Serbia
PREPARATION ACTIVITIES OF THE TCS TEAM
Serbian team implemented a lot of activities as followed:
Selection of the participants
The first activity was to choose the participants. They applied to a public call and then wrote their application letters explaining the reasons and motives that drove them to apply. The president of TCS and the leaders made a selection based on the qualities required for this project – love of nature, sport spirit, knowledge of English, previous participation in local environmental actions, willingness to learn, tolerance, team spirit, communication and organizational skills.
Once the team was formed and participants selected, we establish the time for weekly meetings, which was every Tuesday at 10.30 and started certain preparation activities concerning taking sustainable action.
Planting new trees
The first thing we did was taking part in a regional ecology action "Green regeneration" supported by the Ministry of
education and the Ministry of youth and tourism. This green initiative has the aim to raise awareness of the
importance of preserving our environment among the young people and to contribute to creating a cleaner and
healthier environment. The action took place on 22nd March 2024 and we helped plant 60 new trees.
Each participant created one or more logos for the logo contest, then we voted for the ones we liked best and chose
3 best logos to send to the contest.
Research from Participants
Interview with Mr Sladjan Djikic (Environmental Engineer)
Then we started our research on the topics of the project. We had the interview with the expert from the City
department for ecology and an engineer of environmental protection Mr Sladjan Djikic on 7th May. He presented us the results of his research on the topic of environment and through discussion helped us define the
key environmental problems in our area. His instructions helped us focus on 3 most important current problems in
Leskovac which are air pollution, illegal dumping sites and deforestification.
Research from Participants
The participants divided into pairs and each pair had one topic: sustainable food and cooking, effects of global
warming, sustainable practices and the biggest local environmental problem – air pollution. The whole team
discussed their progress in regular weekly meetings and gave suggestions.
Presentation in school: Protection of Bees
Cleaning the near Environment
We also wanted to take some action in cleaning the environment so we chose the famous picnic site on the Hisar hill. Young people and families with children like to go there for a walk or for a picnic, but very often they leave the rubbish after their stay. That is why we chose to go there and clean the area. The sight we found when we got there on 31st May was not a pleasant one. We brought the bags and cleaned the site, but also enjoyed the beautiful nature on a sunny day and the panoramic view of the whole Leskovac.
Sustainable Food
One part of the research showed that the nearby mountain Kukavica is the location rich in various kinds of
sustainable food. Mountaineering society Kukavica organizes the walking tours of the mountain, and also organized a
manifestation "Days of plants and mushrooms" on 8th June. We made a road trip to the slope of the mountain and
were part of this manifestation. The member of this society and biology teacher Ms Snezana Mitic introduced us to
the sustainable foods we can find there, mostly mushrooms, wild herbs, fruit and vegetables, and talked about the
biodiversity of this mountain, its flora and fauna. Besides wild sustainable food, we also saw the completely
ecological method of growing plants without any chemical additives. Finally, we saw a display of local organic food,
learned how to prepare different dishes from wild food and tried to identify variety of mushrooms collected there
Research that was done from the participants
Teams worked in different themes in their research and each team prepared research in the following themes:
(a) Effects of Global Warming
(b) Air Pollution
(c) Sustainable Food and Cooking
Posters Creation
Also participants the following posters which they will represent also in the YE in front of all participants and to have discussion about their work and worries.
