November 17^th

Nis City Council Member for Culture Jelena Mitrovski opened the second Nis Salon, a significant exhibition within which 12 artists presented their works. On this occasion Mitrovski emphasized that such cultural manifestations were a kind of confirmation that our city affirmed contemporary arts. “Culture is undoubtedly the best and easiest way to communicate among people, and the language of fine arts is universal. As a local self-government, we strive to nurture art, encourage young people to love it, but also, thanks to cultural events like this, reach all art lovers”. She added that the artists, whose works were exhibited, by the quality of their work, set a strong foundation for even more ambitious plans. “This is a good indication of the long and successful tradition of the Nis Salon. As the City, we give full support to the organization of such events, “concluded Mitrovski.

November 20^th

On the occasion of the 45^th anniversary of the founding of the Academic Choir of the Student Cultural Center of the University of Nis, the gala concert will be held on Wednesday, November 22^nd at the Officers’ Mess Building in Nis with the performances of the Chamber Choir of the University Adam Mickiewicz from Poznan, Poland and the Nis Symphony String Orchestra. Nis City Council member for Culture Jelena Mitrovska met today with the representatives of the Polish Choir, the founder and the conductor of the Chamber Choir Krzysztof Szydzisz, the guest conductor from Ecuador Fernando Hill Estrado. On this occasion, Mitrovski said that the concert was the part of the bigger project that had yet to come to life and that the work of the Student Cultural Center Academic Choir was important not only for the University of Nis but for the whole city. She added that it was the great honor that the city could host such renowned choir and conductors.

November 16^th

Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic, with his associates, met with the delegation from the French region of Gironde, headed by the delegate from the Council of the Department for European Affairs and Decentralized Cooperation Jacques Respaud. During today’s meeting, the new modes of cooperation between the City of Nis and the General Council of Gironde were discussed. In particular, the projects dedicated to young people as the most valuable resource of the city were discussed as well projects in the area of culture and local development. A three-week visit by Toni Radev, a comics author from Nis to Gironde was announced, during which the children of the Alfred Mogen college from Gradignan and the elementary school Ivo Andric from Nis, with the support of Radev, will work on the realization of the French-Serbian comic edition on the topic of human rights. Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic pointed to the importance of the interactive relationship of the two cultures in order to present the historical, national and spiritual identity of both countries. In particular, he pointed out the policy of boosting the tourism potential of Nis, which would stimulate the development and growth of the economic, industrial and infrastructural capacity of the city. Having that in mind more intensive research and promotion of the spiritual and material culture of Nis will contribute to a better positioning of the city on the map of world tourist destinations.

November 16^th

The representatives of the Traffic Safety Agency donated 20 seats for children of the members of the Association of Persons with Disabilities and the Association of War-Disabled War Veterans. Agency data show that car seats for children are not often used in Serbia or that 90% of parents use them in the wrong way. The introductory lecture was held in which the common obligation of all segments of the society to take care of the safety of children in traffic was emphasized.For this reason, the mission of the entire society, and especially parents, is to show children in a comprehensible way what safety is, because it is a prerequisite for their happy childhood.

November 15^th

The following year, in the spring,

The construction of the Science and Technology Park, a project about which is being discussed in Nis for the last decade will start in spring next year. The press conference was held at Nis City Hall on the occasion of signing the contract for the implementation of this project.  Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic emphasized on this occasion that today was a great day for Nis and all of its citizens, because this project, worth one billion and 850 million dinars meant that the city and the state were investing in knowledge, science, development, young and talented people. He thanked the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vucic, and the Prime Minister Ana Brnabić, for the great support that the City of Nis received from the republic authorities, so that the Science and Technology Park could become a reality. “With this project we will start to value the advantages that we have for the purpose of developing the city and solving the problems, but at the same time, this decision is obliging us to do even more and justify the trust given by the state, “concluded Mayor Bulatovic. According to the Deputy Head of the Office for Local Economic Development and Projects Ivan Petkovic, the contracts signed today in Belgrade actually allowed the City to start the realization of the second and third phase of the project, since the first phase-Startup Center was already completed. The Republic will allocate 5.2 million euros for the addition of annexes at the Faculty of Electronic Engineering, while the City’s contributions amount to 6.5 million dinars for the relocation of access infrastructure and the obtaining of the operating license. He pointed out that the state would allocate 10 million euros for the construction of the Science and Technology Park building, which would extend over 14,000 square meters. Also, the Science and Technology Park will be equipped with modern equipment. The Dean of the Faculty of Electronic Engineering in Nis, Prof. Dr. Dragan Jankovic, emphasized that this investment would be paid off very rapidly and would show its true significance, not only for the Faculty of Electronic Engineering, but for the City of Nis as well.

November 15^th

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic attended today’s signing of the contract for the implementation of three projects for the improvement of IT and scientific-research infrastructure in the Palace of Serbia in Belgrade. The contracts for the construction of the extension of the Faculty of Electronic Engineering in Nis, the Scientific and Technological Park in Nis and the building for the Verokio Institute of Physics in Belgrade were signed by RS Minister of Education, Science and Technological Development Mladen Sarcevic, Minister without Portfolio in charge of Innovation and Technological Development Nenad Popovic, Director of Public Investment Management Office Marko Blagojevic, Nis City Mayor Darko Bulatovic and Director of the Institute of Physics Aleksandar Bogojevic. Financing works on the construction of the Faculty of Electronic Engineering and the Scientific and Technological Park in Nis are part of the support of the Government of Serbia and the Council for Innovative Entrepreneurship and IT Development. The total value of all seven projects is greater than 50 million euros.

