Blog - NIIT Center

Final confernce of the project “FOREST” was held on 19th March

The final conference of the project “For everyone saved a tree” was held through the ZOOM platform on 19th March .

Due to epidemiological measures and bans, the conference brought together 100 participants online and some Bulgarian participants offline. The introductory speeches of the project partners referred to the goals and results of the project, indicating that cross-border cooperation between Serbia and Bulgaria in the field of nature protection is very important and should be a priority. Also, experts agreed that the idea of ​​a database containing photos, descriptions and plants of the cross-border region is an important and useful thing for all youngsters, students or professors.

Botanists, ecologists, and other experts from Serbia and Bulgaria addressed the participants with interesting presentations on the anthropogenic influences of man on nature and pathogens that attack plant species.

In addition to the scientific work, there was talk about long-term strategies for involving young people in nature protection activities, but also about the potential future cooperation of all project partners

This project is organized by the NIIT Center for Social Innovation from Nis, together with “YMDRAB” from Bulgaria as well as the Forest Institute. The project is co-financed by the European Union through the Interreg-Ipa Bulgaria-Serbia Cross-Border Cooperation Program.

Opening of the second exhibition “For everyone saved a tree”

The opening of the second exhibition within the project “For everyone saved a tree” was held on 16th March at the primary school in Vrtište. Students and others interested had the opportunity to see the exhibition until 22th March.

Respecting the epidemiological measures, experts in the field of forest protection addressed all visitors and professors of the school and explained the importance of environmental protection. In addition to experts and professors, the students of the school in Vrtište also addressed the exhibition, who were participants in the project and shared their experiences with other visitors in an interesting way.

More than 400 young people from Nis and Bulgarian cities participated in the project, and 50 young people, aged between 13 and 18, were involved in each activity.

This project is organized by the NIIT Center for Social Innovation from Nis, together with “YMDRAB” from Bulgaria as well as the Forest Institute. The project is co-financed by the European Union through the Interreg-Ipa Bulgaria-Serbia Cross-Border Cooperation Program.

Herbarium exhibition were held in botanic community center in Trupale

The opening of the herbarium exhibition was held at the community center in Trupale, on 10th March. Visitors had the opportunity to see this exhibition in the community center until 16th March.

The exhibition is part of the cross-border project “For everyone who saved a tree”.

The project aimed to involve young people and experts from Bulgaria and Serbia in joint activities and promote the importance of the environment as a key factor for the sustainable development of the cross-border region between the two countries.

At the opening of the exhibition, experts from the field of ecology and botany addressed the visitors and shared their experiences from this project. In addition to the experts, the opening of the exhibition was attended by several project participants who had the opportunity to see what the herbarium they made in previous activities looks like.

This project is organized by the NIIT Center for Social Innovation from Nis, together with “YMDRAB” from Bulgaria as well as the Forest Institute. The project is co-financed by the European Union through the Interreg-Ipa Bulgaria-Serbia Cross-Border Cooperation Program.

 

Another weekend in nature for elementary school students, this time learning about forest pests and plant diseases

What pests and diseases threaten trees and plants, the primary school students from Trupale learned in theory and practice this weekend, say the organizers from the Center for Social Innovations NIIT. Their weekend, they add, started in the nature of Niška Banja, and ended at the foot of Suva planina.

What does it look like when a plant is attacked by a pest or disease and which of them exist – were the topics of the first day of the weekend in Niška Banja, which were prepared by lecturers for the students of the biological section of the Primary School “Prvi maj” from Trupale.

The students also learned which plant diseases are the most common and what are the most common parasites in the border region of Serbia and Bulgaria, according to the organizers.

At the presentations of botanists and entomologists in Niška Banja, they saw bark beetles, insects that are the biggest pests of coniferous forests, but also oyster beetles – they explain from NIIT.

They did not hide their impressions from the lessons in nature, so as some of the students say, the walkthrough nature additionally interested them and encouraged them to renew their theoretical knowledge from the previous day.

The most interesting thing for me was when we went to Vrelo in Gornji Dusnik, where the first in a series of mills in this village is located. Along the way, we saw various plants and animals that are actually parasites and damage to forests. Also, we saw different plant species that we heard about in previous activities, so it was not a waste to renew our knowledge – says student Neda Stanojević.

