June 28, 2015 | Sunday
The EU Office in Kosovo and the EU Information and Cultural Centre joined the set of activities organised across the EU to raise awareness on climate change issues.
Students from the green clubs presented their inspiring work on environment through short videos, pictures and power point presentations. They highlighted the positive action that is being taken in their schools in promoting the need for protecting the environment, like waste recycling, cleaning of school yard, collecting garbage from the streets, turning out lights when classrooms are not in use etc. The EU Office and the EUICC delivered some environmentally friendly EU promotional material to schoolchildren, including waste baskets for five participating schools.
On the occasion of EU Climate Diplomacy Day, the Acting Head of the EU Office Thomas Gnocchi said: “The EU takes environment protection and climate change very seriously. Here in Kosovo the EU is actively engaged in a number of activities addressing climate change challenges. To this end, the EU is providing substantial support in decommissioning of Kosovo A power plant amounting to over 60 million EUR,” said Gnocchi in front of green clubs of five primary schools from Pristina and Obiliq.
“Around €17 million of EU funds were spent on implementing energy efficiency measures in public buildings in different municipalities across Kosovo. The EU has co-financed with €14 million the implementation of the ‘co-generation’ project which connects Pristina district heating network to combined heat and power unit at Kosovo B power plant so the heavy fuel oil is no longer used for district heating services”, Gnocchi added.
In continuation of the Climate Diplomacy day celebrations, EUICC in cooperation with the French Embassy and the EU Office in the evening screened the French documentary ”Think global, act local” by French director Coline Serreau, examining the global environmental and food production problems and offering realistic solutions to protect our health and the future of the planet.
“The film highlights the efforts made by the protagonists to initiate changes and try out new alternatives. It is calling us, to be a positive agent of change, transform our way of life, consume more reasonably and save energy. Kosovo society, just as all other countries of the world, needs urgently to find to take the right decisions and find the best solutions to build a healthier environment for the next generations,” said the French Ambassador to Kosovo, Mrs. Maryse Daviet.
Both events took place in view of the Climate Change Summit 2015 in Paris and as part of the EUICC campaign on environment and health.