An event titled “United for Nature: International Cooperation Day” took place at Boo Mountain Bike Park, the first mountain biking park in Armenia, located in Vanadzor. The event brought together representatives from international, governmental, and civil society organizations.
“United for Nature is not just a slogan — it’s a call to action, a call to unite. Our actions toward nature and the environment must be responsible, especially on the eve of COP17,” Natia Natsvlishvili, UNDP Resident Representative noted.
"Boo Mountain Bike Park" is a youth-led initiative nestled in a picturesque corner of Lori’s forests. The project was launched with the support of "UNDP-GEF Small Grants Programme*" and was later expanded with assistance from the European Union and GIZ (German Agency for International Cooperation).
“This is a wonderful initiative that has proven to have a future. It combines ecotourism and adventure tourism while contributing to community development,” Hovhannes Ghazaryan, Head of Environmental Programs at UNDP stated.
“Flora and fauna provide valuable services that allow businesses to be established locally, contributing both to community and national development. But for a business to generate long-term income, nature must be protected,” Aram Meymaryan, Deputy Minister of Environment of Armenia noted.
Karen Manvelyan, Team Lead for “Biodiversity and Protected Areas” component of “Biodiversity and Sustainable Local Development in Armenia” project, noted: “A small project can make a big impact, and this initiative is a great example of that. It also shows that one can do business without harming the environment.”
Samvel Grigoryan, Head of Fundraising at Boo Mountain Bike Park NGO, shared that the idea for the park dates back to 2016.
“Today, we have about 7 kilometers of mountain biking trails, a dedicated pump track, and a café that also functions as an educational center. In just the past three years, we’ve had around 15,000 visitors,” Grigoryan said.
June 09, 2025 at 15:51