2016

Pigman starts his tour around Latvia to remind people about the significance of wood in our lives

On 26 July, Pigman (Cūkmens) known by many for his loud slogan "Don't litter the forest! You'll turn into a pig!" started his Pigman's Wood-Enthusiast Workshop tour around Latvia with an opening event held in Jelgava. In this tour Pigman will present Latvian cities with a wooden manifesto and will educate visitors on the wood as the best material in the daily life, as well as for construction.

During his tour, the popular forest friend will visit a total of five cities, where both the young and the old wood enthusiasts will have the opportunity to explore wood and its good qualities through various activities. At the Pigman's Wood Enthusiast Workshop guests will be able to make wooden toys, watch the animated short film Wood - a Healthy Material, as well as indulge in other activities. Children under the age of 10 are invited to take part in the contest Draw a Wooden Pigman. One of the works already in spring will turn into a real wooden sculpture of Pigman, which will be exhibited in Latvia's State Forests Nature Park in Tērvete.

Pigman always arrives with a bang, and the tour opening event in Jelgava was no exception. The friend and protector of nature arrived with his pig-mobile with howling sirens. Pigman not only had a friendly chat with the visitors, but he had also prepared a special gift to Jelgava - a wooden manifesto, which was presented to Rita Vectirāne, Deputy Chairman of Jelgava City Council.

Results of the public survey conducted by JSC "Latvia's State Forests" on the portal Mammām un Tētiem (For Moms and Dads) show that 65% of families would like to have more wood in their homes, since they consider wood to be an environmentally friendly, healthy, strong and beautiful material. It was told in the opening ceremony by Kristaps Ceplis, Board Member of the society "Zaļās mājas", architect Ervīns Krauklis and Ilze Jurkāne, a storyteller of Latvian tastes, in a discussion about the advantages of wood and its use in the daily life.

On 30 July, from 10:00 to 18:00 Pigman's Wood Enthusiast Workshop will take place in Rēzekne (Raiņa Street), where Pigman will present the wooden manifesto to Aleksandrs Bartaševičs, Chairman of Rēzekne City Council. This tour will take the most popular nature-enthusiast in Latvia to three more cities in different parts of Latvia: on 13 August to Valmiera, on 20 August to Liepāja, to close his summer tour on 26 August with an event in Riga, in Lucavsala Recreation Park.