The plenary session of the XI Nevsky International Ecological Congress was held

The Speaker of the Federation Council spoke at the plenary session of the XI Nevsky International Ecological Congress. Russian President Vladimir Putin wished effective work to the forum participants.

The plenary session of the XI Nevsky International Ecological Congress began with an address to the participants and guests of the forum by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The text of the greeting was read out by Alexander Gutsan, the Plenipotentiary Representative of the President of the Russian Federation in the North-Western Federal District.

"The motto of the current Congress is "Planet Earth: harmony of man and nature" reflects the common desire of the international community to preserve and restore the environment as an essential component of sustainable development. First of all, through compliance with environmental safety requirements, protection of specially protected natural territories, rational use of natural resources, building a closed—loop economy, launching and implementing relevant government programs. The same goals are served by the Russian national project "Environmental well—being", the implementation of which began this year," the appeal says.

The President expressed confidence that the proposals and recommendations developed at the forum would be applied in practice and would contribute to the joint search for solutions to the most pressing environmental problems.

The plenary session of the forum was led by Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko and Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev. Before it began, they took part in the ceremony of presenting letters of thanks from the President of Russia to the winners of the All-Russian week of clean-up activities "We are for Cleanliness." The action was held in all regions of the Russian Federation in support of the implementation of the new national project "Youth and Children" and this time was dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Great Victory and the Year of Defender of the Fatherland. The events brought together more than half a million people who took to the streets of cities and towns to make them cleaner and more well-groomed. As part of the All-Russian Week of clean-up, landscaping and cleaning of military graves, monuments, and memorial complexes with the participation of veterans and military personnel was organized.

In her speech, Valentina Matvienko thanked the President of Russia for his constant attention to the work of the Nevsky Congress and his special personal attitude to environmental issues. According to her, the Nevsky Congress can rightfully be called an important event in the global environmental calendar. The forum is attended by scientists, experts, parliamentarians, representatives of international organizations, businesses, government agencies, public and volunteer associations from more than 70 countries around the world. "Such a broad international representation shows that the majority of the world's states are ready for open, creative cooperation in the field of ecology and understand their responsibilities."

The development of new technologies, increased energy consumption, pollution of the oceans, reduction of forest area and many other anthropogenic processes lead to significant negative consequences for the climate, for natural ecosystems and for human health, says Valentina Matvienko. "This important historical stage for the whole world makes us seriously think about a number of fundamental issues. And the main ones are: how do we see our planet in the future and what exactly do we want to leave to new generations?"

Environmental problems do not know state borders, they concern every continent, every country and every person, the Speaker of the Federation Council noted. "We must perceive global environmental challenges as a common, unified and indivisible task."

"At the initiative of the president, systematic work is underway to address urgent environmental protection issues. Ecology remains one of the few areas of public life where the language of politics should not hinder mutual understanding between countries. We are aware of the obvious fact that Russia's global mission to create a multipolar world should serve good purposes — to create a just world order where clean air, water and soil are not a privilege, but the norm. Many of our enterprises, including industry leaders, are busy upgrading production facilities in favor of low—carbon solutions," said Anton Kobyakov, Adviser to the President of the Russian Federation and Executive Secretary of the NMEC Organizing Committee.

After the end of the plenary session, Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko and Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev, organizers, heads of foreign delegations and guests of the XI NMEC, accompanied by volunteers, took part in the international ecological and patriotic action "Garden of Memory" dedicated to the Year of Defender of the Fatherland. Trees were planted in the garden of the Tauride Palace, as part of the NMEC tradition of recreating lost plantings in the Tauride Garden.

The official website of the XI Nevsky International Ecological Congress — ecocongress.info/congress .