Turkey to be involved in “Caucasus ecoregion programme”

Anatolia news agency, Ankara
23 Apr 05

Izmir, 23 April: Six regional countries, including Turkey, will work
together for the Caucasus region’s nature under a “Caucasus Ecoregion
Programme” sponsored by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund
(CEPF).

The Caucasus is one of 25 regions in the world that faces ecological
disaster.

Turkey’s Harsit Valley and Eastern Black Sea Mountains, Azerbaijan,
Armenia, Georgia, Russia and Iran will be under the programme until
June 2008.

The programme will involve various projects to be implemented by both
public and private institutions. “There will also be opportunities for
NGOs (non-governmental organizations) to contribute to the success of
the ecological programme,” said a source.

CEPF is a joint initiative of Conversation International (CI), the
Global Environment Facility, the government of Japan, the John D. and
Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the World Bank.

The fund provides strategic assistance to NGOs, community groups and
other civil society partners to help safeguard Earth’s biodiversity
hot-spots. A fundamental goal is to ensure that civil society is
engaged in biodiversity conservation.