ARMENIA TREE PROJECT
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PRESS RELEASE
June 2, 2009

ATP’s Community Tree Planting Program Continues Greening Armenia

— 28,422 Trees and Shrubs Already Planted for Spring Season

YEREVAN–Armenia Tree Project (ATP) has once again successfully accomplished
its greening mission through its flagship Community Tree Planting Program.
This spring season, tree plantings, site maintenance, and monitoring were
conducted at 94 sites in 12 regions including Artsakh. Already this year,
28,422 fruit and decorative trees have been planted from seedlings grown in
ATP’s Karin and Khachpar nurseries.

"This year, we decided to make it a priority to allocate trees to those
communities which demonstrated exceptional motivation and a caring attitude
towards these environmental restoration projects," stated ATP Executive
Director Jeff Masarjian. "In these places where people were taking extra
care in their orchards, we measured very high survival rates. In many
communities the survival rate of trees was observed to be 98-99 percent."

"In the communities that partner with ATP, people recognize and understand
the importance of our trees. The population appreciates the work that ATP
does and the mission that our project has been carrying out since 1994,"
added Community Tree Planting Program Manager Anahit Gharibyan. "In
addition, local authorities express their appreciation and take
responsibility when it comes to developing and beautifying their community
territories, as they know that trees will provide a range of economic and
environmental benefits."

ATP participated in a number of ceremonial plantings this spring, including
a tree planting with the Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan at the
Tsitsernakaberd Genocide Memorial on April 23, and a planting in the park
behind the new Paramaz Avedisian Building on the campus of American
University of Armenia.

The planting at AUA was accomplished with the assistance of staff and
students including representatives from the Acopian Center for the
Environment. Twenty five ninth grade students and two teachers from School
No. 10 also participated in the planting. The school is supported by Ed
Avedisian, who is also a benefactor of AUA and ATP. A total of 497
decorative trees and shrubs were planted on the AUA site in April.

"We have come together for one of the most important actions as part of the
Paramaz Avedisian Building project and that is the tree planting and setting
of the park territory behind the building. This area was used for over four
years as a construction site and now the time has come to decorate and give
it a face. This endeavor is essential and it would not be possible without
the coordination and valuable assistance from Armenia Tree Project,"
emphasized Construction Manager Faraj Yeretsian.

"We were pleased that the tree planting at AUA united schoolchildren,
teachers, university students, and staff. It is noteworthy that the event
was undertaken on April 22, which is internationally recognized as Earth
Day," added Gharibyan. "This planting involved the participation of our
Community Tree Planting and Environmental Education programs, since our
education director Manya Gevorgyan worked closely with the teachers and
schoolchildren in advance of the day’s planting."

Many of the AUA volunteers who had never planted a tree before were trained
by ATP staff in proper planting techniques. University staff and other
volunteers participating in the event were enthusiastic and declared that
they were looking forward to coming back to the site next year to observe
how well their planted trees had grown, and to enjoy the view of the new
green landscape.

Similar tree plantings were organized by ATP at other institutions, schools,
churches, and orphanages in Yerevan and Armenia’s regions this spring.
Several sites that were beautified by ATP this spring include the Institute
of Molecular Biology, Mkhitar Sebastasti Education Complex, Nansen Park in
Yerevan, Nor Nork Boarding School, and St. Sarkis Church in Yerevan.

"ATP is proud of its Community Tree Planting Program, since it provides high
quality fruit and decorative trees to rural and urban communities every
season. We are also working on a large-scale initiative to plant more than
one million reforestation seedlings in the Lori region this year," noted
Masarjian. "We will announce our progress in the fall, and we are actively
seeking the support of our donors to help ensure the success of this program
in our 15th anniversary year."

Since 1994, Armenia Tree Project has planted and restored more than
3,000,000 trees and created hundreds of jobs for impoverished Armenians in
tree-regeneration programs. The organization’s three tiered initiatives are
tree planting, community development to reduce poverty and promote
self-sufficiency, and environmental education to protect Armenia’s precious
natural resources. For additional information and to support ATP, visit the
web site

PHOTO CAPTIONS

1. ATP training students on tree planting at AUA

ATP staff trains students from School No. 10 on tree planting techniques in
preparation for the planting at American University of Armenia; ATP’s
Community Tree Planting Program planted 28,422 fruit and decorative trees at
94 sites in 12 regions of Armenia this spring

2. Students plant trees with ATP at AUA

American University of Armenia staff and students joined ninth grade
students and teachers from School No. 10 in April to plant 497 decorative
trees and shrubs around the new Paramaz Avedisian Building on the AUA campus
in Yerevan