Archives: Novice

9 December 2022 – The cooperation agreement between the stakeholders for one of the largest mobility projects in Slovenia, SmartMOVE, co-financed under the programme Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation, was signed by the representatives of Regional Development Agency of Ljubljana Urban Region (RRA LUR) in the role of the project promoter, and the participating organisations University Medical Centre Ljubljana, BTC Ljubljana, IKEA Slovenia, Studio Moderna and the Ljubljana Marshes Landscape Park.

The ceremony took place on the premises of Urban Municipality of Ljubljana. The signing of the agreement is one of the first key steps in enhancing sustainable mobility in the Ljubljana urban region, which faces heavy traffic and negative environmental impacts.

Realising that changes should be introduced, the above mentioned organisations joined the SmartMOVE project to develop effective measures for promoting the use of sustainable modes of transportation by their employees and visitors of the Ljubljana Marshes Landscape Park, an area of particular natural interest.

One of the most important solutions tested in the frame of the SmartMOVE project is an entirely new form of a sustainable and alternative mode of transportation to work. Marko Guček, CEO of the project partner GoOpti, which developed a dynamic platform for booking transportation to work, says that if the pilot project is well received by its users, it could grow into a commercial variety and the price of using such mode of transportation could be similar to the price of using public transportation.

25 November 2022 – An expert meeting ”Activating community to implement circular economy principles in Slovenia” took place at the Trebnik Mansion in Slovenske Konjice last Friday. Introductory remarks were delivered by dr Franc Trček, Secretary at the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy who took part in the discussion together with his colleagues at the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy. Dr Trček said: ”We’re excited about the StudioKroG project because it shows the right path and approach. This pilot project is implemented in the local/regional community and for its benefit and will continue to be implemented once the co-funding finishes. Sharing of expertise between the Slovenian and Norwegian partners makes such projects really important, also for the legislative and executive branch, as they provide an important insight and information on the necessary legislative changes needed to mainstream and upscale the results of pilot projects in different local environments.” 

The discussion revolved around the Circular Economy Action Plan that focuses on waste reduction, circular design and announces initiatives along the entire life cycle of products. The new action plan is one of the main building blocks of the European Green Deal, EU’s ambitious plan to make Europe a carbon-neutral economy by 2050 where resources are used efficiently and where economic growth is decoupled from the resource use.

The participants also took stock of the project’s progress made in implementing circular economy in practice through the reuse of discarded shipping containers for educational, tourism, business and other purposes. In order to establish partnerships between private and public stakeholders to increase circular use of resources, all key partners that were present at the meeting committed themselves to working together after the project completion. They signed an informal agreement to collaborate as a community on the basis of jointly identified challenges with the aim to ensure the durability and sustainability of the project and advance circular economy in Slovenia.

The expert meeting was held as part of the co-financed project StudioKroG. Its aim was to activate the wider community to advance circular economy principles. The meeting was attended by Mr Primož Poklič, Vice-Mayor of Municipality of Slovenske Konjice, mag. Aleš Brglez, Director of Slovenske Konjice Public Utility Company, Mr Jan Evensen, representative of project partner Fonix AS from Norway, mag. Zala Božič Strojin, circular economy manager for the City of Ljubljana, dr. Jure Kotnik, internationally renowned architect in the area of container architecture, associate professor dr Katja Pogačar, University of Maribor, Faculty of  Civil Engineering, Transportation Engineering and Architecture, and many other guests.

A study visit to Norway was held for project partners of the StudioKroG project in September. The partners got to see first hand what organisations do to encourage local communities to implement the circular economy principles in everyday life, and how reuse centres work together with local authorities.

In addition, the project partners learned more about an innovative project which involves the setting up of portable low-cost student housing structures using (discarded) shipping containers, and a university renovation project in which only old furniture was used. The project partners also visited a second-hand store which sells two-to-three year old mobile phones which are currently in demand. These project all testify that awareness is growing among people that the environment, and not the consumers, pays the highest price in the entire supply chain. Reuse as part of circular economy has been gaining ground and has become part of everyday life in Norway. It is almost a tradition, as the first circular economy models emerged already back in the early 1970s. The StudioKroG project adresses the issue of circular use of resources which puts at the forefront designing with waste and creative reuse to contribute to pollution reduction and climate change management.

As part of the Prometheus project, which is co-financed by the Norway Grants under the programme Education – Enhancing human capital and represents Norway’s contribution to a green, competitive and inclusive Europe, the project partners paid a visit to Norway last week to learn about good practices in balancing professional and personal life, get to know the different approaches to training employees and managers, and get an insight in the organizational cultures promoting gender equality.

The Norwegian partner in the Prometheus project, Norges Automobil-Forbund (NAF), prepared a rich programme that allowed project partners to gain valuable in-depth insight into the areas of work of five Norwegian organizations: NAF, Great Place to Work, Abelia, Innovation Norway and Geta.

