On Tuesday, 20th September, about 40 members of the United Nations Volunteers programme in Bosnia and Herzegovina joined volunteers in the southern town of Konjic to put the final touch on the beautification of children’s playground. 

This community mobilization project “More Beautiful Environment – More Comfortable Life”, carried out in partnership and financial support of the UNV, started two weeks earlier and included a clean-up of green areas, as well as construction works and painting of a wall surrounding a park in one of Konjic residential areas.

Activists of “Volunteers and Friends of Konjic” have been organizing similar projects in their community for years in effort to create more beautiful play and leisure spaces. In this case, in addition to the UNV, they were joined by the students of a local art school “Zuko and Lazo” who transformed a dirty wall into a vivid mural. In final works in this project, UN Volunteers helped in painting the wall and metal bars bordering the wall, and together with children they decorated pavement in the park.  These activities were supported by other members of the community, including journalists and management of town’s main information source, public Radio and TV station RTV Konjic.

This action inspired other citizens of Konjic to launch their own clean-up and environment beautification projects. One of them was completed on 17th September when a neighbourhood mobilized to clean-up a space of a former boiler room and remove all garbage from parks in one of residential areas.

“It is time for us to move and make our living space more beautiful. I would like to thank all citizens who supported this activity whether by being present or participating, donating juices, candies, coffee and fruit for volunteers. This is the first activity of this type and we will continue to work in a future,” stated Admir Kraljusic who coordinated the project.

During the six-hour long activity, “Volunteers and Friends of Konjic”, members of a local karate club and residents from this area checked all nearby green areas, removed weeds, cleaned pavements, children’s playground and a park, and finally collected waste (plastic bottles, old newspapers and other similar materials).

“One of the objectives of our group’s youth activism, and of this activity too, is to contribute to the community, create pleasant areas in our neighbourhoods in which children can safely play, and raise awareness of citizens through our own actions about importance of civic activism and volunteering. By doing this, we demonstrate to our community responsible behaviours and visible results that can be achieved when people join and decide to do something for better tomorrow,” concluded Adis Muhibic, a leader of the “Volunteers and Friends of Konjic.”