The Serpukhov Central Library held the second talk of the series of ecological lectures on January 18, 2017. This time the audience was 40 students from the Moscow Regional College of Humanities.
The series of lectures on ecology are conducted by the head scientists of the Prioksko-Terrasny Reserve, Maria Mikhailovna Zablotskaya. The second talk was devoted to the subject of the 100-year long history of the formation of Russian reserve system.
Maria Mikhailovna’s talk sent students into the history of the beginning of XX century. The students learned about the life and significant impact of the system’s founders – academician Vasily Vasilievich Dokuchaev, professor Grigory Alexandrovitch Kozhevnikov and academician Ivan Parfenievitch Borodin. The lecturer went into details describing the important role of the Standing Environmental commission, which was established in 1912 by the Russian Geographical Society in Saint Petersburg. The commission was aimed at helping the organization of reserves, dealt with the expeditions arrangement and also conducted the first Russian census of objects requiring protection. Almost all Russian environment pioneers were involved in the work at the commission. Thanks to their hard work, the very first projects of environmental laws already had the first definition of reserves as research and environmental institutions.
The lecturer also touched on the question of the history of creating the Barguzin reserve. It was established on January 11, 1917 (or December 29, 1916, O.S.) by a decree of the Governing Senate of the Russian Empire on establishing the first state reserve in the country on Lake Baikal. Since that document was signed, the reserved system has started to form in our country. Today it enlists 103 state natural reserves, 50 national parks and 59 state natural sanctuaries of federal importance.
As usual, the lecture was accompanied by presentation materials and a themed exhibition with illustrated books from the library fund.