Forum of Global Shapers Community opens in Baku
By Nigar Orujova
A forum of the Global Shapers Community, one of several multi-stakeholder communities at the World Economic Forum, opened in Azerbaijan`s capital Baku on Sunday.
Vice President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Leyla Aliyeva attended the "SHAPE CIS, Central Asia and Caucasus: Vision 2020" event. Prior to the start of the forum Aliyeva cut the ribbon to open a mobile library.
Aliyeva viewed the Moveable Library, which is a project that will cover 15 Azerbaijani regions in a year. Access to the library, which has 10,000 books and 5,000 electronic publications in three languages, is free.
Aliyeva also familiarized herself with an "open-shelf" project. In the frame of the project, bookshelves will be placed in different parts of the capital city. The project aims to give foreign tourists a chance to have access to books about Azerbaijan without registration. The principle of the endeavor is that the borrowed book or some other book must be returned to the shelf.
The forum was opened by Farhad Hajiev, Executive Director of the Youth Fund under the President of Azerbaijan and Curator of Global Shapers Hub Baku.
Azerbaijani Minister of Youth and Sports Azad Rahimov stressed the importance of the forum. He praised the strategic dialogue conducted by the Global Shapers Community. The Minister also highlighted Azerbaijan`s economic achievements under President Ilham Aliyev.
Leyla Aliyeva, in her speech at the forum, welcomed the participants. According to her, South Caucasus and Central Asia are the regions of the world which combine rich natural resources, amazing infrastructure and technical development growth.
There are problems which should be solved on the global level, however, common values must be worked out to solve these problems, she said.
"I believe that to solve the problems that crossed the borders, cooperation policy is needed," Aliyeva stressed. "This very policy may appropriately take into consideration the interests of different regions and cultures, coordinate the development of national economies. Today, most of the developing economies do not take into account the natural constraints of natural resources. As a result, the possibility of a global environmental catastrophe is high in the future. That is why today the issue of environmental education and enlightenment since school and university years is acute. At present, youth is the most important intellectual, cultural and professional reserve, upon whose life and development quality the future of our countries depends."
The Foundation vice president pointed out the International Dialogue for Environmental Action (IDEA) campaign, which became a means of trying out different mechanisms on environmental protection and the youth policy.
"We have reached certain success in the youth enlightenment in environmental issues and realization of projects directly aimed at environmental protection in Azerbaijan and the region," Aliyeva said.
"I am sure that the exchange of political, economic, ecological and cultural experience will help our generation to eliminate the threat of the future and to protect the world for the sake of common ideals of the humanity," she said.