Urban Fruit Orchards in Lučenec Receive the Title of TOP Project 2024 and Launch a New Grant Cycle

The Urban Fruit Orchards in Lučenec have been awarded the prestigious title of TOP Project of the Green Oases Grant Program 2024 for their effective collaboration between the civic and public sectors. As part of the award ceremony, the 19th cycle of the grant program, jointly run by the Ekopolis Foundation and Slovnaft, a.s., was launched. In the new cycle, €62,000 will be distributed among high-quality projects. Local governments, nonprofit organizations, schools, and community centers are invited to apply for grants.

The Green Oases Grant Program has supported over 420 green projects over the past 18 years. These projects serve the public while strengthening relationships among members of local communities who have brought them to life. The extensive list includes newly created or revitalized green spaces, parks, gardens, tree alleys, and educational trails across Slovakia.

“In 2024, 24 projects were supported with a total amount of €59,000. This resulted in the planting of 801 trees, 1,775 shrubs and plants, and 3,125 meters of tree alleys and avenues. A total of 1,024 volunteers contributed 2,825 hours to these projects,” said Ľubica Štúberová, Program Manager of the Ekopolis Foundation.

TOP Project 2024
The title of TOP Project in the 18th edition of the Green Oases program was awarded to the project Observing the Life of Bees in Our Orchard, implemented in the municipal orchards of Lučenec.

“The municipal orchards were revitalized by the city of Lučenec in collaboration with volunteers and secondary schools starting in 2021. This previously neglected space has been transformed into a community zone where children and youth from primary and secondary schools, seniors, and the general public from the surrounding area come together. The orchards are a place for discovering plants, trees, and animals that grow and live there,” said Ľubica Štúberová. Local residents built an educational beekeeping site, an outdoor classroom, and over four years planted 180 fruit trees and 60 shrubs.

“The title of TOP Project in the Green Oases program is annually awarded to an initiative with significant societal impact. The municipal orchard in Lučenec is an exemplary case of effective collaboration between the public and civic sectors. Numerous individuals have contributed to its implementation as volunteers or continue to support its development. The result is a space that not only serves the city and its residents but also welcomes schools from the Lučenec area for educational purposes and provides training for gardeners. Such a TOP project can serve as inspiration for others,” added Anton Molnár, spokesperson and Director of Communications at SLOVNAFT, a.s.

The award also includes a financial prize of 1,000 euros.

Theme of the 19th Green Oases Program: Youth “Together” Can Achieve Great Things
The new cycle of the Green Oases program has embraced a timely theme. “We live in a time when it is essential to seek opportunities for collaboration and mutual support. The younger generation often brings innovative and bold ideas. When combined with the practical experience of older generations, this can result in projects that are meaningful, innovative, beneficial for the climate, and sustainable. By supporting young people and young families in realizing their ideas, the Green Oases program simultaneously fosters a stronger connection to nature and teaches attentiveness and care for their immediate surroundings,” explains Anton Molnár.

The 19th year of the Green Oases grant program aims to engage young people who recognize the impact of climate change on our environment and have ideas to help make it more resilient, greener, and more diverse.

“The Green Oases program aims to encourage young people to gain the courage to bring their ideas to life, to start creating or protecting a healthier environment, to learn how to collaborate across generations, to gain practical experience, to build partnerships with more experienced individuals, to develop a sense of responsibility for a better future, and to experience the joy of success from their own realized ideas,” concludes Ľubica Štúberová.

Municipalities, cities, non-profit organizations, schools, and community centers, along with volunteers, can apply for funding for green planting and revitalization projects in 2025. In the 19th edition of the Green Oases grant program, the best projects will share up to €62,000. The maximum grant for a single project is €5,000.

The call for project submissions is open until January 20, 2025.

Supported projects can begin implementation as early as spring 2025.

More information is available at www.ekopolis.sk/zivotne-prostredie/zelene-oazy.