Equipped with special equipment, 50 young people from the Republic of Moldova went from house to house in 80 households, where during the month of December they performed an energy audit while offering appropriate recommendations.
The students, trained by specialists in the field, measured the surfaces where the heat leaves and the cold enters the home, the humidity, and the level of ventilation, of CO2, they ascertained the presence or absence of mold and, respectively, offered the appropriate consultation for the situation.
These are secondary school students from 8 localities – Andrușul de Jos, Constantinovca, Vișniovca, Pruteni, Grătiesti, Chișcareni, Șoldănești and Chișinău – who are part of the Green School, a project created in 2022 by the Alliance for Energy Efficiency and Renewables (AEER), in collaboration with the Association of Environmental Journalists (AJMTEM).
The information activity of the 80 households was carried out in the project of the Association of Environmental Journalists, “Energy efficiency – we keep the heat, reduce the bill”, as part of the program “Together we support the vulnerable population affected by the energy crisis”, financed by the European Union, implemented by People in Need Moldova.
“What surprised us the most is that houses built in a traditional way, old, retain the heat best, and have the right level of humidity. People were very excited that I came to them, they were curious to see the devices we used, what we can test, what are the standards in their homes, and what are the average admissible standards”, said Marius Gavriliță, one of the members to the “Green School” team from Grătiesti.
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“What these young people have done is of great importance and impact on the population. Initially, when I saw the concept, I was skeptical about the students’ interest, then I was very interested in how young people would be involved in this activity. Today, however, I feel very impressed – really, very good things have been done” – noted Vladislav Scripniciuc, project coordinator at People in Need Moldova, during the students’ awards event.
For her part, Irina Plis, executive director of AEER, mentioned that the activity of the Green School was also noted abroad – 6 countries of the Eastern Partnership expressed their interest in taking over this experience. “It is already two years since we started this wonderful journey with the ‘Green School’ and now we already see that the students have increased their ability to understand energy aspects and are sharing the knowledge in the community. This experience is worthy of being replicated on a regional level as well”, said Irina Plis.
“From this experience, we learned the lesson that we need to have more faith in young people and their potential – they got involved with enthusiasm and responsibility, beyond our expectations, which gives us high hopes for the future of this state,” concluded Lilia Curchi, executive director of the Association of Environmental Journalists.
For their involvement and contribution to informing citizens about the measures to overcome the impact of the energy crisis, the young people received diplomas, prizes (LED table lamp and external disk, energy efficient), and their schools received a voucher worth 5500 lei each for the lighting improvement in a classroom.
For any clarification, information, or details, please contact Lilia Curchi, executive director of AJMTEM, +37376778700, or leave a message at ajmtem@gmail.com