With total funding of more than 1.5 million RON, the fifth round of the Environmental Platform for Bucharest, initiated by the Bucharest Community Foundation and supported by ENGIE Romania, develops and supports initiatives that contribute to solving major environmental challenges, from energy-efficient schools and work spaces and circular economy centres to educational gardens and dedicated spaces for urban biodiversity. Transformations in schools, the Botanical Garden and the Circular Economy Center offer Bucharest residents direct opportunities for practical learning and active involvement in the community.
Developed by non-governmental organisations with support from local authorities and communities, the project aims to turn a school into a model of energy efficiency, to educate people about energy efficiency in buildings, to reduce waste and support vulnerable communities, to create an ecological hub and to plant mini-forests in schoolyards. Each initiative benefits from funding between 230,000 and almost 270,000 RON and the projects are planned to be completed throughout 2025. Currently, they are at different stages of development and implementation.
The “Gardens of Knowledge” project, implemented by the Association of Botanical Gardens in Romania and funded with 250,000 RON, restores the vitality of the “D. Brandza” Botanical Garden in Bucharest, transforming it into an educational and ecological hub of biodiversity open to the general public. Through this project, the association transforms three areas covering a 2,900 square metres surface: The Historical Garden, the Children’s Garden and the Italian Garden basin. The initiative includes eight workshops dedicated to adults and children, as well as volunteering activities. The Historical Garden is designed for educational activities dedicated to children and students, ensuring tables, benches and a library for visitors, while the Children’s Garden proposes an educational journey to explore plant structure, both above and below ground. The works include four areas with honey plants to attract pollinators, a collection of aquatic and marsh plants in the basin, as well as a 70 square metre composting area.
Through the project “A helping hand for the environment and Bucharest“, the Eco-Durabil Association contributes to reducing textile and electronic waste in the capital, a major source of long-term pollution, through reuse and redistribution to vulnerable communities, promoting circular economy and sustainable consumption. With funding worth 250,000 RON from ENGIE Romania through the Environmental Platform for Bucharest, the association has extended the capacity of the first Integrated Circular Economy Centre, a dedicated space for collecting and repairing donated items, and opened a charity shop at the same location in Calea Plevnei where it operates. Through the funding received, the Circular Economy Centre has evolved from a volunteering-based space into an active and sustainable structure. In addition, the centre benefits from comfortable working conditions throughout the year, regardless of season. In just six months, the centre has collected 2,180 cubic metres of donations from 2,600 people, and the charity shop has generated more than 24,000 RON in revenue, which will be directed to social causes.
The “EcoSchool 206” project approaches the issue of high energy consumption in schools and underlines the necessity for education in the renewable energy field. With a grant of 268,000 RON from the Environmental Platform for Bucharest, the CSR Nest Association is transforming Bucharest’s Secondary School No. 206 into an energy efficiency and experiential/practical learning model. Photovoltaic panels have been installed to generate green energy, thus reducing the school’s grid consumption by 12,000 -14,000 kWh per year, which represents approximately 12% decrease of the used energy. Additionally, an energy efficiency lab was created, where students, teachers, and the school community can benefit from practical learning about solar, wind, and hydro energy, promoting ecologic habits and responsible consumption. The lab will be open to other students across Bucharest during Green Week, Alternative School week, and other educational events. Overall, the project aims to attract 690 students from Secondary School No. 206, 2,000 students from other schools in Bucharest, and 260 teachers and support staff every year.
The “Education and practice in energy efficiency in buildings” project, developed by the association Viitor Plus with a grant of 232,000 RON, addresses the problem of the energy inefficiency of buildings through a mix of education and practical action. The project started with the thermic rehabilitation of the “Cloth Workshop” and “Recicleta” (600 square metres), which employs 70 people and which has become an energy efficiency model for the community. This renovation will be integrated into educational tours focused on sustainability, while the association will promote energy efficiency among teachers, through a plan and training sessions on climate change. Furthermore, the association will mobilise authorities and experts to identify solutions to improve the efficiency of school buildings in Bucharest and Ilfov. By the end of the 2024-2025 school year, the association aims to offer lessons on energy efficiency to 30,000 students and to discuss practical solutions with 20 school principals and 10 representatives of the authorities.
In addition to the four environmental initiatives in Bucharest, ENGIE Romania also supports the “Mini-forest in the schoolyard” project, initiated in Galati by Global Water Partnership Romania, with funding worth 250,000 RON. The scope of the project is to increase biodiversity by establishing mini-forests with local species in schoolyards in Galati. Starting in November 2024, 90 students from the Radu Negru Technological College and other schools will participate in educational workshops to create mini-forests with surfaces between 800 and 1,500 square metres, equipped with irrigation and environmental monitoring systems. At the same time, the association will distribute a mini-forest maintenance guide to at least 30 institutions, as part of the initiative aimed to promote best practices in the growth and conservation of biodiversity.
“We are happy to see the fifth round of projects from the Environmental Platform for Bucharest come to life, delivering not only environmental benefits but also valuable learning and engagement opportunities for Bucharest’s residents. Students across the city now have access to experiential lessons, either in their schools or in the heart of the city, at the Botanical Garden. The transformation of the Circular Economy Center and the improved working conditions in protected units provide new ways for residents to actively help reduce waste and support vulnerable communities”, says Alina Kasprovschi, executive director of the Bucharest Community Foundation.
”Supporting these projects reflects our strong commitment to protect the environment and the communities we are part of. Together with dedicated partners, we are joining forces to build a cleaner and friendlier future for generations to come through concrete and sustainable actions. We support energy efficiency initiatives that contribute to reducing resource consumption and at the same time we promote circular economy and urban biodiversity. ENGIE’s involvement in projects that drive meaningful change in the medium and long term is essential in our strategic vision to achieve Net Zero Carbon by 2045, a goal that defines our direction and reaffirms our commitment to a sustainable future”, said Nicolas Richard, CEO of ENGIE Romania.
The Environmental Platform for Bucharest is a strategic program initiated by the Bucharest Community Foundation together with ING Bank Romania, that supports collaboration between non-profit organisations, public authorities, civil society, businesses and citizens to create a common environmental vision for the city. Launched in 2021, the Platform aimed to address the city’s environmental problems through three key areas: research, funding and collaboration. It collected data and concrete examples to understand the environmental challenges and solutions proposed by civil society, mobilised financial resources to implement and scale them, and created a framework for collaboration between NGOs, private companies and the public administration. In its first three years, the Platform has funded 36 projects with over ten million RON.
