The Belgrade Open School implements the "Green Schools for Youth Employability" project in cooperation with The National Youth Council of Macedonia (North Macedonia), Bonevet (Kosovo), Reset - Center for Sustainable Energy Transition (Sarajevo).
The project aims to contribute to informing teachers, parents, and students in schools about the importance of climate justice, participation in energy policy and democratization; to contribute to the self-sustainability of schools through the improvement of fundraising and advocacy capacities and to provide mentoring support to schools for active participation in decision-making processes at the local level.
The project will support a total of twenty-one schools. When it comes to Serbia, the activities will be carried out on the territory of Valjevo in six elementary schools:
- Prva osnovna škola Valjevo
- O.Š. Vladika Nikolaj Velimirović
- O.Š. Nada Purić
- O.Š. Milovan Glišić
- O.Š. Andra Savčić
- O.Š. Stevan Filipović, Divci
The main activities of the project include:
- A promotional campaign aimed at informing the general public and presenting the key results of the project;
- As part of the project, training on project writing will be held, which will include empowering schools to get involved in projects, self-initiatively expand cooperation, and be active not only in project teaching but also in projects similar to the Belgrade Open School. Training would include (staff, principals, teachers, students, and parent committee members).
- Development of regional manuals: manuals will cover training topics, provide tools and methods, with practical examples, as well as "how-to" recommendations that can help schools develop small projects, conduct fundraising activities, or advocate for energy independence of their school;
- Six community forums: in each school, all users will have an equal right to participate, set priorities, and decide where the electricity savings will be allocated.
All mentioned activities will be implemented by the project team of the Belgrade Open School, with the support of trainers and experts who will provide mentorship to all users involved in the project.
The project will be implemented from August 1, 2023, to July 31, 2024.