Coronavirus response in Romania: Nature NGO helps elders with food, hygiene products

Conservation Carpathia Foundation has started a program to help the elders in several communities in the south-eastern part of the Făgăraș Mountains in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Through the Food for Elders program, the NGO offers, every week, 500 packages containing food and hygiene products to the elderly living in Rucăr, Lerești, Dâmbovicioara, Valea Mare-Pravăț, Stoenești, Cetățeni, Nucșoara, Arefu (Argeș county) and Runcu, Moroieni (Dâmbovița county).

The program targets people who are over 65 years old and do not have a revenue source or support from their families.

They have received items such as rice, sugar, cornflour, eggs, cooking oil, fruits and vegetables, in-season or canned, cheese, honey, and hygiene products that are essential throughout this period.

All the products offered were purchased, as much as possible, from local producers, the NGO said. At the same time, the needs of the elderly and the carbon footprint of the products were also taken into account.

The NGO said the packages would be delivered throughout the duration of the state of emergency, as the elderly targeted in the program have their movement restricted.

Partners of the NGO supported the program, which also benefited from the collaboration with the local authorities. Among the partners, RTC Proffice donated products and helped procure hygiene products.

“In the current context, we believe it is necessary to buy from local producers, small local producers, ensuring that the money is being invested in the local economy, which supports jobs and creates sources of income for small farmers during this difficult time,” Christoph Promberger, executive director of the Foundation Conservation Carpathia, said. “This is our first step towards developing a system that will help and positively capitalize on the traditional local agriculture in the medium and long term.”

Those who wish to contribute to the project can do so here.

Conservation Carpathia Foundation works to create a world-class wilderness reserve in the southern Romanian Carpathians, large enough to support significant numbers of large carnivores and to allow evolutionary processes to happen. The project consists of the wider Făgăraș Mountains Natura 2000 site, Piatra Craiului National Park and Leaota Mountain and covers a total of over 250,000 hectares.

(Photo: Carpathia.org)