This year the annual UN Climate Change Conference was held in the former West German political capital – Bonn. This is one of the largest conventions under the auspices of the UN, which gathers the representatives of all UN member states at the highest level, the representatives of the NGO sector and the activists. The main topics of this year UN Conference in Bonn (COP23) were the levels of the implementation of the previous major agreements on climate change in Rio, in Kyoto and in Paris, as well as the latest challenges that include extreme weather conditions such as wildfires, floods, storms and tropical heat waves.

What is significant for the city of Niš is that for the first time, since the UN Conference on Climate Change has been held, equal participation has been taken by the representatives of the regions and the leaders of the local self-governments worldwide, within the special Climate Summit of the local and regional leaders, as the official part of COP23. The Chairman of the Niš City Assembly, M.S. Rade Rajkovic, at the invitation of the Mayor of Bonn, and since being a representative of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions, took part in the Conference and the Summit held from November 11^th to 13^th, 2017, whereas he was the sole representative from Serbia and the region.

Activities at the Summit were made up of the official and informal parts, whereas the key topic of the discussion was the way to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, which is largely released by the combustion of coal and oil. Research suggests that the increase in the average air temperature of over 2 degrees Celsius over the coming years would lead to catastrophic consequences and negative climate change.

At the Summit, attended by over 1000 delegates and over 330 political leaders from over 80 countries worldwide, the Chairman of the Niš City Assembly, during his address, as well as in the conversations with the mayors from several dozen cities worldwide, stated that the City of Niš was ready to deal with climate change and that all necessary steps would be undertaken in order to increase energy efficiency and ensure the sustainability of the energy system in the city. This is only possible through energy efficiency projects, which would contribute to the significant reduction in exhaust emissions, with the aim to make the city of Niš a pioneer in the field of climate and the environmental protection in the region.

At the Summit, the Chairman Rajkovic stated that the city of Niš had the opportunity to improve energy efficiency and increase the use of renewable energy sources, which included energy savings, the introduction of cleaner and renewable energy sources, recycling and treatment of water pollution, electrification of public transport, economical public lighting and other preventive and practical models for eco-friendly environment. In addition, everything mentioned, could be achieved through the international forums, exchange of experience and project financing, stated the chairman in his address.

Moreover, the Chairman Rajkovic discussed those and similar problems related to one of the biggest threats to humanity – climate change during the bilateral meetings with his colleagues on the sidelines of the Summit.  The Chairman of the Niš City Assembly also talked about the willingness of the City of Niš to deal with climate change and concrete co-operation with other cities and countries with the California Governor, Mr. Jerry Brown, with the Mayor of Hiroshima, Mr. Macui Kazumi, with the Mayor of Bonn, Mr. Ashok Sirdharan, with the Special Envoy of the Kingdom of Morocco in UN, Mr. Hakim El-Haite, as well as with many other political leaders and experts in this field from Africa, the USA, Asia and Europe.

Special guest speakers at the Summit were Bertrand Picard, the world leader in the Solar Impulse Project, as well as the former California Governor, and present chairman of the R20- Regions of Climate Change Action, Mr. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

November 13^th

On the occasion of the publication of the second volume of Collectd Works by Branko Miljkovic, entitled Poetry II the City of Nis and the Nis Cultural Center organized an open press conference for the media and the public. Literary and cultural significance, both for Nis and for Serbian culture, of the new edition of the Collected Works by Branko Miljkovic is reflected in the fact that this will be the first edition of the complete opus by Branko Miljković published after 1972. The new edition of the Collected Works by Branko Miljkovic will be published in 6 books, 2 of which have already been published. The works will include the entire poetry of Branko Miljkovic, his translations, literary reviews and essays, as well as the theoretical-critical volume of this documentary material. This extraordinary cultural undertaking was officially started in February 2015, by signing a protocol on the publication of Branko Miljkovic’s Collected Works, between the City of Nis, the Faculty of Philosophy, the National Museum, the National Library and the Nis Cultural Center, as an executive publisher.

November 13^th

Armistice Day is commemorated every year on  November 11^th to mark the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I, which took effect at eleven o’clock in the morning—the “eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month” of 1918. The date was declared a national holiday in many Allied nations. At the Military Cemetery in Nis, on this occasion, flower wreaths were laid by the city delegation at the gravestone monument at the Serbian part of the cemetery and at the gravestone monument where British soldiers were buried.

November 8^th

Nis City Assistant Mayor Nebojsa Randjelovic met today with the Ambassador of Order of Malta in Serbia Alberto di Luca and the Ambassador of Taiwan in Budapest Andrew Chang who came to Nis on humanitarian mission to help a girl from Nis who at the second week of her life got a viral infection which turned into a cruel and rare disease.
Since then, the little girl has undergone several operations but the most difficult one has yet to be performed at the clinically appropriate time and not when a public hospital might be available. Therefore, there was a need to contact a private hospital where it would be possible to intervene timely for this complex and expensive operation. Ambassador Alberto di Luca, having confidence in sensibility and solidarity of the Government of Taiwan – with whom he already collaborated in the year 2015 and 2016 when they supported the humanitarian “Make a WISH” Projects – has asked Taiwanese friends for help, once again. So, today in Nis, in the presence of the Ambassador Andrew Chang who came expressly from Budapest, they confirmed their decisive support for the delicate operation to be performed.