“Science and Me” Science Fair in Skopje – Marking the Continued Collaboration with Johnson Matthey

Macedonia2025 organized the fifth Regional Science Fair on October 17, 2024, held at the multipurpose hall of “Vlado Tasevski” Elementary School in Skopje.

This event marked the continued collaboration between Macedonia2025 and Johnson Matthey, as part of the “Science and Me” Community Impact Program, which will be implemented during the 2024/2025 academic year. It also represents a strengthened partnership with the Ministry of Education. The aim of the Fair is to encourage students to develop an interest in science and to present their scientific projects to a wider audience.

In her address, Nikica Mojsoska Blazevski emphasized:

“The ‘Science and Me’ project has a significant impact on improving science education in our country. Last year, we trained 23 teachers from 20 primary schools across Macedonia, who, through their work, directly influenced around 1,100 sixth-grade students. Through practical projects and experiments, students developed a new love and interest in science. We organized four regional fairs in Skopje, Veles, Delchevo, and Struga, where students had the opportunity to present their projects and exchange ideas with their peers. In the 2024/2025 academic year, we aim to expand the project by organizing professional training for more than 100 mentor teachers in natural sciences and primary education, as well as additional regional science fairs in new regions.”

Borijan Borozanov, Chief Operating Officer for Europe at Johnson Matthey, highlighted that science plays a key role in shaping the future and that the company is committed to supporting educational initiatives while promoting sustainability and innovation.

“Our company believes that investments in education are investments in the future,” he stated.

The fairs are focused on advancing science education by enabling students to actively participate in hands-on projects and experiments that spark their interest in science. At the event, four mentor teachers presented together with teams of over 30 students:

• Elena Panova Naumovska, “Vlado Tasevski” Elementary School – Skopje (Karpoš)

• Dragana Onchevska-Kovacheva, “Nevena Georgieva-Dunja” Elementary School – Skopje (Kisela Voda)

• Daniel Stojanovski, “Brakja Miladinovci” Elementary School – Skopje (Aerodrom)

• Semial Sinani, “Emin Duraku” Elementary School – Buković (Saraj)

They demonstrated experiments and project-based tasks in natural sciences (biology, geography, chemistry, and physics) to an audience of over 500 students from the host school and other schools in the municipality.

Special thanks go to the Johnson Matthey volunteers, whose contribution was essential to the success of the event. They embody the company’s commitment to volunteerism and corporate social responsibility.

We are truly pleased that through this and other educational initiatives, working together with our corporate partners—Kostal Macedonia, Triglav Insurance, Alkaloid AD Skopje, A1 Macedonia, and WFP Fund Management AD Skopje—as well as supporters Trimax.mk and Literatura.mk, we are able to inspire, encourage, and educate, and most importantly, ignite a passion for science in the hearts of primary school students, creating future generations ready to face global challenges.

The energy and enthusiasm demonstrated by the students and their teachers at the Science Fair are proof of the transformative impact of our efforts, as well as additional motivation to continue investing in education.