The visit also focused on the legislative framework and legal guidelines that the Norwegian organizations follow in managing all aspects of employee relations, with an emphasis on the topics addressed by the Prometheus project. In addition, the participants were acquainted with the findings of a comparative analysis of the situation in Slovenia and Norway and discussed in detail the concept of remote work. The Norwegian organizations outlined the key areas of the so-called Scandinavian or Nordic model, giving concrete examples of individual organizations. The discussion also revolved around the Norwegian collective consciousness and culture, both largely based on trust, which manifests in every fabric of society.

This study visit and the good practices that were presented reaffirmed the strong bilateral ties between the Norwegian partner and the rest of the consortium, and was an excellent opportunity for partners to further strengthen their relations and cooperation.

14 November 2022 – Active Citizens Fund in Slovenia has launched the call for proposals for medium projects  aimed at medium projects in the four key programme fields – democracy, human rights including gender equality, social justice and climate change.

Total available budget for this call is 421,300.00 EUR. The applicants may ask for 100 % of an eligible expenditure of a project, ranging from 5,000 to 50,000 EUR. Project duration is limited to between 6 and 12 months. Application deadline is 23 January 2023 at noon (Slovenian time).

An informative online workshop will be organized to assist potential applicants. It will take place on November 24th at 10am via the Zoom app.

For more information about the results of the Call and the Active Citizens Fund in Slovenia visit the dedicated website of the Active Citizens Fund. Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy is not responsible for the call for proposals nor for providing any clarifications or interpretations regarding the documentation of the call for proposals.

7 November 2022 – Representative of the Programme Operator paid a working visit in the frame of the project studioKroG – Studio of Circular Economy, co-financed under the programme Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation.

As part of the whole-day visit and upon the invitation of the project promoter the Scientific Research Centre Bistra Ptuj and the project partner the Reuse Centre (CPU), the representative took a detailed tour of the already completed 1^st phase of project implementation, namely preparation of the terrain and placement of used shipping containers on supporters.

Both pre-selected locations – in Slovenske Konjice and Rogaška Slatina– are now ready for the implementation of the 2^nd phase of the project, namely arrangement of the surrounding area and the exterior of the containers in line with the reuse and industrial symbiosis principle.

See here for more information about the project.

2 and 3 November  2022 – National Focal Point attended a two-day communication workshop in the organisation of the Financial Mechanism Office in Brussels.

A two-day event, attended by more than 50 representatives of the National Focal Points, fund operators, embassies and the Donor States focused on #storytelling and best communication practice examples.

On the first, somewhat more theoretically oriented day, the participants were acquainted with good practice examples in the field of communication. A slightly more practically oriented second day served with  interactive group work.

We were happy to respond to the invitation of the Financial Mechanism Office and for the first time met in person in the pleasant atmosphere of the EFTA House in the center of Brussels.

25 October 2022 – We conducted an online workshop on reporting for Slovenian beneficiaries under the programme Education, Scholarships, Apprenticeship and Youth Entrepreneurship

In the first part of the workshop, the Programme Operator focused on the steps of the reporting process for Slovenian beneficiaries in the eMS and the reporting procedure for the Norwegian project partners  The Programme Operator also provided basic information about potential project changes and answered the beneficiaries’ questions regarding reporting.

In the second part of the workshop, the control unit answered the beneficiaries’ questions regarding the eligibility of expenditures and supporting documents.

19 October 2022 – The Programme Operator took part in an informal working visit to the Ljubljana Reuse Centre as part of the co-financed project StudioKroG.

The aim of the meeting was to present the cooperation with the public utility company VOKA-SNAGA and the Urban Municipality of Ljubljana specifically the implementation and understanding of circular economy principles in practice.

We took a guided tour of the work processes in the Ljubljana Reuse Centre (a tour of the circular waste management system of the waste that is included in reuse, material flow of various products, preparation for reuse, diagnostics, communication with users).

The visit also covered the presentation of the operation concept of the social enterprise Ljubljana Reuse Centre, the impact of RE-USE activities on  climate change mitigation and the possibilities for adaptation to climate change (establishing a new paradigm for achieving climate neutrality in the field of RE-USE).

For more information about the projects under the programme Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation, visit our website https://www.norwaygrants.si/en/projects/projects-of-the-programme-climate-change-mitigation-and-adaptation/.

18 and 19 October 2022 – The Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy hosted a two-day Technical meeting of the EEA and Norway Grants 2014-2021.

The meeting, which took place in the premises of the Government Office for Development and European Cohesion Policy, mainly focused  on the review of the implementation of the EEA and Norway Grants in Slovenia, specifically on reviewing the status of projects under the programme Education, Scholarships, Apprenticeship and Youth Entrepreneurship, the presentation of the procedure for irregularities and the implementation of the Fund for Bilateral Relations.

For more information about the projects under the programme Education, Scholarships, Apprenticeship and Youth Entrepreneurship visit our website https://www.norwaygrants.si/en/projects/projects-of-the-programme-education-scholarships-apprenticeship-and-youth-entrepreneurship/.