Energy and good practices in its management, as applied in the innovative #CRETEVALLEY project, were in the spotlight during the seventh day of the Student Festival of the Municipality of Minoa Pediada.
In the packed hall of the Arkalohori Conference Centre, the students of the Municipality’s schools unfolded their humour, creativity and rich talent through a series of artistic performances that included painting, video production, music, singing and shadow theatre. The common thread in all of them was the energy produced from the endless resources of our land — the sun, the wind and biomass — and how this energy can be utilised by the local community.
A special impression was made by the appearance of Karagiozis… the energy‑autonomous one, who, with his folk wisdom and instinct, conveyed the message of the event in the best possible way: that a just energy transition, grounded in environmental, economic and social sustainability, requires broad participation, shapes the future and concerns us all.
Warm thanks to our friend, Alexis Chatzibiros, from the Samsø Energy Academy in Denmark, who travelled for two days from the island of Samsø to be in Arkalohori for just two hours and speak to us about the remarkable achievement of this island of 4,000 inhabitants — a global example of energy sustainability, having become 100% energy independent in less than five years thanks to the community’s embrace of renewable energy sources.
The event was preceded by a presentation from Minoan Energy member Antonis Kozyrakis on broad‑based energy communities, their philosophy and their benefits for local societies, with an emphasis on the #CRETEVALLEY project as a good example of how communities can collaborate and achieve energy autonomy by harnessing their local energy resources.
The event was coordinated by Katerina Paroutsidakis, whom we warmly thank.
Warm thanks and many congratulations are also due to all contributors to the event — the students, the teachers, and the shadow theatre artists Athos Danellis and Michalis Foinikianakis — who, with their talent and positive energy, made us all feel truly uplifted!
Watch a short excerpt from the Karagiozis performance here: https://youtube.com/shorts/5jT4nzEvWOo
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