Brčko youth for clean air

Nikolina is a second-grade student at the Agricultural and Medical High School in Brčko and she points out that before becoming a member of the local group of the “Youth for Clean Air” project she could not have even imagined impacting positive change in her community in a meaningful way.

“It sounded impossible that I would one day go to the Government and fight for rights and advocate, that I would move certain strategies and participate in a conference or a roundtable. I’m happy that as part of this project I have been able to learn how to achieve certain results, how to fight for my rights and the rights of all of us, how to approach the authorities in order to get answers and come to solutions”, says Nikolina, who has been fighting for clean air and the environment in Brčko for the past two years together with her colleagues Emir, Haris and Marija and biology professor Melisa Vejzović.

In partnership with UNICEF BiH and with the support of the Kingdom of Sweden, the Centre for Ecology and Energy has also been implementing the “Youth for Clean Air” project in Tuzla, Lukavac, Živinice, Ugljevik, Bijeljina, Sarajevo, Zenica, Maglaj and Kakanj. Emir and Haris, members of the team from Brčko, stress that establishing contact with young people from other cities is especially important:

“Getting to know young people from other cities, whom we met during joint events, has been very useful, we have helped each other, we have learned about the problems each of us face, we have exchanged experiences and have helped each other resolve problems. We have seen that we are not the only city with certain problems”, Emir says and goes on to explain some of the problems:

“The biggest problems that we were able to identify through our work are emissions from household heating as a major source of air pollution, together with the border crossing located in the centre of the city and traffic jams that develop there with lines of cars increasing the concentration of pm 2,5 and pm 10 particles. As for household heating, people are burning anything they can get their hands on, including car tires and waste, and this has a negative impact on the quality of air”. 

As part of the project, they also received a device for measuring air pollution which has revealed certain information previously not recorded and they have informed the public, but also the competent authorities about this:

“When we started with the measurements, we were surprised to see that the pollution values we recorded during November and in late December where at the same level as in Sarajevo. We measure pollution using a device we received as part of this project, it shows us when pollution is at its highest, and usually this is during the winter, just before the evening when people start heating their homes. We use our device to monitor all those parameters, we make records and analyse the data”, biology professor and project coordinator Melisa Vejzović says and adds that they are also connected to the LuftDaten application:

“Data from our station is always available, the local media keep track of the results through the application and report about them, and when we record higher values, we report that and alarm the public. We have detected the problem and presented the results and it is now up to the competent authorities to react adequately. We are currently working on ensuring that Brčko receives an official device for measuring air quality so that we are in step with other parts of the country”.

Nikolina adds that Brčko has a mobile station for monitoring pollution, but that it is currently not operational:

“We went to the Government and asked those responsible who told us that the station should become operational in the upcoming period. Until that happens, we have our device, we carry out measurements and inform the public”, she explains.

Members of the “Youth for Clean Air Brčko” team have worked in various ways in the previous period on raising citizens’ awareness about the importance of preserving and protecting the environment:

“As part of the project we also organized a street campaign during which we handed out LED light bulbs and worked on raising awareness through direct contact with the citizens. We distributed 100 light bulbs in one hour and there was great interest, we explained what is it that we do, who we are and the problem of polluted air to all those who approached our stand”.

They add that in addition to direct project activities, they also visit representatives of the authorities, organize presentations at the school, appear in the local media, run their Instagram page and implement other activities in an effort to raise awareness.  They are also active in the ecology club and try to include other students in their activities

“We held 16 presentations with the participation of 500 students during October alone. We held a presentation during the Open Doors Days, we also held lectures for students, sometimes we do this in the school hall and sometimes we attend homeroom classes. We talked about LED light bulbs, various appliances, energy savings, and during the Open Doors Days we talked about how polluted air affects out health. The Assembly supports us, its members supported our project and said that they are here for us, we also have strong support from the professors and students and the project can only go from strength to strength”, Nikolina, Emir and Haris explain and add that they also frequently appear in the media:

“Whenever we are invited, we do our best to respond and it was just last week that we were guests on a Radio Brčko programme during which we spoke about the project, what we have been able to achieve and the new knowledge we have gained”.

They are especially active on Instagram which they use to influence their peers and the public at large:

“Much of the content concerns our activities, but we also publish other content that can help us reach citizens, stir their conscience and we try not to be superficial. If we see a nice image of nature, we publish it, if we see a polluted part of Brčko, we photograph it, publish it and back it up with a message. We also organized surveys trying to gage how much the citizens know about air pollution, how much they want this problem to be resolved, but also to have a hand in finding a solution, many followers took part, the results are great, everyone wants something to be done, they only need to be spurred into action”, Nikolina says, who, together with her colleague Emir, is responsible for most of the content.

The entire team is looking forward to the closeout event of the “Youth for Clean Air” project set for 18 April in Tuzla during which young people from 10 BiH cities will present what they have been doing during the previous period. Nikolina will be representing the team from Brčko, she will be one of the panellists and will talk about the motivation for participating in environmental protection projects and activities:

“I will talk about motivation, why it’s necessary to be a part of this project, what are its positive aspects, why we need to fight for clean air, and the other panellists will talk about the activities we implemented, about the workshops, and this will be a good opportunity to exchange overall impressions and experiences”, Nikolina says and adds that she hopes that the young generations will continue activities they started as part of this project:

“I think that we all need to be environmentally conscious, to recognize the problems of the community and the problem of polluted air. We have many problems and this is a good way to promote ecology. There are many positive aspects of the project, you can learn how to converse, to present, expand your knowledge, how to behave in the media and give statements. It’s important to tell young people that there is really nothing to be afraid of, that the intention of the project is not to stifle anyone and that this does not carry a huge obligation. The project aims at broadening our knowledge, helping us to do something, becoming environmentally conscious and its worth trying. This is a good opportunity for anyone who would like to give it a go”.

Professor Melisa says that she is especially pleased with the fact that the project demonstrated that a group of young people, with good organisation and a bit of support, can initiate major changes in their local, but also the broader social community:

“Through our activities we have been able to impose ourselves as a factor. The first ecological conference titled Green Energy was recently held in the city, they saw us, they recognized us, and we were the only school that was invited to that conference, which means that they are following our activities. Other non-governmental organisations are also calling us, they see that we are active and people have heard of us because of this project”.

All members of the team attend the same line of study – environmental technician, and they point out that participation in this project further builds on everything they learn at school and also provides them with a space in which they can acquire many practical skills:

“We the environmental technicians take care of nature and the environment and when we received the invitation to join the project, we saw that as an excellent opportunity to try something new, to broaden our knowledge and participation in this project was entirely natural. The title of environmental technician provides many opportunities, we can test the quality of water and land, we can work in laboratories, but it also provides us with an excellent basis for any faculty of natural sciences, or any other faculty. This line of study offers many prospects, but most of the young people don’t even know that we have this line of study and it’s the only one in BiH which covers all aspects of ecology”; they explain.

Agricultural and Medical High School Principal Maja Ikić said that its very important that young people are getting engaged in such a way, that they contribute to the school and the community:

“Our school participates in many projects which the students implement together with their professors. Through participation in the project, the school received a device for measuring pollution in our city, measurements and analysis are performed daily and we contribute by providing information. Projects such as this help students better understand how and to what extent pollution is harmful, how it affects our health and the environment. They then share their knowledge with other students and raise awareness”.