Danijela Gašparikova has only been in Montenegro for eight months, but she already feels like her home. She was born in Slovakia, where she started her career at the United Nations Development Office (UNDP) 16 years ago. In April last year, she was appointed permanent representative of UNDP in Montenegro.
"I came to Montenegro eight months ago and I feel as if I have returned home. A huge advantage is that I can communicate with people in a combination of Slavic languages," she said in an interview with "Vijesti".
The sincerity that he feels in his daily encounters has made him already feel a sense of belonging.
In Podgorica, Gašparikova enjoys walking on Gorica hill. She already loves Durmitor and the north, and as a mountaineer, she hopes that she will soon be able to hike other parts of Montenegro. He believes in climate change, in the power of the individual, in lifelong learning.
A woman can equally be a parent and a professional
Gašparikova strongly supports the idea of greater participation of women in politics and science. The position of women in society - their political, economic and other rights, he says, concern everyone.
"All actors - be it the government, police, prosecution, non-governmental sector, media, private sector, citizens, families or political parties - have a unique and complementary role in protecting those rights. The introduction of a quota of 30 percent of female candidates on electoral lists doubled the number of female members of Parliament. I hope that a consensus will be reached to increase the quota to 40 percent in the changes to the electoral legislation", Gašparikova told "Vijesta".
She is happy to learn that a large number of young women are engaged in science in Montenegro and says that this instills optimism in the country's bright future.
"Girls, girls and women - can, and in practice prove it, to improve themselves in the fields of science, technology, mathematics and engineering, and they should be encouraged from a young age to explore these professions".
She is convinced that a more equal division of childcare between both parents, better access to institutional support and public services, as well as family-friendly employer policies, can be translated into long-term professional careers for both women and men. "In the 21st century, women should never be exposed to the dilemma of having to choose between a family and a professional career."
FROM ULAN BATOR TO PODGORICA
Before coming to Montenegro, she was the deputy permanent representative of the UNDP Program in Mongolia since 2016. She lived in Ulaanbaatar, which is one of the cities with the most polluted air on the planet during the winter due to its raw coal heating. Now in Podgorica, while walking in Gorica, he enjoys the smell of pine...
"In Ulaanbaatar we not only breathed polluted air, we also felt the taste of pollution. Even now, when I take the clothes out of the boxes I packed there, I can smell the coal that came with me from Mongolia."
He says that Podgorica, which was one of the greenest cities in the former Yugoslavia, looks quite green.
"Especially the city center. I understand that the greening of the city may not have kept up with what it used to be," he says, and as one of the ways of greening, he proposes to include a minimum green belt standard in the city's spatial plans - which will be respected in implementation.
As in Ulaanbaatar, and in some Montenegrin cities, such as Pljevlja, the air is polluted due to the use of harmful fuels for heating. Additionally, in urban areas, the cause of pollution is traffic. Gašparikova believes that a broader discussion about systemic ways to reduce pollution is necessary, and she is glad that UNDP in Montenegro is working on the introduction of electric vehicles into traffic.
According to the UNDP Report on Human Development for 2019, Montenegro is in the category of countries with a very high level of development. The report also emphasizes the need to take a closer look at whether the quality of life is improving at the same speed and intensity for all population groups. That publication points to new forms of inequality, which appear as a result of climatic changes and technological progress, which, says Gašparikova, the state will have to take into account in its development strategies.
Climate change is real
The permanent representative of UNDP in Montenegro has no qualms about the fact that climate change is real and says that it should not be ignored in investment planning. And winter tourism and ski resorts are directly dependent on weather conditions. Due to increasingly warmer winters, as reported by "L'Espresso", 186 out of 350 facilities and ski resorts in the Italian Alps have been abandoned.
"The Guardian recently ranked Kolašin in the 10 best ski resorts in Europe, which made me extremely happy. Mountains are my passion, I started skiing when I was four or five years old. My father was the manager of a ski resort and my sister and I spent the winters there. At least three months a year were completely organized around skiing and increasingly sophisticated weather forecasts.
Based on that experience, I am very aware of how much winter tourism depends on favorable weather conditions, and a bad season is the nightmare of every winter tourist center operator".
He also reminds that in the period from 2001 to 2010, the temperature in the north of Montenegro has already increased by 1,4 degrees Celsius and says that "the risks of climate change can no longer be ignored" and that they will become an inevitable factor in investors' assessments.
In the climate change story, the inevitable topic of recent months is activist and student Greta Tunberg. There is no difference between what the Swedish teenager says and what UNDP says, says Gašparikova, and that is - let's listen to what science says.
"If governments do not keep their promises and reduce greenhouse gas emissions to keep the temperature increase below 1,5 degrees Celsius, we will have to admit that we have failed Greta and future generations. Let me illustrate with an example: the last four years have been the warmest in the history of mankind, and in 2019, the warmest October in the last 70 years was recorded in Podgorica".
He also adds that the nature of climate change is such that not everyone feels it at the same time and in the same way, but that does not mean that they are not already taking their toll.
"We are witnessing the emergence of 'climate refugees' - residents of small island countries, such as Kiribati, forced to leave their homes due to rising sea levels. "Montenegro, like many other countries that contributed the least to climate change, will suffer the consequences of global warming, such as more frequent floods and more intense droughts, rising sea temperatures and damage to ecosystems," she said.
Although she would not be too happy if her daughter wanted to, like Greta, go on a trip around the world to correct the mistakes of adults, Gašparikova would not hesitate to support her. Because, as she says, she wants her daughter to be honest with herself and others, not to give up if others don't see what she sees.
He also believes that sometimes, at the right time and in the right place, just one person is enough to change the world.
