Following the success of the first Energy Community (EnC) Summer School, which was held in Albania in 2016, this year’s summer program has been officially launched today in Ohrid. The EnC Summer School will last from 26 August 26 to September 2 and will be held in the Congress Center in Ohrid with study visits to important sights, such as the HPP Globochitsa.

The school will host 40 most qualified participants from 25 different South-East European  and EU countries, including lecturers from various European countries, who are renowned experts in the fields of energy and climate protection.

Aim of the summer school, among others, is to support the energy sector transition and EU integration process of South-East European (SEE) countries by empowering young people through education to support the processes, securing a sustainable future for all. This also includes providing a platform for knowledge and experiences exchange between EU and non-EU countries.

Opening speeches were held by the Dep. Prime Minister for Economic Affairs of Macedonia, Dr. Koco Angjusev and the Director of Energy Community (ENC), Janez Kopač.

Angnjushev, referring to Western Balkan countries in his opening speech stated, “We will be one energy market and the young generations are responsible for bringing this idea to fruition.” Janez Kopac – “You students bring the dynamics into the EnC and the EnC Summer School.”

“Understanding energy is too important to leave it to the specialists”

Dimitar Taskovski, Dean of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technologies in Skopje, and Dirk Buschle, the Energy Community Secretariat Deputy Director used the opportunity to introduce participants to this year’s program, officially initiating the second EnC Summer School.

Buschle highlighted that “Understanding energy is too important to leave it to the specialists or wait until late in your career. An Energy Community, or an Energy Union, can only thrive if the next generation is on board and understands at least the basics of energy policy. That is why we established the Summer School, and that is why we will continue with it. The second time round in Macedonia is a milestone for us”.

The program will focus on a variety of energy-related topics, ranging from economic, over legal, to political, but always with an accent on sustainability. It will also be a great opportunity for students to network with experts and academics while exchanging ideas, experience and best practices, and building important relationships.

Joachim Gaube, the Sector Fund Manager of the German GIZ Open Regional Fund for SEE – Energy Efficiency, used the opportunity to highlight the importance of the organization and provision of support for projects such as the EnC Summer School, stressing “there is an obvious need to support young people in the SEE region, potential new leaders of tomorrow, in establishing themselves as experts in their fields and leading the way to a better and sustainable future.”

The summer school is organized by the Energy Community Secretariat in cooperation with the Visegrad Fund, the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information Technologies in Skopje and the Open Regional Fund for South-East Europe – Energy Efficiency (ORF-EE), as implemented by the German organization Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).