Safe and warm school for students in Stanari

Retrofitted building of the Elementary School "Desanka Maksimović" in the settlement of Ostružnja Donja through the LowCarbon project

December 31, 2023

The roar of smiling students in the corridors of the regional department of the Elementary School "Desanka Maksimović" in the settlement of Ostružnja Donja in Stanari is testimony to the positive atmosphere that prevailed here. Not so long ago, this school, which is mostly attended by Roma students, was threatened with closure due to extremely poor working conditions.

"We worked in a decrepit and devastated school whose windows could never be closed, and the classroom floors were made of rotten boards," recalled teacher Danijela Lazić Miličić.

Despite the difficult working conditions, the mostly female team at the school tried to provide the children with a safe place to stay and transfer knowledge in the best way. However, increasingly difficult working conditions disturbed the concentration of teachers and students.

"The school was in a ruined state that threatened to lead to the suspension of regular classes, and there was no talk of other forms of classes because the conditions were completely inappropriate and unworthy of the importance of children and the need for their upbringing and education," said school director Aleksandar Ristić.

Fortunately, the image of the dilapidated school in Ostružnja Donja will remain only in memory. The new school year brought a new scene of a fully decorated school building that many students call a second home.

The building of the regional department of Elementary School "Desanka Maksimović" was energetically renovated thanks to the project "Scaling-Up Investment in Low-Carbon Public Buildings in BiH ", financed by the Green Climate Fund (GCF), and implemented by UNDP in BiH in cooperation with and co-financed by the Fund for environmental protection and energy efficiency of Republika Srpska, as well as other partners in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

On the school building, the roof, roof structure and facade were replaced, efficient thermal insulation of the entire building was made, the central heating system was reconstructed, the external and part of the internal carpentry were replaced, and the flooring was replaced.

The renewed workspace has a stimulating effect on teachers, other workers, and students, whose motivation to work has increased significantly.

"Taking into account the social condition of children from sensitive categories who attend our school, the renovated facility is not only a place for them to acquire knowledge, but also an oasis of freedom where, in addition to teaching activities, they have free activities, sections and additional classes," said director Ristić.

Mothers of students who, due to poor financial conditions, are unable to provide their children with adequate conditions for learning and spending time at home, also showed great satisfaction with the renovation of the school.

Today's material and technical conditions in Elementary School "Desanka Maksimović" enable modern teaching, equal to the possibilities of educational systems in developed European countries. The energy efficiency of the building has a significant impact on the students' health.

The coldness and the smell of dampness are no longer felt in the classrooms. Better working conditions are additionally complemented by modern teaching aids, the procurement of which was carried out by the school management.

"In the past, we couldn't even hold regular classes because the cold or the wind blowing through the damaged woodwork would disturb us, but today we use modern teaching methods and modern technology. The children are satisfied, the parents are happy, and we teachers are full of enthusiasm", concluded teacher Danijela Lazić Miličić.

The goal of the project Scaling-Up Investment in Low-Carbon Public Buildings in BiH is to eliminate financial barriers to scale-up investment in public buildings, which contributes to the reduction of CO2 emissions, creates savings, creates new "green" jobs, and provides support for the country's economic development.

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