Tree of Friendship – Day Dedicated to the Youth of the Local Community in Borča

21 Nov Tree of Friendship – Day Dedicated to the Youth of the Local Community in Borča

In collaboration with the European Fund for the Balkans, the KROKODIL Association will plant 20 seedlings on Thursday, November 27th, at 11 AM in the green area behind the Jovan Ristić Elementary School as part of the Tree of Friendship campaign. We invite all interested citizens to join our planting action and all accompanying activities organized in cooperation with the local community to raise awareness about solidarity, support, and direct involvement in addressing common challenges.

After the planting, at 11:30 AM, the school’s students will watch the film “The Summer I Learned to Fly,” directed by Radivoje Raša Andrić, based on the book by Jasminka Petrović. The story follows Sofia, a girl who goes to her grandmother’s house in Hvar for the summer, where she discovers a family secret. After the film screening, pupils will have the opportunity to talk with young actress Klara Hrvanović, who plays Sofia, as well as with Marija Drndić and Milena Berić from the KROKODIL Association.

Following last year’s planting in 2023, the local community has actively engaged in maintaining the trees and improving the environment around the school, so this year’s planting is being held at their initiative. Accordingly, numerous day-long events will also be organized that day at the Tricky Art Studio located at Julije Delere 25a:

– Creative workshops (from 12 PM for children aged 7 to 10 years, and from 2 PM for ages 7 to 17)

-Drawing and painting school (from 4 PM, for ages 7 to 17)

-A children’s play called “Prince Simeon” for ages 7 to 10.

Registration is mandatory via the following email address: trickystudio011@gmail.com.

As part of the now traditional regional initiative Tree of Friendship, 550 seedlings will be simultaneously planted in 11 cities across the region on November 27th at 11 AM, as an example of regional cooperation and solidarity in raising awareness about the common problems of air, soil, and water pollution faced by Balkan countries. The goal of this joint planting is to demonstrate how individual responsibilities and public awareness about the seriousness of air pollution and climate change can lead to changes at both local and regional levels.

The countries of the Western Balkans have the poorest air quality in Europe, with citizens of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, Serbia, and North Macedonia equally exposed to air pollutants. The Tree of Friendship regional initiative is implemented by the European Fund for the Balkans in collaboration with the Eco Forum from Zenica, the Foundation for Development and Democracy from Sarajevo, the Institute for Environmental Territorial Management from Tirana, Karton Revolucije from Tuzla, Lets Du It from Peć, Green Renaissance from Peja, Air from Skopje, OZON and KOD from Podgorica, the KROKODIL Association from Belgrade, and the Urban Development Association from Bor.

“With our regional initiative Tree of Friendship, we primarily want to raise awareness among the citizens of our region about the consequences of their individual activities on nature pollution. Our cities have repeatedly appeared on the list of the most polluted cities in the world, and it is crucial to take joint and concrete steps to prevent this trend from continuing. Planting trees is one of the simplest examples of how we can do this,” stated Aleksandra Tomanović, Executive Director of the EFB.

We remind you that within this regional initiative, several hundred tree seedlings are traditionally planted in various cities in the region since 2023, and 100 trees have been planted in Belgrade so far.