On November 8, 2018, the City Hall of Vorniceni village in Straseni district signed the Covenant
of Mayors, through which Vorniceni village officially commits to reduce CO2 emissions by 2030,
by at least 30% compared to the reference year 2016. On May 15, 2020 Vorniceni Village Council
approved the Action Plan on sustainable energy and climate of Vorniceni village. Among the local
development priorities in the Action Plan, Chapter 2.1 mentions the "Global CO2 reduction target.
" The main challenges of the community are a) renovation of public and residential buildings; b)
promoting the use of renewable energy sources.
At the same time, the initiative will contribute to improving local infrastructure and the quality of
public services. The functioning of educational institutions at high standards has the potential to
increase the well-being and reduce migration. Thermal insulation of the exterior walls of the
kindergarten will ensure the performance of educational activities in a safe environment for
children, especially in the context of the current pandemic crisis, when strengthening health is
imperative.
The project aims, in addition to the actual thermal insulation works, to contribute to informing and
educating the inhabitants in order to increase the degree of social responsibility towards the
environment and the rational use of resources (Focus-group information sessions). Located in the
center of the village and accessible to most villagers, Kindergarten No. 1 hosts over 100 children
and creates about 28 jobs (direct beneficiaries of the project), thus contributing to the
development of the local economy.
The project concept is in line with the provisions of the Country Strategy of the GEF SGP OP7
Program for the period 2020-2024, namely the Priority "Co-benefits of access to low carbon
energy, area of intervention 1. Promotion of energy efficient and energy-based technologies
renewable, providing socio-economic benefits and improving livelihoods. ? The implementation of
the thermal insulation activity of the external walls of the kindergarten will facilitate the reduction
of the consumption of traditional fuel, the reduction of CO2 pollution and the costs for heating the
building with about 40%.
Vorniceni commune has a sizable population for a rural locality, of over 5000 inhabitants.
The locality also has a considerable number of vehicles, factories (such as a wine factory,
a section of a wood processing company, an oil production plant, etc.) and non-residential
buildings, which condition the increase of CO2 emissions. Climate change threatens to
impede general activity of the locality, increases the possibility of extreme weather
conditions (drought, landslides and heavy floods) and poses a health hazard to the
inhabitants.
Chapter 2.1 in Vorniceni Village?s Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan (approved
by Decision 2/3 of Vorniceni Village Council) mentions ?Global CO2 reduction target? as
one of the local development priorities. The main challenges facing the community are a)
renovation of public and residential buildings and b) promotion of the use of renewable
energy sources. The plan helped calculate the heat consumption in the commune and
came up with proposals implementing renewable energy production methods, noting the
need for additional efforts to adopt an energy practice that is more sustainable in relation
to the current consumption. Vorniceni Local Development Strategy 2016-2020,
developed with the support of ?Migration and Local Development? project, implemented
by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) and funded by the Swiss Agency
for Development and Cooperation (SDC), provides for the thermal insulation of exterior
walls of Kindergarten no. 1 as a basic concern for the reference period.
Kindergarten no. 1 (two kindergartens are in Vorniceni) has a capacity of 120 children,
currently working in overcapacity, with 131 children (67 boys and 64 girls), with 12
educators (1 man and 11 women), 16 support staff (3 men and 13 women). The building
is very old, built in the 60's, and the costs for providing it with heat continue to be high for
LPA. The roof and the laundry room of Kindergarten no. 1 need repairs and the facades
need thermal insulation. A biomass boiler heats the kindergarten and installing solar
batteries with the help of external donors to heat the water is planned. In 2019, 4.88 tons
of pellets were consumed, for which the mayor's office paid 15611.5 lei, while in 2020,
4.98 tons were burned - 15866.39 lei. Thermal insulation of facades will allow a
considerable reduction in these costs.
Thermal insulation of external walls is also a primary need to reduce the risk of disease
in children, especially in the current risk conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Overall Objective: Raising awareness of the need to reduce pollution and promote
energy efficiency in rural areas through thermal insulation of the facades of Kindergarten
no. 1 in Vorniceni.
? Specific Objective 1. Thermally insulting the exterior walls of the Kindergarten no. 1 in
Vorniceni to reduce CO2 emissions and reduce thermal maintenance costs by 40% by 2022.
? Specific Objective 2. Increasing the level of information and awareness of the inhabitants of
Vorniceni village and neighboring villages (at least 2000 people) of the risks of carbon
pollution, sustainable development and importance of active civic involvement to mitigate such
risks by 2022.
