Within the framework of the SunChild 10th International Environmental Festival, a two-day training workshop on “The Problem of Wild Animals in Captivity in Armenia” was held for journalists and media representatives.

Many journalists took part in the training, as well as beginner-student journalists in the field of journalism, for whom this workshop will be a good opportunity to cover environmental issues in Armenia. The participants got acquainted with the problems of wild animals kept in captivity in Armenia, had the opportunity to compare these problems with the situation in the world, as well as studied the legal regulations in force in the country.

Senior Veterinary Advisor and International Expert Iman Memarian presented the experience of the world zoos and rehabilitation centers, as well as the problems faced by all mankind. He also presented the essence of the human-wildlife conflict, what methods are used to overcome the conflict in the world. Iman Memarian also introduced the journalists the Wildlife Rescue Center (WRC) in Urtsadzor and told about the Big bear rescue program. During the training, the representative of the Ministry of Environment of RA Vahan Sargsyan spoke about the changes being made in the RA Laws.

Mariam Tashchyan, chief-editor of the Econews.am environmental information website, presented how deep the problem of animals imprisoned in captivity is in Armenia, what kind of animals are keept in captivity, exchanged her experience with the participants, and presented the difficulties in covering the field.

Summing up the workshop, it was announced about the competition expected for the participating journalists, the winner of which will be awarded a prize. The participating journalists highly assessed the effectiveness of the training, emphasizing that the topic is interesting, multi-layered, and needs to be thoroughly studied.

The workshop was conducted in cooperation with the Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets (FPWC) and the International Animal Rescue (IAR).