HayPost issues new souvenir sheet featuring COP17 stamp

HayPost has held a cancellation ceremony and put into circulation a new souvenir sheet containing one stamp dedicated to the 17th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (COP17).

The stamp, with a face value of AMD 950, features the COP17 logo and the conference slogan, “Taking Action for Nature”, in Armenian and English.

The souvenir sheet depicts butterfly wings featuring Armenia’s flora and fauna. The inscription “17th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity” appears at the top in Armenian and English.

The cancellation ceremony was performed by COP17 President and Armenian Environment Minister Hambardzum Matevosyan; Deputy Minister of High-Tech Industry and Artificial Intelligence Gevorg Mantashyan; Convention on Biological Diversity Executive Secretary Astrid Schomaker; and HayPost CEO Shushan Aleksanyan.

Welcoming those present, Matevosyan stressed that a stamp carries great significance despite its small size. It represents a country, tells the story of its values and important events, and passes that story on to future generations.

“This stamp will also become part of the memory of COP17 in Armenia, symbolising our country’s commitment to nature conservation and international cooperation.

“At the heart of the discussions in Yerevan is the recognition that commitments to conserve biodiversity must translate into concrete action and visible results.

“Armenia’s rich natural heritage reminds us of this responsibility every day. I am confident that, as this stamp reaches different corners of the world, it will also carry Yerevan’s message: to act together for nature and a shared future,” Matevosyan said.

The minister thanked all partners who had contributed to creating and issuing the stamp for commemorating this important event in a lasting form.

“I would also note that our secretariat in Montreal, in Ms Astrid Schomaker’s office, has many similar stamps from around the world. I am confident that this stamp will also find its own special place at the secretariat,” Matevosyan concluded.

Schomaker welcomed the opportunity to step away briefly from the intensive work, gather together and mark this beautiful occasion.

“As a child, I spent a great deal of time beside my mother in the kitchen. We had envelopes from all corners of the world with beautiful stamps on them. We would soak them in water, carefully remove the stamps from the envelopes and then dry them with care. For a young child living in Hamburg, Germany, those stamps represented a connection with the rest of the world.

“I think stamps still carry that meaning today. And this is also the idea that has brought us together at this conference: to connect with different people, unite and move forward together. This stamp is truly beautiful. Today, I am also discovering another beautiful Armenian tradition: issuing stamps to mark important and special occasions,” Schomaker said.

She noted that this was another small but valuable legacy the COP conference could leave behind. Years later, people could revisit this legacy, remember the conference and appreciate the event anew.

HayPost CEO Shushan Aleksanyan said it was a great honour to issue the beautiful stamp, one of the year’s most anticipated releases in the philatelic world.

“We were all looking forward to this stamp. I want to emphasise that stamps are issued only for exceptional occasions, and this is precisely such an example. This stamp will travel around the world and tell the story of this momentous event, the commitments made within its framework and its mission,” she said.