US embassy to cooperate with local environmental protection organization
Greek environmental organization Ecogenia announced on Wednesday its upcoming collaboration with the US Embassy in Greece within the framework of the “From California to Olympus” project, focusing on mobilizing young people to build it climate resilience at local level in the country, in a period when the climate crisis and natural disasters are a matter of the highest priority for Greece
The program has as its central pillar the two-month educational mission of a group of volunteers from the California environmental protection agency (California Conservation Corps), the largest and oldest environmental protection corps worldwide, in order to exchange knowhow and obtain training on preparedness in the field, such as creating fire protection zones, cleaning flammable biomass and education of the local community regarding prevention in the areas around the Olympus National Park, in central Macedonia.
The project includes the creation and dissemination of a practical manual for how municipal and regional authorities can utilize the model of “social service” and in turn create local project teams for projects resilience, specifically around prevention and relief from disasters.
Finally, with an emphasis on the new generation and the acquisition of green skills that meet the needs of the labor market for the green transition, the program will culminate in a Green Jobs Fair, in collaboration with Deree, the American College of Greece, where companies from the private sector and agencies will have the opportunity to chat with new talent in the field of sustainable development.
“In a particularly difficult period of time, such as the one we are going through in the wake of disasters of last summer, the cooperation with the US Embassy will strengthen both the programmatic and strategic work of Ecogenia so that it continues to empower local communities through climate resilience, and of including the new generation at the forefront of climate action,” said co-founder of the organization, Erika Spagakou.
In an era of successive crises, the fight against the climate crisis is significant opportunity for global strategic partnerships that drive innovation, attract new jobs and investments and improve everyone’s quality of life, Ecogenia noted.
