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ARMENIA TREE PROJECT
65 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02472 USA
Tel: (617) 926-TREE
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.armeniatree.org
PRESS RELEASE
December 31, 2013
ATP Plants Another 230,000 Trees Throughout Armenia in 2013
YEREVAN--Armenia Tree Project (ATP) has recently completed its ninth year of
reforestation with the planting of another 174,267 tree seedlings in
Northern Armenia. This brings the total number of trees planted to 230,451
in 2013. The additional 56,000 trees were planted by ATP's flagship
Community Tree Planting program.
ATP was founded by Armenian-American philanthropist Carolyn Mugar, and the
organization has now planted a total of 4,455,869 trees since 1994.
`We're extremely proud of this result,' noted ATP Yerevan Director Areg
Maghakian. `Our work is planting trees and we've done that with more than
four million in the ground, but it's also about people. ATP is creating
green jobs in Armenia and connecting our programs with supporters all over
the world. It's a truly grassroots effort that will pay huge dividends in
the future.'
With help from a substantial grant from Norway's Ministry of Foreign Affairs
in 2012, ATP began planting a new 20 hectare forest site in the town of
Koghes in Lori. This spring, several thousand pine seedlings were added to
the existing oak, ash, apple, and pear trees to finalize the forest
planting.
In the summer, seasonal workers were hired to maintain the sites reforested
by ATP. `Because it was such a fertile year, some sites had to be maintained
twice as the grass had been growing so quickly,' Maghakian emphasized.
In the fall, dozens of local villagers helped replant tree seedlings in a
new forest being established in Tsaghkaber. The planting of this site in
Lori was supported by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature
Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) of the Federal Republic of Germany
through KfW as part of its International Climate Protection Initiative. The
project was implemented by WWF Germany, WWF Caucasus, and WWF Armenia in
cooperation with the Ministry of Nature Protection, the Ministry of
Agriculture, and ATP.
ATP has collaborated with a number of other organizations over the past
year. This summer, ATP organized a special tour for local media and
organizations in the environmental sector. The tour included ATP's Mirak
Family Reforestation Nursery where more than half a million tree seedlings
are being nurtured, along with the nearby Hrant Dink Memorial Forest and a
new forest being established in the town of Katnajur. Yerevan-based Deem
Communications participated in several events with ATP this year, including
planting trees at a kindergarten in Margahovit.
ATP has also collaborated with the Homeland Development Initiative
Foundation (HDIF), an organization which aims to nurture sustainable
development initiatives in rural parts of Armenia. ATP employees in
Margahovit discovered Samvel, a talented woodworker who was unemployed
because he is wheelchair-bound, and introduced him to HDIF, which now sells
his unique, handmade crafts.
ATP's newest initiative, announced this fall in collaboration with Sosé and
Allen's Legacy Foundation, is the Sosé Thomassian and Allen Yekikian
Memorial Forest. The young couple, who had strong ties both in Armenia and
the diaspora, lost their lives in a tragic car accident in May 2013.
`Our goal is to create a living tribute to our dear friends. We're also
incorporating social media into this campaign,' explained Maghakian. `For
every new `like' of ATP's Facebook page, five trees will be planted in the
memorial forest. We hope the effort will attract at least 10,000 `likes' in
order to plant 50,000 trees and raise awareness of ATP's mission.'
The municipality of Stepanavan has agreed to lease 73 hectares of land to
ATP for 25 years and 25 percent of that land will be allocated to the Sosé
and Allen Memorial Forest, where planting will commence in the spring of
2014.
ATP's mission is to assist the Armenian people in using trees to improve
their standard of living and protect the environment, guided by the desire
to promote self-sufficiency, aid those with the fewest resources first, and
conserve the indigenous ecosystem. ATP's three major programs are tree
planting, environmental education, and sustainable development initiatives.
For more information, please visit the website www.armeniatree.org.
