SPARE coordinators from 11 countries have in the end of April been gathered for international SPARE meeting in Karaganda, Kazakhstan. The coordinators have been discussing results and development of educational and practical energy activities. The activity of SPARE is higher than ever, with 3 000 schools and 150 000 pupils participating in the project during the educational year 2007-2008.
A pleasant part of the meeting programme has been to announce winners of the annual international SPARE competition. 43 works nominated from 10 countries attended the competition, which had climate change and reduction of greenhouse gases as main theme.
During the stay in Karaganda, the coordinators have also been visiting practical energy projects implemented by the host organisation, Ecoobraz. During a trip to the city Shakhtinsk outside Karaganda, two schools that have implemented windows restoration projects were visited. Educational buildings of Kazakhstan have in general windows of very poor conditions, and the indoor temperature during winter period goes down to 5-10 degrees.
School number 15 of Shakhtinsk will improve almost all windows of the school, and the work has already started. By changing broken glasses, sealing glass to the frame by silicon, and by adding special weather strips to the window frame, infiltration from the windows is substantially reduced. With temperatures down to minus 40 and frequent wind over the steppe surrounding the city, this gives a notable difference.
All SPARE participant countries will in 2008 implement further windows restoration projects. The window activities are so far supported by fund raising for climate purposes through the site of Norges Naturvernforbund. Support for SPARE and additional practical energy activities are provided by Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
