“Green Agenda: Crossing Borders”
An article titled “Green Agenda: Crossing Borders” by Leyla Aliyeva, Vice President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, Chairperson of the Russian Azerbaijani Youth Organization, and founder of the IDEA (International Dialogue for Environmental Protection) campaign, has been published in the prestigious British newspaper Huffington Post.
The article states: This year, Azerbaijan celebrates the 20th anniversary of its independence, during which the country has achieved remarkable successes.
Economic growth and ensuring the country’s future development have been taken as top priorities in Azerbaijan. The strengthening of the national economy has positively impacted both Azerbaijan and its trade partners. However, a major challenge still remains—the protection of our rich and diverse environment. This is a reality not only for Azerbaijan but also for our neighboring countries in the region.
Azerbaijan shares borders with Russia to the north, Iran to the south, Turkey, Georgia, and Armenia to the west, and via the Caspian Sea with Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan to the east, as well as with Russia and Iran. Within these borders, we all face a common problem. As the renowned British geographer Professor R. Conston said: unlike states, the environment has no borders. Existing tensions along some of these borders, including mutual dependence on natural resources and other issues, demonstrate the complexity of the problem. In addition to all these tensions, I would like to remind readers of the centuries-long enmity of Armenia towards Turkey, the displacement of 1 million people from their homes in Azerbaijan due to Armenian occupying forces, and, in some cases deliberately, the environmental legacy of the late Soviet era that affected the entire region.
Leyla Aliyeva notes that the endangered Caucasus leopard must be protected, emphasizing that this remarkable creature now exists only in small, isolated areas both in the South Caucasus and beyond. In a region where military tensions along borders are extremely high, the idea of safe wildlife corridors across regions and implementing this concept poses significant challenges for politicians. Recently, the five Caspian littoral states agreed on joint measures to prevent oil spills and monitor the environment. Consequently, with a renewed approach to the cultural, political, and military dividing lines in the region, we can create conditions for a secure future not only in one country but across the entire region. The international community, as well as political and scientific circles, must understand that solving environmental problems is impossible without real international dialogue. However, through dialogue, many issues can be clarified.
