The International Forum on Clean Energy Technologies will be held for the XIV time, on September 28^th -29^th, in the Parliament of AP Vojvodina building under the title „Energy of Serbia – Post – pandemic step forward into the future“ organized by the Institute for European Affairs (INEA) from Düsseldorf and the Faculty of Technical Sciences Novi Sad. During the two days of the Forum, the emphasis will be placed on specific tangible energy processes, their improvement and common goals in this area by 2021.

Dear ladies and gentlemen and dear friends,

After thirteen consecutive International Forums on Clean Energy Technologies there was one-year break due to the pandemic. The 2020 Forum was not held. Now, when we are preparing this First Information, we sincerely hope that on September 28 and 29, we will be able to act in the spirit of the title of this year’s forum: ENERGY OF SERBIA – POST-PANDEMIC STEP FORWARD INTO THE FUTURE. At this moment, we hope that it is quite clear that this gathering will be one of the first to be held in the post-pandemic period.

After three years of presenting the TOP ENERGY award for the most successful projects in the field of energy, we are going to continue with recognizing creditable individuals for the development of scientific and professional thinking in Serbia and in the Southeast Europe. Despite the pandemic, the activities have not stopped but they have been carried out in difficult conditions. Now, it is the moment when we have to completely restart and correct the plans for further development of our energy sector.

For a long period of time, the Republic of Serbia has been making special efforts in the process of improving its own energy security and in building its infrastructure in order to meet growing energy demand. Almost identical processes are happening in other countries in the region of the Southeast Europe. This, once again, confirms the fact that no one in this region can allow its passivity or become an isolated energy island. The amendment and supplement of some legal regulations indicates a very important process for the decentralization of energy production and the activation of private initiative in the construction of small plants for the production of electricity, as well the active participation of the state in increasing energy efficiency of buildings. These are topics that we would like to elaborate completely and to give our contribution in order to improve effects of the implementation of measures aimed at increasing energy efficiency and greater use of renewable energy sources. These are all steps that lead to a decarbonized society.

The decision of the Program Committee of the 14^th Forum (under the auspices of the Assembly of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina and in co-organization with the Provincial Secretariat for Energy, Construction and Transport and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Vojvodina) is for this year’s focus to be the identification of concrete processes and projects and their energy improvement by means of new technologies and solutions. All this certainly leads to the achievement of the preset common European objectives. These objectives are clearly stated in the EU Energy Roadmap 2050, which offers a very innovative approach to the achievement of final targets and courageous quantification of these targets with the projection into the present in order to consider overall needs for the change of the economic and social system that will take us to these targets. Such an approach requires very dynamic and flexible energy policies of all those who want to belong to the corps of successful nations. In addition, well-controlled mechanisms for monitoring the implementation of these policies are crucial for the success. These are preconditions for the dynamic change of policies and for the creation of a new quality, which is reflected in constant changes and adjustments to the dynamic environment.