Overall twenty new or revitalized green places will be soon created in Slovakia. In the 15th years of the programme Green Belt planting new trees and green vegetation out will be financed by a grant of the total value 60 000 E. The winners of the programme Green Belts will divide this amount of money among them.

The 15th years of the programme Green Belt consisted of the overal 166 applications; the professional committee has choosen 12 winners; the general public has choosen 8 projects by voting; and more of 37 thousand people has taken part in voting. These are the current figures of the grant – aided programme Green Belt. Ekopolis Foundation and the company Slovnaft has systematically been supporting the creation of green areas and community cooperation through the programme Green Belts for fifteen years. The professional committee has choosen twelve projects from the overall presented projects which received a direct financial support. Another 28 projects which have been divided according to Slovak regions have competed for the pubic support. A record number of votes 37 285 votes have decided on the winners this year.

The projects with the greatest voting number in each region has been granted the financial aid. To winner projects belong, for example: The first project is about planting fruit parkway close to the village Zálesie. The second project is about transformation the neglected area „Budy“ in the centre of Žiar nad Hronom into a small public ecocentrum. The third project is about planting a parkway consisting of 120 woodplants out in the surrondings of tourist trails of the village Kladzany.

„More than 37 thousand votes show that the general public is interested in environmental issues and they are also interested in ideas of diligent people or organizations who know and want to work with green spaces in cities,“ says Ľubica Štúberová, from Ekopolis Foundation. The main goals of the programme Green Belt is to plant trees out and contribute to the support of local biodiversity; retaining water in the countryside; and other green measures. “We are happy of the results which we have achieved so far and which will increase in the amount now,“ Štúberová adds

The competing part of the programme Green Belt was finished by public voting on the web page www.oazy.sk. Overall twenty winning projects will change into Green Belt across the whole Slovak republic until the end of October 2021. You can find the complete list of the supported projects HERE.