Ardshinbank, continuing its cooperation with the “My Forest
Armenia” environmental NGO, has allocated 4 million AMD to finance the creation of the Charles Aznavour
Named Forest.
The initiative is dedicated to the birthday of the
world-renowned Armenian and aims to pay tribute to his rich legacy while
contributing to biodiversity conservation, climate change mitigation, and the
sustainable development of communities in Armenia. The forest area is located
near the village of Dzorashen in
Shirak Region.
According to Lusine Nersisyan, Member of the Board and Risk
Management Director at Ardshinbank, environmental initiatives are one of the
key directions of the bank’s corporate social responsibility strategy:
“As one of the largest banks in Armenia, Ardshinbank places
great importance on raising awareness about social responsibility and actively
participating in it. We want everyone to join us in recognizing this issue — it
is about responsibility and creating a healthier environment for future
generations.”
On May 9, our employees took part in the tree-planting
event, making their personal contribution to bringing the initiative to life.
During the event, 300 pine trees
were planted. With Ardshinbank’s financing, a total of around 5,000 trees are planned to be planted
across 1 hectare of land.
The project is also unique due to its conceptual component:
solar-powered musical columns will be installed in the forest, playing Charles
Aznavour’s compositions and creating a special atmosphere for visitors.
We also continue developing our own named forest program in
cooperation with the “My Forest Armenia” NGO. As part of the program launched
in 2024, more than 20,000 trees
have already been planted in Lori Region across approximately 6 hectares, along with additional
plantings in Gegharkunik Region. In the long term, the program aims to
sequester around 2,000 tons of CO₂
over the next 30 years through the planted trees, contributing to the expansion
of Armenia’s forest fund.
“These initiatives are particularly important given that
Armenia’s forest cover is only about 10%, which is significantly lower than the
indicators of our neighboring countries,” noted Lusine Nersisyan.
In recent years, the “My Forest Armenia” organization has
carried out planting and forest restoration work for more than 2.3 million trees across approximately
750 hectares, while also
supporting the development of local communities.
We consider sustainable development as one of the core
directions of our strategy, and the we will continue to implement long-term
programs aimed at environmental protection and community development.
