“With all our colleagues from the Ministry and its structures, we bear our responsibility, not only professionally, but also in a personal capacity for environmental protection. This was said by the Deputy Minister of Environment and Water Reneta Koleva, who opened the first of a number of initiatives with which the Ministry of Environment and Water celebrates World Environment Day on June 5.

“I am here not only in my capacity as deputy minister, but as a colleague, citizen, and parent who is concerned about what we leave behind, in what condition we will bequeath the planet to our children,” said Deputy Minister Koleva. She congratulated the organisers from the Executive Environment Agency (EEA) for their responsible work attitude and for pursuing their mission filled “with many responsibilities and challenges”.

“I am also here to thank all of you who accept the cause and the responsibility of catering to and teaching our children. We teach them and they then apply that knowledge in respect to us as we, in our daily lives, are preoccupied. But children are the ones who show us the right direction because they are young, creative, intuitive, and caring,” added Reneta Koleva.

The event, organized in partnership with the Theatre House “Marietta and Marionetta”, brought together dozens of children and their parents on Sunday at the Sofia Zoo.

Deputy Minister Koleva watched the musical theatre performance, accompanied by her daughter Karina, who is 5 years old, but already firmly convinced that waste should not be disposed of in the streets, which also creates a significant risk for animals.

Deputy Minister Koleva invited the attendees to join the campaign of the Ministry of Environment of Water “Let's put an end to pollution!”, noting that it is not only through cleanups that the problem will be solved. “The truth is that our efforts should be focused on preventing pollution of the environment we live in,” she added.

Acting Executive Director of the EEA Rosalina Indzhieva welcomed the guests, mentioning that such an event is being held for a second consecutive year, but the aspiration is to make it a tradition. “Hopefully, by meeting here every year, we will take stock of the results achieved and be more united in our efforts to protect the environment,” she said.

“May we be more determined, may we be more united in our efforts and may we succeed in conveying the meaning of our cause to those who are children today so they contribute to a better tomorrow,” added Indzhieva.

Celebration attendees watched the children’s favorite characters of Winnie, Piglet, the Rabbit, and the special assistant of the EEA team in environmental protection - the character Super Eco. The children’s vocal group “Smile” from the village of Busmantsi greeted the guests with songs. The goals of the event included children learning through the  combination of theater and music in a fun way important and interesting facts about Bulgarian nature and what each of us can do to preserve it.

After the end of the performance all children in attendance received special eco gifts.