Slyudyanka, Russia - A joint ecological and tourism project, “Baikal 2009,” involved constructing and reconstructing four pedestrian bridges along the tourist path between the town of Slyudyanka and Chersky Peak in the Irkutsk district of southern Russia. The July 2-August 6 project was initiated by the Ural-Siberian office of the Youth Federation for World Peace and supported by the Baikal research and rescue team of the Emergency Management Ministry of Russia and other public organizations.

Forty-one young people participated in the project; they came from different parts of Russia, including Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Irkutsk, Khabarovsk.

In addition to building bridges, they organized discussions about developing local volunteer activities. In fact, the natural environment, the spirit of cooperation, and the challenges posed by the different situations were the best educational programs. They proved to the participants the importance of the project and the value of their contributions.

The project was held under the Year of Youth in Russia. A Russian website listed the project as one of the ten best projects in the series of “technology for goodness” programs.