PHOTO CAPTIONS
One of ATP's most successful reforestation sites is dedicated to Hrant Dink;
the memorial planting site was established in Margahovit in 2007 after he
was killed outside his newspaper office in Istanbul
ATP employs dozens of people at its three nurseries; these two men are hard
at work at the Mirak Family Reforestation Nursery in Margahovit where
hundreds of thousands of trees are under cultivation
From: Baghdasarian
65 Main Street
Watertown, MA 02472 USA
Tel: (617) 926-TREE
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.armeniatree.org
PRESS RELEASE
December 31, 2013
ATP Plants Another 230,000 Trees Throughout Armenia in 2013
YEREVAN--Armenia Tree Project (ATP) has recently completed its ninth year of
reforestation with the planting of another 174,267 tree seedlings in
Northern Armenia. This brings the total number of trees planted to 230,451
in 2013. The additional 56,000 trees were planted by ATP's flagship
Community Tree Planting program.
ATP was founded by Armenian-American philanthropist Carolyn Mugar, and the
organization has now planted a total of 4,455,869 trees since 1994.
`We're extremely proud of this result,' noted ATP Yerevan Director Areg
Maghakian. `Our work is planting trees and we've done that with more than
four million in the ground, but it's also about people. ATP is creating
green jobs in Armenia and connecting our programs with supporters all over
the world. It's a truly grassroots effort that will pay huge dividends in
the future.'
With help from a substantial grant from Norway's Ministry of Foreign Affairs
in 2012, ATP began planting a new 20 hectare forest site in the town of
Koghes in Lori. This spring, several thousand pine seedlings were added to
the existing oak, ash, apple, and pear trees to finalize the forest
planting.
In the summer, seasonal workers were hired to maintain the sites reforested
by ATP. `Because it was such a fertile year, some sites had to be maintained
twice as the grass had been growing so quickly,' Maghakian emphasized.
In the fall, dozens of local villagers helped replant tree seedlings in a
new forest being established in Tsaghkaber. The planting of this site in
Lori was supported by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature
Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) of the Federal Republic of Germany
through KfW as part of its International Climate Protection Initiative. The
project was implemented by WWF Germany, WWF Caucasus, and WWF Armenia in
cooperation with the Ministry of Nature Protection, the Ministry of
Agriculture, and ATP.
ATP has collaborated with a number of other organizations over the past
year. This summer, ATP organized a special tour for local media and
organizations in the environmental sector. The tour included ATP's Mirak
Family Reforestation Nursery where more than half a million tree seedlings
are being nurtured, along with the nearby Hrant Dink Memorial Forest and a
new forest being established in the town of Katnajur. Yerevan-based Deem
Communications participated in several events with ATP this year, including
planting trees at a kindergarten in Margahovit.
ATP has also collaborated with the Homeland Development Initiative
Foundation (HDIF), an organization which aims to nurture sustainable
development initiatives in rural parts of Armenia. ATP employees in
Margahovit discovered Samvel, a talented woodworker who was unemployed
because he is wheelchair-bound, and introduced him to HDIF, which now sells
his unique, handmade crafts.
ATP's newest initiative, announced this fall in collaboration with Sosé and
Allen's Legacy Foundation, is the Sosé Thomassian and Allen Yekikian
Memorial Forest. The young couple, who had strong ties both in Armenia and
the diaspora, lost their lives in a tragic car accident in May 2013.
`Our goal is to create a living tribute to our dear friends. We're also
incorporating social media into this campaign,' explained Maghakian. `For
every new `like' of ATP's Facebook page, five trees will be planted in the
memorial forest. We hope the effort will attract at least 10,000 `likes' in
order to plant 50,000 trees and raise awareness of ATP's mission.'
The municipality of Stepanavan has agreed to lease 73 hectares of land to
ATP for 25 years and 25 percent of that land will be allocated to the Sosé
and Allen Memorial Forest, where planting will commence in the spring of
2014.
ATP's mission is to assist the Armenian people in using trees to improve
their standard of living and protect the environment, guided by the desire
to promote self-sufficiency, aid those with the fewest resources first, and
conserve the indigenous ecosystem. ATP's three major programs are tree
planting, environmental education, and sustainable development initiatives.
For more information, please visit the website www.armeniatree.org.
PHOTO CAPTIONS
One of ATP's most successful reforestation sites is dedicated to Hrant Dink;
the memorial planting site was established in Margahovit in 2007 after he
was killed outside his newspaper office in Istanbul
ATP employs dozens of people at its three nurseries; these two men are hard
at work at the Mirak Family Reforestation Nursery in Margahovit where
hundreds of thousands of trees are under cultivation
From: Baghdasarian