Jaan Eilart (24 June 1933 – 18 May 2006) was an

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

cultural historian Cultural history combines the approaches of anthropology and history to examine popular cultural traditions and cultural interpretations of historical experience. It examines the records and narrative descriptions of past matter, encompassing the ...

and conservationist. Eilart was born in Pala, Kirna Parish,

Järva County Järva County ( et, Järva maakond or ''Järvamaa''; german: Jerwen; la, Jervia) is one of 15 counties of Estonia. It is situated in the central part of the country and borders Lääne-Viru County to the east, Jõgeva County to the south-east, ...

. In 1957 he started teaching

conservation Conservation is the preservation or efficient use of resources, or the conservation of various quantities under physical laws. Conservation may also refer to: Environment and natural resources * Nature conservation, the protection and managem ...

as a subject in the Tartu State University. In 1958 he established the Tartu Students' Nature Protection Circle ( et, Tartu Üliõpilaste Looduskaitsering; TÜLKR), which is allegedly the oldest student's community dedicated to conservation, and in 1966 he established the Estonian Nature Conservation Society (; ELKS). In 1969 Eilart led the establishment of

Lahemaa National Park Lahemaa National Park is a park in northern Estonia, 70 kilometers east from the capital Tallinn. The Gulf of Finland is to the north of the park and the Tallinn-Narva highway (E20) is to the south. Its area covers 747 km2 (including 274.9&nbs ...

which was the first national park in the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

. Later he also instructed the establishment of national parks in Komi,

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...

and

Tajikistan Tajikistan (, ; tg, Тоҷикистон, Tojikiston; russian: Таджикистан, Tadzhikistan), officially the Republic of Tajikistan ( tg, Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон, Jumhurii Tojikiston), is a landlocked country in Centr ...

. Eilart held the chair of Eastern-European Committee of IUCN from 1982 to 1990. He died, aged 72, in Tartu.

References

1933 births 2006 deaths People from Türi Parish 20th-century Estonian botanists Phytogeographers Estonian conservationists Nature conservation in Estonia Cultural historians University of Tartu alumni Academic staff of the University of Tartu Burials at Raadi cemetery Recipients of the Order of the White Star, 3rd Class {{Estonia-botanist-stub