OSCE Mission to Skopje raises awareness on environmental issues among schoolchildren

SKOPJE, 24 September 2007 - Raising environmental awareness among schoolchildren of different ethnic backgrounds is the aim of an OSCE-supported project launched today in Skopje.

Under the project - a joint effort between local non-governmental organization Front 21/42 and the OSCE Mission to Skopje - schoolchildren from Skopje's Shuto Orizari and Butel municipalities will learn how taking care of the environment is important for their communities.

"Many communities are faced with problems pertaining to water supply, waste management and other environment-related issues. The lack of environmental awareness is the root of this problem," said the Education Development Coordinator within the OSCE Mission to Skopje, Alenka Verbole.

Ana Nikodinovska, Project Coordinator from the Front 21/42, added: "It is an important and necessary project as environmental awareness in the country is low and such activities make the community work together as a whole."

A special guide for children on how to take better care of the environment will be published as part of the project.