The recently published research on the potentials for green growth in the City of Leskovac and the Municipality of Vlasotince was conducted as part of the “Green Blue Communities” project, implemented by EPuS Leskovac in partnership with the association “Rujnice” from Vlasotince. The research was supported through the Fund for Sustainable Local Development, managed by the Belgrade Open School within the “SDGs for ALL” Platform.
The purpose of the research is to provide development actors in the City of Leskovac and the Municipality of Vlasotince with a comprehensive insight into the possibilities of achieving local sustainable development through the localization of the green growth concept.
The objectives of the research are to: create a solid foundation for the development of strategic documents on green growth for the City of Leskovac and the Municipality of Vlasotince, enable a comprehensive and effective public debate organized for this purpose, and deliver well-founded, far-reaching initiatives for the improvement of public policies in these local communities.
The research process was conducted through desk research and the organization of focus group studies in Leskovac and Vlasotince, accompanied by the exchange of information and consultations with various local and other stakeholders from the public, private, and civil sectors.
The recommendations from the research outline the next steps that should be taken to turn the identified possibilities into reality. In this regard, it is essential to build a common understanding of the local foundations of green growth, to supplement existing local plans with a new, overarching, long-term planning document, and, above all, to harness the motivational potential of the ‘green growth’ concept to engage all local stakeholders in future activities, including the broader European promotion of this local orientation.