The 2016 European Sustainable Energy Week was launched the other day in Lutsk with participation of the USAID Municipal Energy Reform Project (USAID Project), representatives of the European Union in Ukraine, Lutsk City Council, and the Volynska Oblast State Administration, as well as other international and Ukrainian partners. The fest was organized by the Energy Efficient Cities of Ukraine Association.

During the opening ceremony, the USAID Project Chief of Party, Diana Korsakaite has noted in her speech: "The European Sustainable Energy Week is a great platform for discussing energy saving measures, and finding new partners in the field of energy performance. Our Project supports 17 Ukrainian cities, including Lutsk. We are assisting these cities in implementing energy efficiency measures and clean energy initiatives. The main goal of this assistance is reducing the import of fossil fuels and lowering greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere. The USAID Project is prepared to assist in attracting investments in Lutsk, as it will help improve the life of city residents."

On the opening day, an information kiosk of the USAID Project was functioning on the Teatralnyi Square, with the Project experts providing advice on energy saving, implementation of energy efficiency measures in homes, establishment of HOAs etc. For the youngest visitors, the Project team conducted exciting master classes in making windmills and staging experiments with clean energy.

As part of the European Week, the Tenth International Conference of the Energy Efficient Cities of Ukraine Association entitled The Covenant of Mayors: New Horizons and Opportunities was also held in Lutsk. The event was attended by about 250 participants, including the EU Delegation to Ukraine, representatives of the Ukrainian State Energy Efficiency Agency, USAID Municipal Energy Reform Project in Ukraine, Energy Efficiency in Communities GIZ Project, International Finance Corporation (IFC) Ukraine Residential Energy Efficiency Project, Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO), the Ukrainian signatory cities to the Covenant of Mayors, and members of the Energy Efficient Cities of Ukraine Association.