Dear Friends, Our Eco-drawing competition on “How to deal with the dangerous non native plant Impatiens glandulifera Royale” has finished. The competition was attended by 45 artists aged between 6 and 54 years. Although the competition was formally divided by age categories, the contestants’ paintings really impressed the jury of scientists and artists with their style and energy radiating from every single one of the drawings. Their strong and original ideas were presented in a remarkable way. Gallery
On March 19, 2021, the Final Conference of the project “For everyone saved a tree” (FOREST) was held, which unites non-governmental and scientific organizations from Bulgaria and Serbia in the cause of engaging young people in activities related to forest protection. The project leading partner is the Bulgarian non-governmental organization “Youth Movement for Development of rural areas in Bulgaria” (YMDRAB). The other partners are the Center for Social Innovation in Nis (NIIT) and the Forest Research Institute – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (FRI-BAS) The project is funded by the Cross-Border Cooperation Program Interreg Bulgaria – Serbia. It started on May 16, 2019, but due to the pandemic of COVID-19 it was extended by several months and despite many difficulties, all planned activities were successfully completed.
FOREST RESEARCH INSTITUTE – BULGARIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCES
It is our pleasure to invite you on 19 March 2021 at 10:00 in the conference hall of the Best Western Premier Hotel Sofia Airport at a conference for the completion of the project ‘For everyone saved a tree (FOREST)’, co-financed by the European Union through the Cross-border Cooperation Program Interreg-IPA Bulgaria-Serbia 2014-2020.
A unique exhibitions were presented on 10 and 17 February 2021 and 9 March 2021 in the cities of Botevgrad, Etropole and Pravets. Over 150 plant species of woody, shrubby and herbaceous plants collected and prepared personally by the young people participating in the project ‘For everyone saved a tree’ (FOREST) decorated the halls of local schools and community centers for a week. Scientists-experts in botany, genetics and dendrologists guided the work of the young people and in parallel with their help with the preparation of herbariums, they presented to the children the silvicultural, medicinal and honey benefits and conservation significance of the plants. In addition to the knowledge in recognizing the species, the young people also gained basic experience of plant biodiversity in the forests of the cross-border region.