In Dushanbe, the Earth Charter Affiliate “Foundation to Support Civil Initiatives” (FSCI, Dastgiri Center) organized events to celebrate the 45th Earth Day and the 15-year anniversary of the Earth Charter. The festivities were financed by FSCI, the Tajikistan National Commission for UNESCO, and the Center for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan.
On 22 April, 2015 the Center for Strategic Studies hosted the workshop “International Earth Day: a Festival of Clean Water, Land and Air”. Workshop participants included members and staff from the Committee on Environmental Protection of the Tajik Government, the Center for Strategic Studies, the State Agency for Hydrometeorology of Tajikistan, Aini Tajik State Pedagogical University, and Osimi Tajik Technical University as well as public environmental organizations.
The workshop opened with a presentation on the Earth Charter and its importance for creating a sustainable global society in the 21st century. An article published the day earlier in the Environmental Protection Committee newspaper also dealt with the 15th anniversary of the Earth Charter.
S. Bakhti, the Executive Secretary of the Tajikistan National Commission for UNESCO, spoke about the Earth Charter principles. Other presentations dealt with sustainable land use practices in Tajikistan (M. D. Ergashev), renewable energy (K. Kabutov), sustainable energy illustrated by the example of the Bartang Valley (T. Idrisov), and Tajikistan’s water resources, glaciers, and climate change (R. Davlyatov). Another presentation focused on the protection and preservation of forests and protected areas (I. P. Ustyan).
Lively discussion followed the presentations. Among other topics was the negative situation in the national park “Tiger gully”, of whose territory has been converted to irrigated land. The executive secretary of Tajikistan National Commission for UNESCO suggested protecting the national park as Tajikistan’s natural heritage.
A week earlier, on April 14, 2015, the members of the Student Environmental Club at the Tajik Technical University (TTU) planted trees (chestnuts and Indian lilac) on the new campus. The Student Environmental Club was set up in 2008, through the initiative of Professor A. Y. Normatov and the FSCI. The chairman of the Club made a presentation on the activities of the Club since its formation and plans for the coming years.
Following the workshop, the participants attended an exhibition and a concert organized by the children’s environmental and creative Center “Navnihol”.
