Green Futures, Brighter Beginnings
Localizing the SDGs for Climate Resilience and Children’s Rights in Serbian Municipalities
- Srpski
- English
Every child deserves to grow up in a warm, safe, and sustainable home. Yet energy poverty threatens the well-being of thousands of vulnerable children across Serbia. Through this UN Joint Programme (2025-2026), UNICEF Serbia, UNEP, and UN-Habitat worked with 14 municipalities to tackle energy poverty, strengthen local governance, and ensure that the green transition leaves no child behind.
Supported by the UN Joint SDG Fund, this initiative has equipped local governments with the tools, knowledge, and financing strategies to build more resilient, inclusive, and child-friendly communities.
About the project
Energy poverty remains a critical challenge in Serbia, affecting thousands of vulnerable households, particularly those with children. When families cannot adequately heat their homes or afford basic energy needs, children's health, education, and overall development suffer. At the same time, many Serbian municipalities lack the governance frameworks, technical capacities, and financial resources needed to effectively address energy efficiency and localize the Sustainable Development Goals.
The UN Joint Programme "Green Futures, Brighter Beginnings: Localizing the SDGs for Climate Resilience and Children's Rights in Serbian Municipalities" was implemented from February 2025 to February 2026 to address these interlinked challenges. Led by UNICEF Serbia in partnership with UNEP and UN-Habitat, and financed by the UN Joint SDG Fund, the programme worked with 14 Serbian municipalities to strengthen local governance systems, enhance community engagement, and improve public financial management for sustainable development.
The programme worked on a simple principle: give local governments the right tools and engage communities - especially young people - directly, and sustainable change follows. When municipalities can plan better, manage their budgets more effectively, and tap into new financing, they can address energy poverty in ways that benefit children and vulnerable families most. Youth volunteers became champions of change, bringing energy-saving solutions directly to households while building a model for civic engagement that municipalities can sustain.
Our work supported local governments in aligning with five Sustainable Development Goals: affordable clean energy, sustainable cities, climate action, strong institutions, and partnerships for change.
Good Advice Can
Warm Hearts and Homes
Zablace, Goricani, Cacak, November 2025 - “Everything I do, I do for them. And because of them, of course,” says Danijela Krivokuca with pride. A single mother of six, she welcomed volunteers from the Cacak Red Cross at the doorstep of her modest home in the village of Zablace. On cold November days, she works even harder to ensure that her children — from a seven-month-old baby to a 17-year-old — stay healthy and do not have to play, study or sleep in cold rooms. The family stopped using electric heaters because they simply couldn’t warm the entire house.
Every Child Deserves
a Warm Home
Makoviste, Donja Polosnica, Kosjeric, December 2025 - “My strongest impression is that we should help as much as possible in situations like this, and be present, and truly aware of everything that is happening,” says 18-year-old Nevena Sredic after visiting ten socially vulnerable families with multiple children in villages around Kosjeric, together with her peer and namesake, Nevena Jakovljevic. In Makoviste, the two volunteers saw first-hand the challenges faced by the Mijajlovic family, who heat only their living room in an unfinished two-storey house.
Project Partners
Implementing UN Agencies:
- UNICEF Serbia (Lead Agency)
- United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
- United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat)
Funded by:
- UN Joint SDG Fund
Government Partners:
- Ministry of Mining and Energy
- Ministry of Public Administration and Local Self-Governance
- Agency for Spatial and Urban Planning of the Republic of Serbia
- 14 participating local self-government units across Serbia
Civil Society an Implemntation Partners:
- Red Cross of Serbia
- RES Foundation
- Standing Conference of Towns and Municipalities
