WWF-Armenia and KfW Mission Visit Community Conserved Areas in Northern Armenia

Posted on April, 14 2025

WWF-Armenia, together with the KfW development bank mission team, conducted a field visit to several northern Armenian communities where new Community Conserved Areas (CCAs) have been established over the past year through the ECF project.

The visit aimed to assess the progress of local conservation efforts and engage directly with community-based organizations that were created with the support of the project. During the meetings, local representatives shared the results of their wildlife monitoring activities, emphasizing the increased movement of brown bears, one of the project's key target species. The monitoring efforts are carried out using the EarthBeat mobile application, developed by WWF-Armenia, which enables efficient and transparent data collection and management.

In the CBOs of Koshakar and Pakhra, conservation offices are already fully operational. Both locations now have teams of overall nine caretakers and are equipped with the necessary tools to conduct ongoing environmental monitoring. These include off-road vehicles, camera traps, binoculars, field uniforms, and other essential gear.

WWF-Armenia strongly believes that empowering local communities is vital to achieving long-term conservation goals. Their active participation in safeguarding biodiversity is not only crucial for protecting Armenia’s natural heritage but is also a key step toward fulfilling WWF’s global mission: to build a future where people live in harmony with nature.

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ECF is financially supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through KfW Development Bank and WWF Germany. The Ministry of Environment of Armenia is the National partner of the ECF.