“The Forest Is Mine” Awareness Event.
**Anatolia is Mine, the Forest is Mine**
Cleaning efforts were carried out simultaneously in forested areas across 81 provinces and all districts under the slogan **“The Forest Is Mine,”** to raise awareness against forest fires.
The awareness event in Vezirköprü took place on the road near the **Çaputlu Locality**.
A program was organized throughout Turkey by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, General Directorate of Forestry, with the slogan **“The Forest Is Mine,”** in 81 provinces and all districts to raise awareness against forest fires.
The program in Vezirköprü was attended by District Governor Özgür KAYA, Chief Public Prosecutor Emre KAYA, Vezirköprü Vocational School Director Prof. Dr. Necati TOMAL, District Gendarmerie Commander, J. Major Ümit ÇETİNKAYA, District Police Chief Ahmet ÇELİK, District Youth and Sports Director Mehmet Uyar, District Mufti Naci YALÇINKAYA, Forest Management Director Mecit Koçak, District Agriculture and Forestry Director Yakup ÇAĞLAYAN, District Protocol, Non-Governmental Organizations, Vezirköprü Forest Management Directorate Staff, Primary, High School, and University Students, and Citizens.
**“Our Goal is to Take Precautions Before a Fire Starts”**
As part of the program, garbage along the roadside was collected. In his statement regarding the **“The Forest Is Mine”** awareness program against fires, Vezirköprü Forest Management Director Mecit Koçak stated that their goal is to take precautions before a fire starts, saying, “This event was organized in all provinces and districts of Turkey within the scope of the ‘My Forest’ activity. We are carrying out our event in the Çaputlu locality with the participation of the District Governorship, District Police Department, National Education Directorate, District Gendarmerie Command, and various non-governmental organizations. Our goal is to have a cleaner environment, specifically to draw attention to the forest fires in recent years caused by global warming, and to take measures before a fire breaks out. 90% of fires that occur, and 99% of burned areas, are human-caused. This project was initiated to prevent fires before they start. We are collectively gathering the waste—thrown from vehicles while traveling, dragged into forests by wind from nearby settlements, or left after activities like picnics near the forest—in all 81 provinces, including children, youth, men, and women, and we are protecting our forests together. I thank everyone who supports this project.”
