The event was organized by the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat in co-operation with the Ministry of Culture, Television and Radio Broadcasting of Turkmenistan.

The festival, which was the first of its kind in Turkmenistan, was open to the general public and was well attended by students from various university faculties, government officials and the scientific community.

"The underlying theme of all the films is the increasing awareness and growing concern about modern civilization harming our environment and the need to preserve nature for generations to come," said Ambassador Arsim Zekolli, the Head of the OSCE Centre in Ashgabat.

"The status of the environment will have a direct and imminent impact on our future. The heritage of nature, clean water, air and land is something that is our natural right, but also an obligation and duty to be passed from one generation to another."

The film festival formed part of the Centre’s efforts to raise awareness on prevailing global environmental threats and promote the media as a viable means for stimulating public discussion on these matters.