On July 24, the events of the final stage of the “Open Basin” project launched with a hiking-garbage collection in the territory of “Sevan” National Park, parallel to the road from Hayravank to Martuni along the newly selected hiking trail. It was 7 km long, planned in advance and included the picturesque parts of the shores of Lake Sevan. The participants of the event, walking and enjoying the wonderful views of Hayravank, Lake Sevan, Geghama mountains, small dense forest and of the small lake, at the same time cleaned the surroundings from household waste.
Unfortunately, the level of ecological education and upbringing in a large part of our society is low; people enjoy the rest, leaving behind their garbage without thinking about the consequences, and as a result we witness very unpleasant scenes. The coastal parts of the lake, which are used by fishermen, were the most polluted.
There were many plastic banded bottles, which are extremely dangerous to animals both in water and on land. Some of the garbage is already caused by the general pollution of the lake and probably reached here from other shores.
The youth participating in the project, with the support of our expert, marked both hiking and cycling trails they had developed, with white and red paints (a part of the new 30 km- long cycling trail also passes through this small 7 km- long trail part), in accordance with the currently official trail marking requirements in the Republic of Armenia.
Expert Vahagn Vardumyan, who has been working with the project team since the project design stage, then with the team of the young beneficiaries of the project, was consistently sharing new knowledge, recalling and summarizing previously learned skills, navigation and photography tricks and other knowledge that will accompany our future guides and guides to mountains and mountain biking trails.
Heavy rain and hail did not interfere the ceremony of handing out the certificates and acknowledgements to the project participants and supporters, as the old train wagon parked in our chosen open air area allowed us to shelter well from thunderstorm and hail. Everyone was excited, the work of six months was appreciated and produced good results. The most important result, according to the project manager, president of “Blejan” NGO Lianna Asoyan, is the formation of the youth team, their willingness to contribute to the development of the marz (province).
The results of the project are visible, almost all the tourism products belonging to the SEGAMA (Sevan, Gavar, Martuni) cluster have been mapped, which could not only be found on the map, but also visited or checked by consulting with local residents. Three hiking and three cycling trails were partially marked (the marking of which will be completed in parallel with the current finalizing of the trails), the 12 young people involved in the project received knowledge and skills of a tour guide. It should be noted that the latter can already be considered beginners in the field, they have great potential and will run the tourist club based on this project.
It should be noted that the “Open Basin” project is implemented by the efforts of “Blejan” Environmental, Social and Business Support NGO within the framework of “EU for Culture. Stronger Communities and Local Initiatives” program. The project is funded by the European Union with the support of the Institute for International Cooperation of the German Adult Education Association (DVV International), the Media Initiatives Center, the Museum Employees and Friends Association and the Armenian Center for Democratic Education (CIVITAS NGO).
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