12 January 2024 – On Thursday, 11 January 2024, project partners presented the progress and results of the Green Penguin project at the press conference in Kranj. The project is co-financed by the Norway Grants under the programme Education, Scholarships, Apprenticeship and Youth Entrepreneurship.
The Green Penguin project aims to reduce emissions, preserve the environment and reduce costs for individuals and communities. The project addresses energy consumers, encouraging them to change their habits and take on the role of engaged citizens. They are expected to actively contribute to energy efficiency and to participate in the creation of carbon neutral cities. Green Penguin presents itself as a change leader, a facilitator, a friend and a visionary. This modern-day influencer runs a platform that teaches children, students, parents, organisations and even entire cities how to reduce their emissions using fewer resources.
The Green Penguin project brings together five project partners from Slovenia and Norway. The project promoter is Iskraemeco, and the partnership is rounded off by the Municipality of Kranj, the Municipality of Ljubljana, Association DOVES – FEE Slovenia (EcoSchool) and the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) Norway.
On behalf of the host, Janez Černe, Vice-Mayor of the Municipality of Kranj, welcomed the participants. He presented the municipality’s activities in the field of Green deal and its efforts to implement green policies in many areas – from transport, infrastructure construction to tourism. He is convinced that this area will be one of the key challenges in the years to come, which is why they are trying to attract and enthuse citizens to participate as much as possible.
On the project promoter’s side, Mojca Volf, Project Manager, and Nejc Šubic, Head of the technical part of the platform development, presented the idea of the project and the functioning of the digital platform and its functionalities. They highlighted how it allows children to monitor and record their activities, how they can combine/link the collected data with data on energy consumption and resources of school and other buildings. At the same time, they emphasised how simple tasks and competitions with peers allow children to gain practical knowledge on how to reduce their carbon footprint in their daily lives, encourage sustainable action and raise awareness of the importance of protecting the environment.
Municipality of Kranj, included in EU Mission 100 climate-neutral and smart cities by 2030, is actively pursuing sustainable, green and smart city development. Tomaž Lanišek, Head of the Office for Development and Smart Communities, presented the key steps in the field of sustainability policy and placed The Green Penguin project in the broader context of the municipality’s activities and plans in the transition to a carbon-neutral city.
The Green Penguin primarily connects schools but can also be used to connect/integrate other public infrastructure. Environmental education starts with children and extends to adults, with the ultimate goal of an engaged community that makes a significant contribution to improving quality of life and encouraging behavioural change.
Gregor Cerar, National Coordinator of the EcoSchool project, DOVES – FEE Association and Marija Fabčič, Head of the Department for Pre-school Education and Education of the Municipality of Ljubljana, emphasised the importance of The Green Penguin project in the field of education. The project focuses on pupils in three pilot schools in the Municipality of Kranj and three in the Municipality of Ljubljana and has a positive impact on the educational process. They explained how the project has contributed to a better understanding of the challenges posed by climate change.
The Green Penguin project reflects its importance through a number of references. It became the winner of the Climathon Ljubljana 2020 challenge, was ranked among the TOP 3 most transformative ideas of 2020 at the Global Climathon and received the most votes from the public among 107 competing ideas. The Green Penguin was among the TOP 3 finalists of the Nordic Smart City Challenge 2021, won the EEPA awards in Slovenia and Europe in 2021, and was awarded the Regional Gold Award for Innovation 2022, as well as the Regional Recognised for Innovation Challenge 2022.
Sourse: Zeleni pingvin