Since 1999, the last Sunday of August has been declared Lake Sevan Day.
On August 28, a series of interesting events dedicated to the protection of Lake Sevan took place in Gegharkunik region, which was organized by the "Environment and Health" NGO within the framework of the "Friends of Sevan" program implemented under the "Environmental Protection of Lake Sevan" EU4Sevan Project co-funded by the European Union and the German Government. RA Deputy Minister of Environment Aram Meimaryan, EU4Sevan project manager Christian Henschel and the project team, representatives of Urban Foundation for Sustainable Development, as well as other officials, interested parties and residents of participating communities were present at the events.
The day started in Sevan and Drakhtik communities of Lake Sevan, where cleanup works were organized under the BeECO project "Joint Efforts to Protect the Environment in the Black Sea Basin", which is implemented by the Urban Foundation for Sustainable Development.
Students of the 7-12th grades of Kasakh secondary school No. 1 of Kotayk marz and Drakhtiki and Chambarak secondary schools of Gegharkunik marz joined the cleaning work. Up to 20 students from each school were involved in the activities. An educational workshop on waste management, sorting and recycling was presented by the Urban Foundation to raise awareness among young people. The participants were provided with educational materials prepared during the program on environmental protection, t-shirts, caps, etc., after which the clean-up work began.
After the clean-up work, a discussion about waste management, sorting and processing, as well as about current issues and solutions of Lake Sevan was organized between the students and the Deputy Minister. During the discussion, a detailed conversation was held on the current ecological problems and solutions of Lake Sevan. The students of Kasakh, Chambarak and Drakhtik schools addressed their questions and suggestions to the Deputy Minister and the representatives of the "Friends of Sevan" program team.
While answering the children's questions, the Deputy Minister highlighted and emphasized the importance of Lake Sevan not only as an environmental resource, but also as an exceptional source of drinking water.
The discussion ended with a final decision on what everyone can do to contribute to the improvement of the Lake Sevan ecosystem.
Afterwords "THE CALL OF SEVAN" eco-educational theatrical performance took place in Drakhtik village of Shoghakat community. It was prepared by the Aregun NGO within the framework of the "Friends of Sevan" project, which is implemented by the Environment and Health NGO under the "Environmental Protection of Lake Sevan" EU4Sevan Project co-funded by the European Union and the German Government.
The purpose of the theatrical performance "THE CALL OF SEVAN" is to present to the audience through a performance the main issues of the Lake Sevan. It tells the audience about the big issues of the Lake. The main points of the performance are summarized interactively with the audience at the very end of it.
A month has already passed since the premiere of the eco-educational theatrical performance, which both children and adults of Gegharkunik region have already loved with all their heart. About 300 to 350 or more children and parents from Chambarak and Lchashen participated in the performance. And during the month of September, the performance will travel around eight communities of Gegharkunik region.
Let this day remind us of the importance of the cleanliness of rivers and lakes, especially Lake Sevan. Let us love our homeland and Lake Sevan as our home, because the future of the latters are in our hands.