LocationsSarajevo Film Festival, Green Club and UNDP: Regional Cooperation Is Key to Tackling Climate Change
August 19, 2026
he Green Club and the Sarajevo Film Festival, in partnership with and with the support of UNDP in Bosnia and Herzegovina, organized the international conference “Climate Change and Green Transition – Regional Cooperation within the Green Agenda for the Western Balkans.”
The conference was held at the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Participants and guests were welcomed by Saša Magazinović, Member of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina and President of the Green Club; Renaud Meyer, UNDP Resident Representative; and Jovan Marjanović, Director of the Sarajevo Film Festival.
Held in the context of the 32nd Sarajevo Film Festival, one of the region’s largest cultural events, the conference provided an opportunity to discuss the impacts of climate change and the importance of collective action. It brought together members of parliament and green parliamentary groups from across the region, representatives of the cultural sector, executive and legislative authorities, leaders of private and public companies, members of the diplomatic corps, international and non-governmental organizations, and activists. Participants emphasized the need for stronger regional and broader cooperation to translate commitments into concrete action to protect the environment.
Saša Magazinović, Member of the House of Representatives of the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina and President of the Green Club
“The Sarajevo Film Festival shows us every year just how connected our region can be when people come together around something positive. We should all learn from this, particularly at a time when it is easier for decision-makers to talk than to act. Climate change, however, does not respond to words and promises, but only to concrete action.
At a time when differences rather than similarities, and problems rather than solutions, are being emphasized, the message we want to send from this conference is precisely the opposite. We promote cooperation across the region, but also concrete action that delivers results. Climate change knows no national borders,”
said Magazinović.
“For several years now, the Sarajevo Film Festival has been measuring its impact and using the results to change the way it operates. CineLink Industry Days served as our pilot and has been certified as a sustainable event for the past two years. We are now gradually extending this experience and methodology to other parts of the Festival, while working to make our measurements even more precise.
At the same time, we are already seeing very tangible results. Today, around two-thirds of our guest transport fleet consists of electric vehicles, which alone reduces CO₂ emissions by almost eight tonnes during the Festival. In cooperation with the Government of Sarajevo Canton, we provide free and enhanced public transport during Festival evenings. We are also increasingly using LED lighting, our accreditations are digital, we have significantly reduced printed materials, and we separately collect five types of waste at Festival venues,”
said Jovan Marjanović.
Jovan Marjanović, Director of the Sarajevo Film Festival
He added that he believes the Festival’s greatest potential lies not only in how much it can reduce its own environmental impact as an organization.
“Tens of thousands of people pass through the Festival, and it can serve as a testing ground for different ways of doing things. If we can show that a major event can operate with fewer cars, less plastic and waste, and more responsible use of resources, perhaps we can also influence people’s habits beyond those eight days,” he said.
“This partnership has now become a tradition, with one shared goal: to raise awareness and mobilize the public, but also to accelerate Bosnia and Herzegovina’s green transition and make it more effective, because we all know how urgently action is needed. We recently witnessed the wildfires in Croatia, which affected the tourist season and severely impacted local communities. Today, we are here building on the Sarajevo Film Festival’s efforts to be not only a film festival, but also a green film festival. I believe this sets an example for the country, the region and the world. We must not forget that each of us has an individual responsibility to contribute to climate action by changing our own behaviour and habits,”
said Meyer.
Renaud Meyer, UNDP Resident Representative
Meyer also noted that tomorrow, Wednesday, 19 August, at 12:00, the awards for the best projects under the “Films for Future” programme will be presented at Festival Square, recognizing the creators of the best video reels promoting creative expression and raising awareness of environmental protection.
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