"Sunchild" Summer Camp Opened In Tsakhkadzor

"SUNCHILD" SUMMER CAMP OPENED IN TSAKHKADZOR

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
07.08.2009 13:46 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ More than 50 young nature lovers from all regions
of Armenia and Karabakh gathered together in Tsakhkadzor from July
28th to August 30th to participate in "Sunchild" summer camp.

"Sunchild" summer camp is being organized every year by the "Foundation
for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets in the Republic
of Armenia" (FPWC) together with Armenia’s leading mobile operator
VivaCell-MTS for the members of "Sunchild" eco-clubs.

This year the organization of the summer camp is also being supported
by GTZ and UNICEF.

>From 10 to 15 years old young people after a year of studies gather
to sum up what they have learned and to get ready for a new school
year through intensive courses of studies.

During the summer camp children learned biodiversity in general and
particularly biodiversity of Tsakhkadzor, learned how to manage hard
domestic waste, assembled an instrument that accumulates solar energy,
went on tours and learned the prospects of eco-tourism development,
listened to priest Minas’s Green Theology lessons, and danced national
dances. During journalism and photo/video courses ecological problems
of Tsakhkadzor were revealed and sounded in a film.

On 6th of August children will present results of their 10 days’
work in an ecological EXPO, which will take place in the House of
Writers in Tsakhkadzor. Guests will have the possibility to observe
little ecologists’ work in every booth: paper recycling, testing of
the instrument which accumulates solar energy, will learn skills of
"life", will watch a film and learn to dance.

These children, who came from different villages and cities of Armenia,
have been brought here by the Nature and the danger that all those
good and kind things that surround us may disappear tomorrow by a
slight touch of human hand.

"We want to see ecological education as not just ideology. This
ideology should become a lifestyle for people since their early
childhood, when a person and a citizen is being formed," said Ruben
Khachatryan, the Foundation director.

"Protection and maintenance of biodiversity of Armenia is one
of the causes to which VivaCell-MTS is committed as a corporate
citizen. Organization of environmental education campaigns aimed
at behavior change of the youth from early age is one of the most
effective means of environmental protection. This is the reason
why VivaCell-MTS is providing ongoing support to the environmental
events organized by FPWC. Even more, we feel ourselves as an owner
of this event, because we care," VivaCell-MTS General Manager Ralph
Yirikian said.