The project JEDRO – Public Policies for Sustainable Social Development: Water, Energy, Waste represents a key initiative that is a result of a three-year-long effort of ten non-governmental organizations in cooperation with the Faculty of Political Science of the University of Zagreb. The aim of this project is to contribute to the improvement of management systems in three key areas: water, waste management, and renewable energy sources. Below, you will find guidance stemming from research and analysis carried out during the project.
WASTE MANAGEMENT
In the national policy brief Waste Management in Cities and Municipalities in Croatia: Performance Factors the thematic network JEDRO makes recommendations for improving the public service of municipal waste management in Croatia. They are mostly concerned with local self-government units, since they, regardless of the tendency of gradual centralization and public services, remain its key implementers.
The guidelines it gives are:
1. The impact of the ownership structure of utility companies on the results of separate waste collection, whereby local self-government units should strive for public ownership of utility companies since such enterprises record higher rates of waste separation.
2. Abandoning the concept of regional waste management centers in the new Waste management plan of the Republic of Croatia for the period from 2023 to 2028 due to their environmental and financial unsustainability and introducing waste management at the local level. Local governance also implies the purposeful association of certain units of local self-government into single utility companies (through a share in the ownership structure), while also defining minimum targets of the rate of separately collected waste as a criterion for the establishment of a joint utility company where there are conditions for doing so.
3. Increasing the utilization of European funds through increasing the capacities of local self-government units through cooperation and association with other local self-government units, which reduces the operating costs of human resources management and the organizational system.
The policy brief Waste Management in Cities and Municipalities in Croatia: Performance Factors can be read in its entirety at LINK.
Local policy brief Lessons from Međimurje: How to Apply the Zero Waste Model of Waste Management – LINK.
WATER MANAGMENT
National Guidelines: Water Services Reform in Croatia: Implementation Challenges and Opportunities – LINK
Local Guidelines: Water Management Reform in Croatia: Where Does the Water Take Us? – LINK
ENERGETICS
National Guidelines: Necessary Investments in Energy Renovation of Residential Buildings – Guidelines for Public National Policies in the Field of Renewable Energy Sources – LINK
Local Guidelines: More Active Role of Local and Regional Self-Government Units – Education and Capacity Building in Energy Renovation of Multi-Apartment Buildings – LINK
The JEDRO project represents an important step towards more sustainable social development, offering concrete solutions and guidelines for improving water, waste, and energy management. These briefs provide valuable insights and recommendations for policymakers at national and local levels and are key tools in the fight against the environmental crisis and climate change.
