SLK Recap 2022
As we finish another year full of exciting activities and projects, it is our pleasure to present to you a recap of all the work that we have done in 2022.
We began the year with the second part of the Green Hub Program, a program designed by Sustainability Leadership Kosovo (SLK) and delivered by professional experts in sustainability and ecotourism for the MSMEs in the tourism sector in Kosovo. This training program paid special attention to these key topics:
Global challenges and trends, opportunities and innovations in the tourism industry - which included knowledge and innovation trends and positive practices towards nature conservation, economic development, community empowerment and strategic enterprise development . We also supported the topics such as digitalization, business models, marketing & communications, financial opportunities, impact.
Through this program, we have trained 51 MSMEs of the tourism industry, coming from 4 regions in Kosovo (Mitrovica, Prishtina, Prizren and Peja), delivered 28 grants for sustainability interventions in their daily operations and 16 crowdfunding certifications for MSMEs.
In the beginning of 2022, SLK also further developed the partnership with Raiffeisen Bank Kosovo. Through our workshops we have worked, co created, brainstormed and reflected. We’ve analysed global sustainability trends, explored finance sector trends and sustainability opportunities, digging into the local context, transformational leadership.
After the continuation of the MoseMerrMalin project with Community Development Fund (CDF), SLK on April 22nd - Earth Day, kicked off the Phase #2 of the project with the #MoseMerrMalin tour.
The tour includes the workshops which cover various topics relevant to the phenomenon of deforestation, starting with general ones such as climate crisis, global warming and deforestation. So far the tour has been in Mitrovica and Prizren (Sharr) regions. On the 24th of April, we participated in the action of planting 450 trees donated by Food Agriculture Oorganization in Kaçandoll, Shala e Bajgorës, along with dozens of volunteers, as part of the activities for the Earth Day. In Prizren, we joined forces with Eja n'Sharr Fest / GoTo Sharr Fest in increasing citizens' awareness about the importance of our forests and the danger that threatens them. In October, we published our report on deforestation levels of Anamorava region from years 2000-2022 *(the first 6 months).
Through our launching events, we delivered the presentations on #MoseMerrMalin campaign and deforestation research analysis in Kosovo. We presented our journey and the steps that SLK, in collaboration with key partners, had taken to reach the stage in which we are now. The #MoseMerrMalin Pledge has already collected more than 75 signatures from all over the country, with many of the signatories being famous and public faces in Kosovo.
Currently SLK is in the process of planning for the Phase #3 of the project, which will focus in the innovative ways of afforestation and protection of Kosovo forrests with key partners.
SLK has also been active abroad, where in Algeria we have continued our work with the Youth Futures Program with Coventry University engaging local academia and NGOs in Leadership For Sustainability initiatives. Our focus is on solutions for waste - exploring local innovations from local change-makers.
Through this training with the facilitation of Ms. Indira Kartallozi, we have engaged with scholars, scientists, engineers, students and activists over the 5 day bootcamp to design solutions for waste. The University of Oran and Oran School of Economics gave us such a welcoming space and opened their doors to collaboration.
In June, our team participated in the SR-Net Program in Tirana together with other partners from the Western Balkan countries. This one-week regional cooperation program brought together the civil society organizations from Kosovo, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia to discuss some of the most important topics in the sustainability and engagement of young people in our countries. Topics which we covered were: Youth participation in the decision-making process; Scenario exploration system; EN- Roads - Stimulator for Climate Solutions, fundraising strategy; Art in youth activation.
Together with Global Albanians Foundation, in July we launched fundraising campaigns in Facebook, Paypal and website for the MoseMerrMalin project. For us to continue with the #MoseMerrMalin movement, we needed a specific workstation through which we would be able to process the data collected through satellite images.
After the successful three weeks fundraising campaign, we managed to fundraise more than 6,000 EUR, which helped us purchase the workstation equipment needed for the continuation of our work.
In our mission to boost sustainable efforts among business operations in Kosovo, in October we engaged four Diaspora Professionals, with diverse backgrounds covering the sustainability and environmental sectors, joined us in a three-day study visit with local businesses across Kosovo.
These visits gave our diaspora professionals the opportunity to understand more about the strategies, goals and business operations of these enterprises and opened the doors for further cooperation in the future.
As a leading organization in Sustainability, we have decided to start calculating and declaring our organization's impact on specific projects. This will help us understand and help us plan better to reduce the negative impact and join the global commitment for Net Zero Targets. During our three-day study visits in the region of Prishtina, Mitrovica, and Gjakova, the SLK staff, along with our professionals from the diaspora who have traveled to Kosovo to be part of the tour, have generated CO2 emissions that we have calculated to be an estimated amount of 2,914.5 kg CO2e or 2.91 t CO2e for all joint travels by plane, train, car, and bus.
In 7th of November, it was our pleasure to become the latest partners of the Municipality of Prishtina in the journey towards the green transition of our city through our Memorandum of Understanding.
We met with Mr. Perparim Rama, the Mayor of Prishtina, with whom we shared common ideas and goals for increasing green spaces in Pristina.
Through the cooperation and funding of the Presidency Office, we have developed the Ecoville Project, a project which brings together the students of the 6-7th grades to learn more about climate changes, global warming, human’s impact on the environment, ecosystems and biodiversity.
The workshops are a combination of educational lectures, conversations with students, art, and games. The first two workshops were organized in Fushë Kosovë and Prishtina.
In November, Sustainability Leadership Kosova launched the upcoming project "Youth for Zero Waste", powered by UNMIK, at the premises of Kosovo’s National Library, with participants from local enterprises, organizations, institutions, and activists.
During this event, we presented the "Youth for Zero Waste" project, which will take place in the areas of Prizren and Mitrovica and will be including youngsters from different ethnic communities in Kosovo.
In December, Sustainability Leadership Kosova signed an Agreement of Sponsorship with Front L.L.C., a leading local processor of interior and exterior materials. Mr. Jeton Veseli, the owner of the company is determined of making Front L.L.C. a pioneering company in the application of sustainable practices in our country.
Through this sponsorship, SLK will be supported in the continuation of the "Youth for Zero Waste" project.