According to the NIIT, the young people took photos and recognized the pests and diseases of plants that will enter the database on the type of flora in the cross-border region of Serbia and Bulgaria.

In the previous weekends, the primary school students also learned about herbaceous plants, forests and endangered species in nature classes within the EU cross-border cooperation project, in which the partners are NIIT Center, YMDRAB from Botevgrad, as well as the Forest Institute from Sofia.

The project is co-funded by EU through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria–Serbia Programme.

This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria-Serbia Programme, CCI No 2014TC16I5CB007. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of NIIT and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union or the Managing Authority of the Programme.

 

 

Elementary school students learned about endangered plants in nature, made a garden in the school yard

Twenty-five students from Trupale were able to learn all about the protection of endangered plant species last weekend in the nature of Niška Banja, through a walkthrough Lalinački slatina. The crown of this gathering, organized by the Center for Social Innovations NIIT, was the renovation of the garden in the yard of the school “Prvi maj”.

That the protection, location and preservation of endangered plant species are important for biodiversity to survive, showed the students of the biological section, who studied with experts in botany and plant protection and found endangered and plant species that are characteristic of Slatina areas.

The route took them from Lalinacka slatina, one of the largest at the foot of Mali Jastrebac, as described by the organizers, all the way to the schoolyard, where they had fieldwork with the help of experts.

They planted sage and Rtanj tea seedlings. Each of them had their own task, so some dug and prepared the ground for planting, others planted and then together they watered only the planting of seedlings – they add from NIIT.

Thus, with their will, desire and willingness to do something useful for their school and the place where they grow up, they proved that young people still strive for true values, care about preserving the planet Earth, but also want to be educated on topics related to nature protection. assessed from the NIIT.

For many elementary school students, this, they say, is their first botanical experience.

The most interesting thing during this project for me was when we planted sage seedlings in the school tree yard, because that way we help the local community, but also plants that are on the verge of extinction. I also liked it when we were in Lalinacka slatina, because it is a protected natural asset and I was surprised when I heard that some plants grow only on that land and nowhere else in Serbia “- explains student Stefan Krstić.

This activity, as well as the one in which students learned about herbaceous plants and forests, was organized within the EU cross-border cooperation project, in which the partners are NIIT Center, YMDRAB from Botevgrad, as well as the Forest Institute from Sofia.

The project is co-funded by EU through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria–Serbia Programme.

This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria-Serbia Programme, CCI No 2014TC16I5CB007. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of NIIT and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union or the Managing Authority of the Programme.

Last weekend, the students also learned about forests in nature and collected plants for the herbarium

From lectures by botanists and experts in the field of forest protection, last weekend students from Trupal and Nis continued collecting plants for the herbarium in nature near Niška Banja and online socializing with peers from Bulgaria, say the organizers from the Center for Social Innovation NIIT.

In addition to new knowledge about woody and shrubby plants, 25 young people shared their experiences with Bulgarian partners and students from Botevgrad at a virtual conference, organizers say.

The focus of the activity was on touring the surroundings of Nis, so the students had the opportunity to visit Kamenički Vis and the Cerjan Cave, as well as to see and learn the flora characteristic of the vertical arrangement of forests. Forests of beech, oak and cera, but also hawthorn, black wormwood and frost, are just some of the plant species that students had the opportunity to see – they say from NIIT.

The indispensable part of the weekend and socializing with young people passed with the sounds of the guitar, and this activity was organized, the organizers add, at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic brings isolation and alienation.

Like last week when young people studied and socialized in nature, this week’s activity was organized within the EU cross-border cooperation project, in which the partners are NIIT Center, YMDRAB from Botevgrad, as well as the Forest Institute from Sofia.

The project is co-funded by EU through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria–Serbia Programme.

This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria-Serbia Programme, CCI No 2014TC16I5CB007. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of NIIT and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union or the Managing Authority of the Programme.

 

Collecting herbariums – a return to nature in the age of the Coronavirus

Twenty-five founders from Nis and Trupal spent last weekend in Niska Banja, where they learned about different types of forest herbaceous plants, ferns and mosses, along with lectures by botanists and experts in the field of forest protection.

