More than 130 inspiring artworks were submitted to the ‘Draw a dream about the sea’ contest, organized virtually in May-June 2022 by the EU4EMBLAS Project (European Union for Improving Environmental Monitoring in the Black Sea), a regional initiative funded by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme in Ukraine and Georgia.

Schoolchildren from the coastal regions of both countries participated in the contest and expressed their feelings about the Black Sea.

Hopes for peace and support for  Ukraine dominated the artworks submitted by both Ukrainian and Georgian youngsters. Children from Ukraine told the story of a war-stricken coastline where the threat of mines keeps people away from once crowded beaches. Georgian children showed support for their Ukrainian peers and sent them a message of friendship and solidarity.

‘Sea. Life. Peace’, ‘No War!’, ‘I send you my love, peace and smile’, ‘The sea will fulfil our dreams’ – emotional and heart-warming words enhanced the young artists’ visual messages and conveyed their hopes for a peaceful and safe environment.

The other focus of the contest was marine biodiversity protection in the delicate Black Sea ecosystem. The artworks show that both Ukraine and Georgia children care about marine environment and want to keep their sea healthy and clean. Many drawings portray the abundance and diversity of life in the Black Sea waters. Some show people and sea inhabitants living in harmony and swimming and playing together.

The ten prize-winning submissions (five from Ukraine and five from Georgia ) are available on the EU4EMBLAS website: https://emblasproject.org/

About the EU4EMBLAS project:

The EU/UNDP project “European Union for Improving Environmental Monitoring in the Black Sea” (EU4EMBLAS) is the fourth phase of the assistance project that has been running since 2014 with EU funding. The initiative is implemented by UNDP in close partnership with the governments of Ukraine and Georgia. It supports both countries to monitor and protect the Black Sea ecosystem. The current phase complements the need to further develop national capacities – technical and personal, to implement marine environment monitoring programmes, in line with the Bucharest Convention and the EU reporting requirements. It provides technical assistance focused on establishing modern systems and facilities for environmental monitoring, capacity building, awareness-raising and the assessment of environmental status in line with the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) and Water Framework Directive (WDF).

Media contacts:

• Yulia Samus, UNDP Ukraine Communications Lead, yuliia.samus@undp.org
• Sophie Tchitchinadze, UNDP in Georgia, +995 196907, sophie.tchitchinadze@undp.org