The project “Civil Society Organizations as a Communication Bridge between Citizens, Public Authorities and the Business Sector in the Process of Electronic and Electrical Equipment Waste Management” is the result of three years of experience of the Belgrade Open School (BOS) and previous initiatives of BOS, the Heinrich Bell Foundation and GM Optimists, which have promoted civil society organizations as a valuable public administration partner and a key player in improving the implementation of a sustainable environmental policy at the local level. 

The partnership of the local self-government with civil society organizations proved to be a successful means for efficient implementation of laws, norms, and values in the field of the environment at the local level, but also for raising civic awareness of the importance of responsible attitude towards the environment and natural resources.

The project “Civil Society Organizations as a Communication Bridge between Citizens, Public Authorities and the Business Sector in the Process of Electronic and Electrical Equipment Waste Management” has been carried out through the following activities:

• Consulting workshops in Kragujevac, Valjevo and Gornji Milanovac dedicated to the improvement of the electrical waste management policy from at the local level;
• Researching the public opinion about the level of familiarity with the legal framework, domestic and European practice, as well as information on rights, obligations, and guidelines for solving the problem of electronic and electrical equipment  waste management;
• Drafting a concise policy paper that will offer concrete policy recommendations for the successful electronic and electrical equipment waste management;
• Distribution of a concise policy paper to interested actors in Serbia;
• Public events in three targeted local governments dedicated to the promotion of sustainable waste management policy.

The project has been implemented from March 15 to October 15, 2011, in Gornji Milanovac, Kragujevac, and Valjevo.

The Heinrich Bell Foundation and the GM Optimist Association have been the partners on this project.

As the result of the project, a publication entitled “Sustainable E-Waste Management in Serbia” has been published, which you can download HERE.