About the project

Abandoned and ruined churches, monasteries, dwelling caves from the Middle Ages, graveyards or prehistoric cult sites…Throughout remote areas in the South Caucasus one can find a large number of neglected cultural assets, that are in deep need of care and attention. Under the slogan “Crossing borders to save, preserve and care” this issue is currently addressed by the SOS Culture project which was launched in January 2012 by the Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets (FPWC). 

With an overall duration of 24 months, the SOS Culture project is funded by the European Union within the framework of the Eastern Partnership Culture Program and is implemented by FPWC in cooperation with the dvv international – Georgia Country office and Research on Armenian Architecture Foundation. The overall EU contribution to SOS Culture project is 492,754 Euro.

The overall objective of the project is to register and preserve endangered cultural assets in the remote border regions of Armenia and Georgia with the involvement of local citizenry. Involvement of local communities will in its turn promote economic, social and cultural development in the areas, covered by the project. 

The approach of the SOS Culture project is rooted in the idea that well preserved and explored historic sites have a tremendous positive influence on the creation of an environment, which nurtures sustainable economic, social and human development in remote and impoverished regions, making those regions attractive for tourists. 

SOS Culture relies on the active involvement of youths (age 14 -23) from different national and ethnic origins living in the target areas of Armenia and Georgia. The young people participate in protection and research activities, implemented in the vicinity of their villages. These activities include cultural assets of different origins and religions, as well as pre-historic sites and medieval architectural monuments. By doing this, the project underlines that “Cultural assets belong to everybody”: regardless of nationality, religious faith or language, people living nearby a monument should care and preserve. This instils a new approach and knowledge about local cultural assets among the members of the youth clubs, established by FPWC and its Georgian project partner dvv international. Participating in the project activities, the members of the youth clubs support the cultural and touristic development of their regions. 

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Latest News

Learning is a lifelong process!

"Learning is a lifelong process", this is the motto of our SOS Culture team. This is why we always take short courses, seminars and attend conferences. The summer academy ISAR 2012 which took place from 19.08.2012-02.09.2012 in Rostock, Germany, on "Media and People" was a great chance for the organisational team to learn more about modern media and its role. The workshops on filmmaking and journalism are very important in the frame of the SOS Culture project. “We can te[more]


Two days with Samvel Karapetyan.

During the “SOS Culture” summer camp excursions while Samvel Karapetyan was accompanying participants and telling them about each cultural monument, some of them decided to have a small interview with him, with the help of journalism teacher Karine. The purpose was to talk about the situation of cultural monuments in Armenia. He noted with sadness. “Armenians do not really care about their cultural heritage. It has different reasons. First, what I see is the lack of respect, lack towards monume[more]


Saying good bye to the summer camp.

SOS Cul ture project implemented by the Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets (FPWC) had a wonderful closing event of the summer camp which took place from August 13-19, 2012 in Odzun. This event was an excellent opportunity to present the guests with what had been done during the whole week. All five youth clubs that were participating during the camp did their best to present an original and interesting program. Participant youth clubs were represented by five d[more]


The Everyday Life of the Summer Camp.

The members of “SOS Culture” program  youth clubs with Yerevan Zoo Eco club members spent a full week in Odzun participating in the Summer Camp. All 50 participants were gathered in Odzun to learn about the cultural monuments of Lori region by studying photos, journalism, video art, participating in different courses such as cultural tourism, intercultural communication, leadership, ecology.  Each day was always expected. Mornings were filled with the energy of sport and a healthy li[more]


"SOS Culture" summer camp 2012: Impressions and Achievements

Amalia Hakobyan - Yerevan Zoo Eco club member, 17 years old: “I have seen people practicing yoga and it is very interesting for me. From that perspective yoga was new for me. After hiking tours when we were tired, yoga recharged us, so we could be ready for the long trips and courses. I am impressed by the experience SOS Culture Summer Camp gave to me.   For example, I have answers to many questions regarding photo and video art and journalism. It was also very important to meet youn[more]