A seminar held on March 17 at the Institute of Central-Eastern Europe entitled "Education and building support for nature conservation of the Natura 2000 sites - experiences to date and perspectives" was attended by Katarzyna Barańska, Anna Cwener and Piotr Chmielewski, staff of the "Conservation and restoration of xerothermic grasslands in Poland - theory and practice" project. The seminar was opened by Ms. Beata Sielewicz, Director of the Regional Directorate of Environmental Protection in Lublin. The next speaker was the President of the Society for Nature and Humanity - Mr. Krzysztof Gorczyca - who presented the activities, experiences and conclusions of the "Nature pays off" project carried out from 2007 to 2010. Then, Anna Lipiec, an employee of the Society for Nature and Humanity, discussed the projects related to environmental education and promotion in the Lublin region, which are underway or planned. Katarzyna Barańska of the Naturalists' Club provided a detailed description of the "Conservation and restoration of xerothermic grasslands in Poland - theory and practice" project. After a heated discussion on the role of environmental education in nature conservation, the laureates were announced of the Lublin Environmental Award "Suseł [Ground squirrel] 2009" and the "3R Academy in the eye of the reporter", a contest for elementary and middle schools.