? Specific Objective 3. Strengthening the partnership between civil society, LPA, the private
sector and the local community for the joint development of the energy efficiency and
environmentally responsible initiatives.
The overall objective of the project is in line with that of the SGP ? ?promoting and supporting
innovative, inclusive and scalable initiatives, as well as encouraging partnerships with the
involvement of multiple local actors to address global environmental issues in priority land/sea
landscapes. By means of the planned intervention we will not only contribute to the promotion
and implementation of energy efficiency, but will also facilitate the involvement of a diverse group
of actors at local level (civil society, LPA, business sector, local population). The innovation
brought by the project consists in combining practical work with the training and education of a
responsible behavior in relation to the environment and energy consumption.
The project contributes to the achievement of the Republic of Moldova's Climate Change
Adaptation Strategy by 2020 and of the Action Plan for its implementation; Environmental Strategy
for 2014-2023 and the Action Plan for its implementation; National Energy Efficiency Program
2011-2020; the Republic of Moldova Energy Strategy by 2030, etc.
Thermal insulation of the facades of Kindergarten no. 1 is a preliminary step to the roof change
activity, also included in Vorniceni Local Development Strategy. The experience gained at
Kindergarten no.1 is used as a precedent for Kindergarten no. 2 heating activities, where the
same problems predominate (but also for the mayor?s office building, the cultural center in the
village, etc.). This will ensure the sustainability of our project.
Other relevant documents to which the project is aligned are the Convention of Mayors of
November 8, 2018, signed by Vorniceni, by which the village officially undertakes to reduce CO2
emissions by at least 30% by 2030 compared to the reference year 2016 and the Decision of
Vorniceni Village Council 2/3 approving the Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan of the
village. Chapter 2.1 in the Action Plan mentions the ?Global CO2 reduction target? as one of the
local development priorities.
Finally yet importantly, the intervention contributes to the achievement of the UN Sustainable
Development Goals.
? Results. Lower CO2 emissions and lower costs of thermal maintenance of Kindergarten no. 1
by 40% by 2022;
? Intensified general level of awareness of the risks of carbon pollution, promotion of sustainable
development and importance of active civic involvement among the inhabitants of Vorniceni
and neighboring villages (at least 2000 people) by 2022.
? Established and strengthened partnership between civil society, LPA, the private sector and
the local community for energy efficiency.
Lessons learned. As a pilot project, its success offered the possibility to reproduce the concept in
other institutions in the commune, such as Kindergarten no. 2, House of Culture, Mayor?s Office,
etc. A public land has already been allocated for the construction of a photovoltaic park. The
sustainability of the project was ensured by the collective encouragement of the community to
take part in the work activities and to volunteer, including through the participation in the
implementation of Terra-1530 volunteers. The concerted involvement of the inhabitants ensured
the increase of the degree of responsibility towards the preservation of improvements brought to
Kindergarten no. 1 and provided durability for the intervention. The partnership established
between NGOs, LPAs, the private sector and citizens has provided experience and is an effective
exercise in preparing for future projects. The Mayor?s Offices of Panasesti, Galesti, Micleuseni,
Ghelauza, some economic agents, including individuals, have addressed us for help.
The project has positive effects on the health of children in the locality for many years to come,
as this solution is brand new and innovative for the locality.
The sustainability of the intervention is ensured by involving volunteers and promoting
volunteering opportunities among the inhabitants of Vorniceni commune, so that they can
dedicate themselves to the sustainable development of their own community in the future.
The partnership created between the associative sector, the LPA, the educational institutions, the
economic agents and the inhabitants serves as a foundation for future actions to improve the
quality of the environment.
If we knew that the prices of construction materials would explode, we would not even start this
project. Our tender coincided with the increase in the price of construction materials and all three
participants came with budgets 2 times higher than the project budget. We were saved by the fact
that one of the participants had two offers and one of them was convenient for us. It is about
"Galicus" LLC.
The pandemic is not over yet, and meeting people in focus groups has not been easy, even
though we provided them with protective equipment, such as masks and disinfectant. Many of
those we met did not want to put their signatures on those lists. The fear of Covid-19 will still
prevail in the coming years. Same with the volunteering. If citizens are afraid of Covid-19, they do
not come out of their houses. By the way, Vorniceni, like many other localities in Straseni, is
currently in the red zone. From now on, ?risks? will also refer to ?increase in the price? for
construction materials. We will look for 2-3 funders for the same project. We will apply for funding
together with 3-4 other localities. More people means higher resistance to difficulties.