"It remains to be seen whether it will be Greta and the movement of her peers that she inspired to action. I certainly hope so".
Investing in knowledge brings economic growth
Gašparikova wants her daughter to learn as much as possible - because, she says, "knowledge is one of the few things that no one can take away from us". That is why he considers it important to invest in research and development.
According to her, states invest in this area guided by the expectation that the accumulated knowledge will turn into innovations in application, and that the innovations will be able to be commercialized with the aim of economic growth, higher productivity and the creation of new jobs.
"Investments in research and development can also help countries find new, unconventional solutions to the challenges they face."
South Korea invests a little over four percent of gross domestic product in research and development, the EU has set a goal of investing three percent of GDP in that branch by 2020. Montenegro, says the permanent representative of UNDP, is starting from a low initial position, but adds that she is pleased with the government's plan to double the allocations from the budget for this purpose by 2021.
"In addition to the recently adopted Smart Specialization Strategy, the first science and technology park was also established, these are positive signals. We at UNDP are looking forward to being selected as a partner who, through the work of the Council for Innovation and Smart Specialization, will support Montenegro in this endeavor".
He adds that significantly larger investments in research and development must accompany companies' investments, as part of their competitiveness strategies.
Most people have the Internet, but they don't use it in the right way
Gašparikova uses social networks for business purposes, and she wholeheartedly accepted digital technologies, with the understanding that, when used adequately, they can be an excellent servant.
"Digital technologies have fundamentally changed our everyday life. I used to go to the library at least once a week, and now it's all available with a click. I also use electronic banking, both privately and in business..."
It also indicates that, as a consequence of the different possibilities of users to use or create additional value of technologies, they cause a new type of inequality.
"For example, 77 percent of the population of Montenegro has access to the Internet at home, but less than 10 percent use it productively, say for e-banking, business operations or learning, i.e. for something more than just browsing social networks or sharing content for fun”. Those who do not use the Internet in a productive way risk not taking advantage of all the opportunities that technology provides in terms of improving the quality of life and income, which will affect the emergence of new inequalities in the future".
Learning in adulthood teaches us modesty
While growing up in a small town in what was then Czechoslovakia, Gašparikova dreamed of learning to play the piano. She realized her dream only in 2016, when her work took her to Mongolia.
"When we moved to Mongolia, the piano school was located on the ground floor of the building where we lived. One day it dawned on me that if I don't start piano lessons then, I never will. It was similar with learning Montenegrin, it was an opportunity that is hard to miss - when I already understood a lot, but I couldn't say a single word".
Acquiring completely new skills in adulthood, she adds, opened up new horizons for her and allowed her to stay connected to reality.
"If I thought that I had a busy day at work, full of challenges, the evening piano lesson would always be much more difficult. Learning at this age also teaches us modesty - that we can admit that we don't know something, and allow someone else to guide us, which is quite the opposite of what is generally expected of managers.
Running and hiking training for body and mind
Running helped her to accept the fact that it often takes years to see the results of the country's development work. Gašparikova always played some kind of sport, but she avoided running because, she says, she would run out of breath. As she traveled more and more often, her schedule became more and more demanding, and it turned out that running is the only sport she can balance with her obligations. There was no choice but to overcome the previous barriers to the sport. Now he also runs long distances.
"To be successful in any sport, a combination of mental and physical strength is necessary. The more you progress, the more mental strength prevails. After eight years, I no longer run to keep fit. Now I run to maintain focus, to gain a different perspective on any challenge I face, to test my own endurance and persevere”.
Like running, he says hiking has taught him that climbing to the top for a clear view is only half the battle won.
“The other half is the safe descent, and that's what counts. These are all qualities that help me come to terms with the nature of my work, where one must accept that it often takes years to see the results of working on the development of the country".
Consumers can also produce energy
During 2018, 77 percent of energy consumption in Montenegro came from renewable sources (RES), which is significantly above the goal set by the EU - 32 percent by 2030. In December 2019, Gašparikova reminds, the green agreement of the European Union was announced. which sets a new requirement - to achieve carbon dioxide neutrality by 2050.
Under that plan, for every ton of carbon dioxide they emit, countries will have to remove the same amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Gašparikova is convinced that, in this sense, investments in RES could serve Montenegro as a springboard for achieving carbon neutrality.
He considers it significant that the new EU plan aims to eradicate "energy poverty" and achieve lower electricity bills. This, she explains, can be achieved if consumers are offered the opportunity to produce their own energy from RES and to connect to the grid, so that they are both producers and consumers at the same time. According to Gašparikova, UNDP has already conducted a feasibility study that provides guidelines for the further development of that concept in Montenegro.
Commenting on the current management of the environment in Montenegro, she said that in that process, the trust of citizens is one of the preconditions for the successful adoption of any solution.
UNDP in 2019.
Guided by the goals of sustainable development, UNDP works with the governments of 190 countries, including Montenegro, on solutions aimed at eradicating poverty, protecting the planet and ensuring that everyone lives in peace and prosperity.
Last year, the office in Montenegro supported the work of 11 day care centers for the elderly, mostly in the north. The service of these centers is complemented by gerontodomáčić, who care for more than 1.200 elderly people. UNDP also helped establish a national database on domestic violence and supported the creation of a national e-platform for data exchange between institutions.
"In tourism, we have supported 32 innovative 'green' projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which has encouraged the private and public sector to make additional investments in the implementation of these projects, amounting to over 13 million USD in the past few years. We also provided eco-certification for 28 hotels and greened 11 music and film festivals...", Gašparikova reminded of just some of UNDP's results in Montenegro.
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