Energy Efficiency Advisory Centres

Description:

Financial support: project is sponsored by EU-DG Environment operational grant \"AGREE.NET\".

Partners: CEETZ (Bosnia and Hercegovina), Za Zamiata (Bulgaria), DOOR (Croatia), Green Energy Network (Hungary), Proaktiva (Macedonia), FOCUS (Slovenia), Ecoclub (Ukraine).

Description: This is an ongoing information exchange/capacity building project to encourage and support the development of Advisory Centres offering practical and sound advice to the public on energy efficiency measures.

In 2006 and 2007 the Energy Club organized field trips for AGREE.NET members to introduce the concept and get them on the way of developing their own. Participants visited successfully working Advisory Centres operating in Hungary and Slovenia and had the opportunity to share experience on the subject. This exchange paved the way for more efficient preparation of such a service in participants’ country of origin.

Indeed in 2007, in Ukraine, the Ecoclub started operating its EEAC in Frebruarz 2007 to offer free, impartial advice to homeowners, local institutions and small business on all aspects of energy efficiency. The Energy Advice Centre cooperates closely with all local authorities in the region to help decrease the amount of energy used in the region and to reduce CO2 emissions. 2007 also saw the foundation being set for the first Energy Advisory Center (EAC) in Bosnia and Herzegovina in the form of a virtual/online EAC, as a useful and necessary step towards providing proper energy-related education to the Bosnian public. In Macedonia the official opening of the MEEAC activities took place in September 2007. Advice is mainly provided by telephone, E-mail and visits to the centre by the general public.