| Environmental Challenges in Armenia On Wednesday, September 10, 2008, Birthright Armenia held a forum dedicated to the Environmental Challenges in Armenia. The invited speakers were Ms. Bella Avetisyan, Public Outreach Coordinator of the Armenia Tree Project (ATP) and Ms. Gayane Ajemian, Administrative Assistant/Translator of the Environmental Conservation and Research Center (ECRC). First to speak was Ms. Gayane Ajemian, who started with a brief history and activities of ECRC. In 1992 the American University of Armenia (AUA) established a program in Environmental Science and Conservation to fulfill the mission of promoting sustainable development in Armenia. With the establishment of the ECRC great progress has been made in educating the public and private sector concerning environmental issues in Armenia. The Center's research, consulting, and education programs focus on issues of conservation, ecology, environmental contamination, remote sensing and GIS, and sustainable development in Armenia. After briefly describing Armenia's biodiversity, fauna and flora, Ms. Ajemian went on to present the environmental problems in Armenia today. These are deforestation, the use of pesticides, erosion, mining, untreated waste and pollution. With the help of a slide show Ms. Ajemian showed how, if not prevented, these issues can cause serious and irreversible damage to our environment resulting in extinctions & declining diversity, including that of endemic species. The solution to this ecological crisis is to educate the general public in better understanding and appreciating the value of a healthy and sustainable environment by recycling, composting, filtering pollutants, as well as demanding for government regulations on cutting trees, the use of pesticides, mining, waste control, etc. Next to speak was Ms. Avetisyan, who began her presentation with a basic overview of the Armenia Tree Project's mission and activities. Armenia Tree Project (ATP), a Diaspora-supported non-profit organization (NGO) based in Watertown and Yerevan, was founded in 1994 by philanthropist Carolyn Mugar. During the course of an eight-year time span, thousands of trees have been planted in Armenian communities throughout the country under the Sponsor-A-Tree program, two state-of-the-art nurseries were opened in Karin and Khachpar, several forest rejuvenation programs were implemented in Tsitsernakaberd Park and elsewhere, and a database containing over 7,000 donors has created. ATP works to further Armenia's economic and social development by mobilizing resources to fund reforestation. These vital new trees provide food, wood, environmental benefits, and opportunities for economic growth. Besides a full-time staff of 70, of who 66 are employed in Armenia, ATP also employs hundreds of part-time workers to restore forests from stumps. Among the projects and activities implemented by the ATP, Ms. Avetisyan highlighted the reforestation project. Since 1994, ATP has planted and restored more than two million trees and created hundreds of jobs for impoverished Armenians in tree-regeneration programs. The organization's three tiered initiatives are tree planting, community development to reduce poverty and promote self-sufficiency, and environmental education to protect Armenia's precious natural resources. AVC volunteer Gabriel Meghruni (Argentina) asked the speakers what they thought the main reason was for Armenia's environmental problems. "It's difficult to pinpoint just one, but I believe that the lack of environmental education has an immense role in this issue. We should be more responsible towards our surroundings,"- said Ms. Ajemian. Ms. Avetisyan agreed with her colleague, adding that the public school system in Armenia does not have an environmental education component in its curriculum. "So ATP designed a curriculum and introduced it to the Ministry of Education for consideration as a mandatory teaching tool for students. The curriculum was approved and recommended by Armenia's National Institute of Education as a manual for science teachers in public schools. All schools in Armenia have received the Curriculum. Today ATP in collaboration with NIE provides country wide trainings on environmental education in all regions of Armenia." "As environmentalists do you see the environment as a focal point in mobilizing people to stand up for their right?" asked volunteer Yetvart Majian (USA). "Definitely," said Ms. Ajemian, "The environment is something we all share, so environmental problems concern us all. In recent years people have been more united on this front. this is apparent especially amongst the youth, who have become more active and engaged in matters concerning a healthy life and sound environment." "The best example of how the environment can mobilize people is probably that of the Shikahogh Forest campaign. In 2006 numerous environmental organizations and individuals started a campaign regarding a proposed new highway that would run through the middle of the Shikahogh Forest Reserve which is the unique habitat for variety of endangered plants and animals. Under public pressure the government rerouted the highway circumventing the reserve in order to protect the forest and the communities of plants and animals that live there." stated Ms. Avetisyan. |