A Nordic-Baltic seminar on Protected Areas and Sustainable Rural Development was arranged in Lahemaa National Park, Estonia, on September 7-9, 2005. The seminar - attended by 30 participants mainly from the Nordic and Baltic countries - gathered representatives of protected area administrations, ministries for agriculture, regional development agencies as well as NGOs, to a discussion on the role of protected areas in promoting the development of rural communities. Apart from presentations on the foreseen funding provisions of the EU, some good examples from protected areas as well as a European concept of promoting sustainable tourism were highlighted.