Statement by Deputy Permanent Representative Dmitry Chumakov at the ECOSOC Special event in celebration of the International Day of Forests
Mr. President,
At the outset let me thank all the previous speakers for their presentations. Let me also say that I, just like many other people, used to think that New York were a city of concrete and skyscrapers.
However, once I came here I was astonished at how green this city was. This is the result of efforts taken by many sides. Such efforts are also made in many other cities and countries, including Russia; and this process has an influence on people's day-to-day life and mood.
I would like to address the issue of education and point out that training of experts and dissemination of knowledge about forests build an important aspect of the implementation of the UN Strategic Plan for Forests. We also welcome the efforts of the UN FAO, the Secretariat of the UN Forum on Forests, the International Union for Conservation of Nature and other organizations that are active on this track.
We welcome practical steps and projects that seek to protect forest environment and ensure forest recreation in order to mitigate impacts on climate, ameliorate water resources and protect the balance in biological diversity.
Russia has a nation-wide multi-level system of educational facilities where experts on forests train and upgrade their capacities.
This system rests on five R&D institutes, four forest research stations and three laboratories. There is the Federal Forest Code that envisages dissemination of best practices and scientific techniques. The activities of these facilities help us implement the provisions of the Code. We pay specific attention to forest recovery, fire protection, pest control, genetics and selection, countering the illegal logging, conservation of biodiversity, enhancing the economic effectiveness of forest management.
We target at rising awareness about forest-related professions. The Federal Agency for Forestry on a regular basis convenes competitions for academic and R&D projects for young experts.
We organize workshop, seminars, webinars and specialized events for schoolchildren and students.
An important track is the development of school-based ranger stations. As of now, there are more than 1500 such facilities that bring together over 35 thousand children and give them an opportunity to participate in master classes, contents and conferences, share best practices with various regions of the country. This kind of activities helps children and the youth improve their environmental outlook, link theory to the practice. It also encourages them to study forestry in general.
Thank you for the attention.