In addition to online lectures by Serbian and Bulgarian experts on the most widespread plants, mosses and plants in the Serbian-Bulgarian cross-border region, the focus of the activity was the creation of a herbarium of herbaceous plants collected by primary school children during the activity.

Collecting plants in Niška Banja, as well as a tour of the Jelašnica and Sićevačka gorges are a unique opportunity to show young people the natural habitat of endemic plant species such as Ramonda serbica and Ramonda Natalija, about which they do not know much today.

“At a time when Covid brings general alienation and the inability to be far from his hometown, we organized an activity in which children had the opportunity to stay in nature and return to the original values ​​of the planet and learning about plants. At the same time, they learned something “I was most impressed by the opportunity to share their experiences online with Bulgarian partners, at a virtual conference that, in addition to acting like a SF film, proves that information travel and nature know no boundaries,” explains Nikola Markovic, project coordinator. .

This activity was organized within the EU cross-border cooperation project, in which the partners are NIIT Center, YMDRAB from Botevgrad, as well as the Forest Institute from Sofia.

 

 

The Kulina site is available to visitors after 1,500 years

The archeological site of Kulina in the village of Gradište in the municipality of Merošina will again be available for visitors, but this time, they will be able to “walk” through the site via 3D animation, thanks to the project of the National Library.

“Near Merošina, there is the historical-archaeological site of Kulina, which dates from the 6th century AD, from the time of the Roman Empire and the famous Emperor Constantine, who was born in Nis and by recognizing Christianity, forever inscribed Nis, Serbia in the cultural map of the world. The head of Empress Theodora was found in Kulina. Visitors are also interested in this site, but it is so devastated, collapsed, even though it was discovered 40 years ago, that there is nothing to see there, “said the director of the National Library in Merošina, Miloš Milošević

The project is co-funded by EU through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria–Serbia Programme.

This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria-Serbia Programme, CCI No 2014TC16I5CB007. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of NIIT and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union or the Managing Authority of the Programme.

Serb-Bulgarian friendship and learning about ecology and nature

High school students from Nis High School “Svetozar Markovic” and Medical School, last weekend in Etropole had the opportunity to attend ecology workshops organized by NIIT from Nis and YMDRAB from Botevgrad.

In addition to the opportunity to learn about ecosystems, protected species, negative human impact on forests, the Suva Planina, students also had presentations of Niš and their schools.

At a time when climate change is having very big impact on human life on Earth, 25 students from Niš had the opportunity to meet their peers from Bulgaria and learn through this non-formal education about this important topic. 

In addition to informal learning, the participants had the opportunity to visit the Monastery in Etropole and get acquainted with the natural beauty in which it is located. After a three-day training course, all participants received certificates and became „allies in preserving the planet“.

This training course was organized as part of the EU Cross-Border Co-operation Project, which partners with NIIT Center, YMDRAB from Botevgrad, and the Sofia Forest Institute.

The project is co-funded by EU through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria–Serbia Programme.

This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria-Serbia Programme, CCI No 2014TC16I5CB007. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of NIIT and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union or the Managing Authority of the Programme.

50 students planted hundreds of maples in Bobovište

Students of Nis Medical School, as well as Svetozar Markovic Gymnasium and Gymnasiym from Botevgrad, planted hundreds of maple seedlings together in the Bobovishta area.

50 young people from Nis and the Bulgarian city joined and greened the section between the highway and the roadway, and their action took place over the weekend.

The focus was on afforestation, but the students also had the opportunity to learn about the types of seeds and seedlings, as well as to socialize through educational games, quizzes and fun during the evenings.

  • The point of this story is getting to know neighbors’ cultures and connecting young people on a good mission are the ground of the idea of the project. “For everyone who saved the tree”. When forests are burning all over, and humans have a negligent relationship to nature, at least as much as we pay attention to the importance of what the planet gives us and what we ruthlessly steal from it.” says project coordinator Nikola Markovic.

This youth action was organized as part of the EU Cross-Border Co-operation Project, which partners with NIIT Center, YMDRAB from Botevgrad, and the Sofia Forest Institute.

 

The project is co-funded by EU through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria–Serbia Programme.

This publication has been produced with the assistance of the European Union through the Interreg-IPA CBC Bulgaria-Serbia Programme, CCI No 2014TC16I5CB007. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of NIIT and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union or the Managing Authority of the Programme.