From solar savings to school democracy, 2,370 students in the Western Balkans are turning climate lessons into action: shaping local policy, improving infrastructure and inspiring regional change.

In the bright hallway of the Hasan Kikić Elementary School in Gračanica, in Bosnia and Herzegovina, a 12-year-old student carefully separates waste into paper, glass and plastic bins. It is a small gesture, but part of a much larger transformation sweeping through classrooms across the Western Balkans.

From a solar-powered air filter built by students in Kragujevac, Serbia, to energy-saving renovations in Elbasan, Albania, students across the region are shaping responses to climate crisis.

“After the workshop where we learned about climate change and solar panels, I realized how important it is for us as students, to contribute to protecting the environment” explained Arvina Berati, a student at the Elbasan elementary school “Ptoleme Xhuvani”

What began as a series of green energy workshops, has grown into a region-wide civic energy democracy program spanning over 2,370 students and 313 school staff across Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Serbia. Backed by the OSF–WB, the initiative aims to equip students with both technical knowledge and civic skills, needed for a just, inclusive energy transition.

How Students Are Turning Climate Lessons into Action

“This project enables us to have clean energy, and we can rebuild the student toilets with the funds we created,” said Mirens Cela, a student at Luigj Gurakuqi elementary school in Elbasan, Albania.

In Elbasan, students, teachers, parents, and local officials have come together to review progress and manage solar savings. The Elbasan municipality already saved €7,000 generating surplus electricity for the national grid while reinvesting funds into school improvements.

“This project is an extraordinary opportunity for our school, not only because it reduces energy costs, but also because it teaches students in a practical way about the importance of green energy and sustainability”, said Nevila Duli, principal at the “Sulejman Rranci” elementary school in Elbasan.

Meanwhile in Serbia’s town of Kragujevac, the “Protectors of the Air” team from the elementary school “Natalija Nana Nedeljkovic” won first prize at a Bazaar of Green Ideas for their self-sustaining air filter for factory chimneys.

“A clean environment is key not only for public health but for overall well-being,” said Milica, a 7th-grade student in Serbia.

In the town of Gračanica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Hasan Kikić school’s leap into electricity production earned it national recognition, as the country’s first officially designated energy prosumer school.

Through hands-on workshops, school competitions and civic forums, students are building an understanding of solar energy and climate science. Across the region, they are developing skills in project planning, advocacy and budgeting and are participating in real-life decisions about how solar savings should be spent.

After the workshop where we learned about climate change and solar panels, I realized how important it is for us, as students, to contribute to protecting the environment”, said Arvina Berati, from  Ptoleme Xhuvani elementary school, in Elbasan.

Local Ownership in the Green Transition

“For us parents, this preservation of the budget makes a real difference,” said Roalba Peqini, a parent in Elbasan. “The savings help improve conditions for our children while our income remains low.”

In North Macedonia, the program also empowered women: of the 139 school staff trained, 132 were women, boosting female leadership in the energy transition.

In Kosovo, training sessions for school leaders spanned generations,  with participants aged 25 to 65, developing fundraising strategies and local energy projects.

“We see it not only as innovation but also as a realized project,” said Principal Nevila Duli said. “It produces clean energy and improves quality education. It’s an investment in the future.”

The program’s approach, integrating solar installations, student engagement and school-level forums, is designed to be replicated. It reflects OSF–WB’s belief that the green transition must be development-driven, locally owned and rooted in democratic participation.

“The City of Kragujevac now has 11 public institutions equipped with solar PV systems,” said Ana Radojević, the city’s energy manager. “We will continue on this path.”

As the EU defines its climate pathway, the students of the Western Balkans are showing what a just, inclusive energy transition can truly look like.

“We hope to use the funds collected from energy savings as an investment in the construction of a gym”, Xhensila Halili from Elbasan’s Sulejman Rranci school said.

Step inside the classrooms where energy democracy and communities own and manage their own power.