One of the main tasks of the Gauja NP Administration is to promote environmental education in the Gauja NP territory. It is facilitated by various activities – by Junior Ranger program managing, environmental education program providing and different project implementation.
Junior Rangers
Junior Ranger program in Gauja NP was started in 2004. The aim of this movement is to facilitate youngsters knowledge and interest in the nature conservation, as well as nature protected areas. Junior Rangers, acting together with the Gauja NP Administration employees, give a significant investment to the environmental education facilitation in the Gauja NP territory.
Environmental Education Program
Gauja NP Administration makes several environmental education programs for youngsters. These programs will be offered in the Nature Education Centre (DIC) "Baltā pils". The aim of these programs is to raise the knowledge of the youth and understanding of nature processes and conservation. The principles of programs are based on a voluntary opportunity to learn through the experience, thus better strengthening the acquired knowledge and skills. There will be the opportunity to make various experiments and researches in the environmental education programs, to implement some small monitoring, play environmental cognition games, experience a common hiking, and acknowledge nature despite different weather conditions. In these programs also an environmentally friendly behavior will be taught.
Projects
Gauja NP Administration realizes various types of projects with the aim to facilitate environmental education through the youth awareness and interest of nature. An example is the project INTERREG IIIB, which was realized by the Estonian-Latvian National Park stuff cooperation. During this project the youth camps were organized, in which main themes was nature and environmental protection.
Junior Rangers