would target around 130 ha of valuable alpine habitats, dwarf mountain pine (Pinus mugo) habitats and alpine wetlands, and soil erosion would be prevented on several locations. An information centre would be set up to encourage the sustainable use of alpine resources, targeting long-term and intelligent use of existing natural resources and the development of controlled tourism. The centre would be dedicated to alpine habitats conservation and would form the basis of a comprehensive awareness campaign for the promotion of alpine habitats conservation throughout Romania. Results An extensive inventory of vegetation and several animal groups improved knowledge of the natural values of the project area, the Retezat National Park. This knowledge enabled the project team to complete a proposal for declaration of the project area as a Natura 2000 site. The project area later became a Natura 2000 site in both categories SCI and SPA. The project updated the management plan of the national park, and this was approved by the scientific council of the national park as the basic tool of management of the project area. As a result, a new information centre was established in the most visited part of the national park. The project also significantly contributed to the public awareness of alpine habitat through others means: an ‘alpine caravan’ visited large parts of Romania promoting the value of alpine habitats. Dissemination materials were distributed by both the caravan and at the information centre. Another key result of the project was the restoration – though delayed due to an initial disagreement with the scientific council – of the highly eroded torrent in the alpine zone and the reduction of Rumex alpine stands in the project area through repeated cutting. The project, however, achieved only some of its objectives: the action for reforestation of damaged areas of dwarf-pine was cancelled, and the extent of the assessment of alpine habitats status and the habitat recovery by sustainable use was significantly reduced. Further information on the project can be found in the project's layman report and After-LIFE Conservation Plan (see "Read more" section).