Workshop at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering

On 6 December 2018, a workshop entitled ‘Educating an ecologically responsible citizen’, held on the premises of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of the University of Banja Luka, gathered 35 participants who were introduced with the concept of ecological responsibility towards nature and social phenomena.

Prof. Goran Latinovic, PhD, Vice-Rector for Scientific Research and Development of the University of Banja Luka, said that the workshop had been held within a COST project gathering 80 universities from 37 countries.

‘This has only been the fourth workshop within this project, and this is an event of great significance in terms of both the University of Banja Luka and the Republic of Srpska itself, given the number of countries taking part in it’, pointed out Prof. Latinovic, commending Prof. Mirjana Zabic, PhD, of the Faculty of Agriculture, for her efforts in organising this workshop. 

Prof. Petar Gvero, PhD, of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, said that the workshop was aimed at improving innovative aspects in the field of education.

‘This workshop is designed to gather various professional profiles, with issues discussed demanding a holistic approach, which should help us raise awareness in people on the necessity of this topic in terms of catching up with the trends in the EU regarding the matter’, said Prof. Gvero, highlighting the importance of introducing these issues from early childhood on.

‘The topic of ecology may be formally covered in the educational apparatus, but it is questionable whether the approach to it is an adequate one’, concluded Prof. Gvero.

Sinisa Skondric, PhD, assistant professor at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Banja Luka, said that the workshop was important for the development of education in the field, due to raising awareness on the matter of following the principles of any organised eco-system.

‘Those eco-systems have evolved over time, they have their function which we must understand and not disturb – we must exploit them in a viable manner’, pointed out Prof. Skondric, emphasising the need for this topic to be further pronounced in school education.

In addition, Prof. Skondric said that the young should be inspired to critically view these issues and offer solutions for possible problems.

The workshop was organised by the University of Banja Luka, within the scope of a COST project entitled  ‘European Network for Environmental Citizenship CA16229’, and it was also attended by representatives of local self-government units, educational institutions, non-governmental organisations and alike.