Balancing Conservation and Sustainable Development through Spatial Planning Zoning: Evidence from Sharri National Park, Kosovo

Spatial zoning is a key environmental management instrument for balancing biodiversity conservation with socio-economic development in protected areas. In Southeast Europe, national parks face increasing development pressure driven by tourism, private land ownership, and local economic expectations. This study examines the zoning revision of Sharri National Park (Kosovo), based on an integrated methodological framework combining ecological assessment, GIS-based analysis, and a structured expert-based multi-criteria evaluation approach. The analysis uses orthophotos (2024), cadastral data, satellite imagery, field verification, and 105 zoning-related requests. The evaluation integrates environmental, socio-economic, and planning criteria through qualitative expert judgment supported by spatial analysis. Results show that zoning functions as an adaptive governance tool: while the drak plan proposed a 75% reduction of development zones, 78.1% of requests were ultimately approved, reflecting the need to balance ecological priorities with development pressures. The study highlights the importance of transparent criteria, expert evaluation, and stakeholder participation for achieving socially acceptable and ecologically sound zoning outcomes.