KATHMANDU, June 7: Two 12-year-old Nepali boys, Girish Maskey and Anmesh Rayamajhi, have become part of a global ecological initiative, through their participation in the Gazprom Football for Friendship (F4F) program scheduled to be held in Moscow from June 8 to 15. 

The young ambassadors of the program participated in ‘Happy Buzz Day’ event in Moscow, as a part of the ecological initiative. The event aimed to draw attention of people across the world to rare and endangered animal species -- Amur tiger, red panda, Baltic seal, large fig parrot, and red ruffed lemur, one of the largest lemurs of Madagascar.    

In order to raise awareness for wildlife conservation, especially among the younger generations, the 32 Teams of Friendship for football that play against each other in the Gazprom Football for Friendship International Championship were named after rare and endangered animal species. Girish Maskey will play as a forward in the “African Elephant” team, along with his 12-year-old teammates from Puerto Rico, Andorra, Thailand, Sao Tome E Principe, and Swaziland. 

As part of the Football for Friendship program, the kids will also participate in the International Friendship Camp from June 9 to 11 in Moscow. The ecological initiatives will also be discussed at the International Football for Friendship Forum on June 13 that will be held in Moskvarium – the largest roofed oceanarium in Europe.    

 A lemur named Buzz was born in the Duke Lemur Center a year ago, that became the symbol of the ecological mission of Football for Friendship program this year. The Red Panda Network from Nepal, the Amur Tiger Center and the Friends of the Baltic Seal Fund from Russia joined the campaign. As part of the event, F4F also organized a charity exhibition dedicated to the first birthday of Buzz.
 

 
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