PEOPLE+ | "Community clean-up day" event at Pancharevo Lake

This day was an important day because the Begree+n team successfully completed the first event in the surroundings of Sofia. We met at the bridge of the Pancharevo lake dam at 11 am to start a busy day with a clear and defined mission: to clean a part of the lake and to be able to increase by our action the awareness of the environment and the preservation of natural places like this one.

Following the poster and the communication realized on Facebook groups reaching different audiences (expats, locals, students), we collected several enthusiastic reactions but due to the threatening weather, the number of participants was reduced.

However, it has been a great opportunity to strengthen our group in terms of teamwork and cooperation. We have worked in a synchronized way in order to be as fast as possible but without forgetting the most important part of the event: to achieve a noticeable change on this natural place and increase the awareness of the people who were passing by. Many people stopped and asked us what we do and why, and we hope that the next time they will enjoy the lake and will not throw the trash away but in the trash bins.

Our first intention was to make a tour of the lake or at least to cover a good part of it and to make a trash pickup on the way but on the shores of the lake around the dam, the place was so dirty that we concentrated our efforts on this precise place. In only 2 hours, thanks to our efforts and good coordination between all attendees, we were able to collect 20 bags of trash. Furthermore, we were surprised by the diversity of the waste and the size of certain bulky items, sometimes collecting large glass bottles, polystyrene sheets for example.

In addition, thanks to the creation of the Facebook page, we had also the pleasure to involve some locals, and for the next event we hope to be able to host more people. This has been a short but intense event because we have partially cleaned the dam of Pancharevo Lake and tried to inspire the youth. Thanks to the equipment furnished by ICDET, and to the good will of the team, we have been able to do a great job and, without a shadow of a doubt, we are ready to repeat this experience in another area of Sofia, and even in other places in Bulgaria, depending on the opportunities that arise.

Stay tuned and be green!

VIE+W | BIODIVERSITY IN BOYANA WATERFALL

The Boyana Waterfall is considered the most beautiful and largest waterfall in Vitosha Mountain. The only sound that may interrupt the unique silence and true serenity of the breathtaking scenery is the one of the splashing waters, falling gracefully from 15 m.

There is hardly a mountaineer from Sofia who has missed visiting this beautiful and popular spot in the Vitosha Mountain. Being one of most important natural landmarks in Sofia, the Boyana waterfall deserves our attention.

The path has enough signs and guidelines on the way so that you don’t get lost. There is a steep area where you should be cautious of the river’s slippery boulders but once this is over, you will realize that the sight was worth the efforts. One thing is sure, having been touched by the magic of the Boyana waterfall you will remember the experience forever.

THE VIEW AT THE TOP IS ALWAYS WORTH THE CLIMB!

ANIMALS THAT CAN BE ENCOUNTERED - FIRE SALAMANDER

The fire salamander (Salamandra salamandra) is a common species of salamander found in Europe.

It is black with yellow spots or stripes to a varying degree; some specimens can be nearly completely black while on others the yellow is dominant. Shades of red and orange may sometimes appear, either replacing or mixing with the yellow according to subspecies. This bright coloration is highly conspicuous and acts to deter predators by honest signalling of its toxicity (aposematism).

Aposematism is the advertising by an animal to potential predators that it is not worth attacking or eating.

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Caterina Cioffi, intern@ICDET

LIFE+ | Outline of week 28/2021

This week was almost oriented towards the concretization of our ideas into a realistic project and marked the beginning of the actions related to the global project we have in mind.

We began the first day of the week by a focus group after the meeting. It was intended for the second part of our project, that is to say the Shvistov event we want to put in place the week 30. From last week, we had only a rough draft of what the event could encompass so there was a need to dig a little deeper into the subject and provide details to make the project viable.

We agreed on the name of the project (Green your lifestyle) and divided the tasks to arrive at a characterization of the event with categories: description of the context and goals, nature of the participants, the main activities and program, its impact, a summary of the project as a whole …

We also contacted the responsible of Institute Perspectives, the NGO that could welcome us in Svishtov and provide us with some materials and audience to interact with.

I participated in the development of the activities that could be implemented and the summary of the project necessary to present it to any stakeholders who would like to quickly understand what it entails. I also listed with our focus group what we still had to do in the following days in terms of tasks to be ready before the D-day in Svishtov (poster for the communication plan for example).

Then, on Tuesday, we went to Pancharevo Lake for the community clean-up event planned on this day. Following the communication plan established via Facebook with sharing of the event and poster on the BeGreen page and some major Facebook groups in Sofia, we gather at the meeting point at 11:AM. I shared a post on one of the major Facebook group in Sofia and reply to the comments we get :

One participant joined us and we cleaned the shore of the lake and managed to collect 20 bags of trash only in this particular place as it is explained in the article I write after with Marco.

I then sorted and renamed the photos taken by Thasos and prepare a small article for the dissemination of the event on Facebook or instagram :

The following days were marked by the different workshops of some interns. I followed the presentation of Thasos about ESC opportunities and then Murat’s activity about the lost animals in Sofia.

Loic Perreau

INTERN@ Project Development Department