How many hours have you spent today following the ever-expanding stream of Connect the Dots photos?
Personally I can’t help looking through it over and over again, with strong but mixed emotions. I see people from India, Namibia, Britain, Brazil and USA and think how diverse we are, how different are our ways of living and how many challenges every one of us has overcome each day. And then, how similar we are and how together we form a huge family, united by common alarm and hope.
Burned forests of Siberia, melting glaciers of the Pamir and landslides in the mountains of Azerbaijan – these are only few of the first severe effects of climate change that have forced people in my region to join the Climate Impacts Day campaign.
So, on May 5th creative demonstrations in Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan have become part of the global movement. My dear friends! Do be proud of yourselves – and I wish you to have all the courage to continue your important work.
Here are the photos Connecting the Dots from Eastern Europe and Caucasus to Central Asia and Russia. The first piece of them was posted here.
In Dushanbe, Tajikistan, Aziz and his team have organized a lecture about melting Pamir with the professional glaciologist. Afterwards, together with the local boarding school students they made an icy flash-mob – showing how fast the mountain ice can melt leaving no water for tomorrow.
Leonie among the volunteers of another environmental group in Dushanbe – Little Earth NGO – went to the bus stop to play connecting the dots games with younger passengers and to encourage everybody to calculate their own carbon footprints.
Kurbonali continued his work with rural citizens. Discussions about climate change consequences and agriculture adaptation took place in 2 more mountain villages of Tajikistan – Mirzoobod and Vahdatobod. Look at these kids!
In Russia, two events were held in Moscow – a photo-session called Stop the Fuel Economics in front of key climate places such as Ministry of Natural resources with Natalia, Katya, Alina and their friends …
… and testing of a new kind of wind turbine – by Alexandr. We really need more cheap and sustainable energy solutions these days!
Other actions in Russian Federation included recycling activities in Saint-Petersburg, Parma Party in Kudymkar, Komi-Permiak region, and No forest fires! in Yakutia.
In Ismayilli, Azerbaijan, Ruhiyye worked hard to draw attention to the dangerous landslides and to organize Climate Impact Day in a local school – with lesson, trees planting and a flash-mob! It really worth it!
A lot of fun was the open Climate Photo Studio made by Nugzar and his fellows in Kutaisi, Georgia. Everybody could come and express his or her creativity while raising awareness about climate impacts all over the world. I place only one photo here, but go the Flickr and see them all.
In the capital of Georgia, Tbilisi, Tinatin with friends stood together to show a simple yet strong message:
In Kyiv, Ukraine, climate activist from different regions of the country were gathered by Inna and Olia to spend a whole weekend together trying to find a way towards sustainability. And Yes – this very dot is made of coal!
In the other part of Ukraine, in Dobropillja, Vladimir and the Oakcrossing team cleaned up the slagheap and planted 3 little oaks on it. How I wish in 100 years there were only huge oak trees and no slag or coal mines!
It’s now a time for all of us to connect climate change alarm with sustainable practice and green policy.
Proud to know all of you guys!