Naturschutzbund Deutschland (NABU) is a German non-governmental organization that mainly deals with the protection of nature in the country and abroad, such as protection of rivers, seas, forests or some species of animals.
The organization was founded in 1899 as the Bird Protection Association. It is one of the largest environmental associations in Germany. The organization implements special environmental programs, supports its own scientific institutes, implements environmental education and the media, and informs citizens about environmental issues.
Together with Bavaria's partner LBV, the organization has 664,000 members and 47,000 sponsors (status 2018). NABU is BirdLife International's national partner.
Today, there are 15 regional, about 1,500 urban and local branches of the union in the world. There are branches of international projects in Brussels (Belgium), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), Maikop (Russia), Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) and Yerevan (Armenia).
The branch of the German Nature Protection Union (NABU) in the Republic of Armenia has been cooperating with the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Armenia since 2001. In the first years of the partnership, priority was given to the implementation of international environmental conventions. Later, the cooperation expanded to include joint projects. In March 2007 (NABU) and the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Armenia signed a cooperation agreement on the protection of biodiversity in Armenia.
Since 2010, we have been implementing programs aimed at preserving and protecting nature, biodiversity and the environment in Armenia. Our programs are built on several key pillars.
One of the most important goals is to create or improve the environment where animals and plants will be safe and secure, which will help protect human health. Around this idea, the "Human-Wildlife Conflict" program was created, within the framework of which studies are carried out in the northern regions of Armenia to find out the hot spots of the conflict, the causes, as well as the possible solutions. The program aims not only to resolve conflicts, to avoid socio-economic and human losses, but also to understand the problems of wildlife and the environment and to develop a strategy for their protection. It was this idea that led us to place photo traps in different parts of Armenia, especially in Dilijan National Park, to better understand our nature and create the right strategy for its protection.
The NABU Armenia branch attaches great importance to the implementation of various events, the aim of which is to raise public awareness, as well as to make the existing problems more audible. We have carried out and continue to campaign, such as “Clean Shore, Clean Spring”, “Start Yourself”, “Crane Year”, “Falcon”, “Eagle”, “Vulture” and more. We introduce people to the protected areas and biodiversity of Armenia through various eco-educational events.
Apart from all this, we do not forget about agriculture, tourism and community development. We have "Rural Tourism Development" and "Organic Agriculture Development" programs, which contribute to the development of agriculture and tourism throughout Armenia, without harming the environment at the same time. We encourage the production of organic food, the presentation of Armenian culture and rural color in rural communities.
As a result of years of work and many programs and campaigns, we have been able to create a team that is trying its best to contribute to the study of biodiversity in Armenia, nature protection, as well as community development. We have been able to establish strong and reliable ties with many organizations, individuals and government bodies both inside and outside Armenia.
We bring together goals and ideas, create new programs, implement many events, and all these FOR PEOPLE AND NATURE.