The first month of spring brought us a bountiful harvest of festivals for our specialists to rise awareness in several regions at the same time: in Moscow, Mordovia and on Kamchatka.

Spotted Guest from the Islands

On September 7, Pushta Village in Mordovia hosted the 5^th Inter-regional Spotted Fest. The Commander Islands Nature and Biosphere Reserve presented its creative workshops and harbor seal became our spotted symbol.

Our workshops are never boring

The guest of the festival delved into beauty of Russian protected natural areas and tried some of traditional dishes of different peoples of Russia. The Spotted Fest made the weekend better for over five thousand people. Together with nature reserves and national parks numerous artisans, beekeepers and creative groups took part in the event. Chefs shared their mastery during cooking workshops.

In Nature Embassy

On September 13-22, the 4^th Russian Geographical Society Festival took place in Zaryadye Park, Moscow. Our platform was situated near the entrance to the Nature Embassy. Chief Specialist Anna Strokan spoke about “true and eared, toothed and baleen, about those with the thickest fur and the champions in diving” and organized interesting workshops for kids and adults.

On September 21, the festival also gave stage to our lecture about marine mammals of the Commander Islands presented by Svetlana Artemyeva, part of the nature reserve team and head manager of Biology Lecture Hall in MSU Zoological Museum. She told which animals are the easiest to meet on the coastline and which are the most elusive creatures of all.

RGS Festival is a great opportunity to see the inhabitants of the Commander Islands and learn new facts about them

The participants also discovered the animals who stay on the islands for the whole winter and those visiting for several weeks a year and, finally, why many species of the Commander Island fauna are in the Red Data Book.

Main Fest of Kamchatka

At the same time, on September 22, Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky was buzzing about the 4^th Yearly Festival of Marine Mammals or simply the Sea of Life Fest. The event started on Lenin Square with an ecological march for all the activists. Our nature reserve asked the participants to say no to balloon use. On average, we use them not more than 12 minutes and the harm is far more lasting.

The festival continued on the thematic platforms. For each of them the Commander Islands Nature and biosphere Reserve prepared a special program.

Sea of Life became an opportunity to buy the souvenirs, which are usually only accessible in our visitor center on Bering Island. Photo by Matvei Paramoshin

Waste Civilization is a quest about pollution, mainly in the World Ocean. The participants learned how to sort waste, which types there are, if they are dangerous, how they are recycled and how to help saving marine mammals right now.

Kids Town housed the creative workshop and the open lecture space gave us chance to speak about the northern seals of the Commander Islands one more time. In the Trade Zone, everyone could buy some branded souvenirs, which are usually only accessible in our visitor center on Bering Island.

“We tell baleen from toothed. Do you?”

The day before Eco Guest-Room decided to join the festive month by organizing a lesson about Sea of Life Festival. Children form Nikolskoye Village transformed into marine biologists, learned what to take to an expedition, how to tell humpback whales one from another by their flukes and what rules to observe while monitoring animals in the water area.