Another, already 6th edition of the Beskids Festival of Good Energy took place in an atmosphere of joy and fun at the Słowacki Park in Bielsko-Biała. The fun included experiments, dancing, releasing balloons and solving energy-related puzzles. If you stayed home afraid of the weather you missed out!

The event has attracted an impressive number of participants again: nearly 600 preschoolers from 20 kindergartens, 1200 students from elementary schools, middle schools and high schools from the area of Bielsko-Biała, as well as their families and residents in the number of several hundred. Their creative efforts in the "Respect Energy, Protect the Climate" competition have been resolved and awarded through the generosity of companies such as AQUA S.A., PK Therma Sp z o.o., Northouse Sp. z o.o., Cooper Standard Automotive Polska Sp. z o.o. and Eko Sun Sp. z o.o..  Despite the wind and a short rain, the participants of the festival dedicated to energy saving and environmental protection assiduously gathered to take part in a variety of interesting attractions.

Colourful balloons symbolising the idea of the "Bielsko-Biała Protects the Climate" campaign (300 climate ambassadors from the city, who made a personal pro-environmental commitment) were released by preschoolers, when they formed a giant train with conducting of Sebastian Chmiel (finalist of the "X-Factor" TV Program) and arrived to the square in front of the Bielsko-Biała Cultural Centre. Earlier, the children watched a show entitled "Noah's Ark" performed by the Bajka Theatre from Cieszyn.

As every year, Bielsko-Biała secondary schools presented their scientific capabilities. Crowds of participants have passed through the photo studio and the face-painting station of the festival volunteers - young people from the "Szkoła na Grodzisku" High School, who are the indispensable festival volunteers for the last six years. Their "camera obscura" model and an exhibition of photographs inspired by fairy tales have amazed many participants. Three high schools organised workshops with presentations of energy and physics-related processes.  The Copernicus  High School demonstrated the capabilities of a solar cell, nearly 30 students from High School No. 4 delighted the participants with unusual properties of water, a balloon rocket, dry ice, the beauty of the colours of the rainbow and many other experiences, which we don't get to see on a daily basis. High School No. 5 revealed the secrets of a loudspeaker and showed how Polish scientist Jan Czochralski invented crystals which process the Sun's energy into electricity. The Electrical and Mechanical School Complex dazzled us with many interesting models and devices, and also showed that electricity can also be obtained... from vegetables! The Bielsko-Biała Industrial School presented its broad educational spectrum in stands conducted by chemists, designers as well as environmental protection and renewable energy sources technicians. As every year, the event was supported by the Waste Management Office in the Municipal Office in Bielsko-Biała, offering interesting "hands-on" workshops and many gifts to the youngest participants, and knowledge of the new rules of waste management to the older ones. The long-time partner of the festival, Tauron-Dystrybucja (the local distributor of electricity) presented energy-related experiments. The dance workshops taught by dance instructors Mikołaj Strzyż and Agnieszka Jarosińska were bursting with energy. There was also time for something for the body - sweet culinary muffin decorating workshops by Ania  Berezowska, the owner of Cremino Bakery and a presentation of creating beauty products from nature given by specialist Pola Kryża were supplemented by a swap party, i.e. an exchange of clothes, which found their new happy owners at no cost thanks to the well-known blogger Kasia Olech-Oziembała.

And how did the town's residents spend their time during the Beskids Festival of Good Energy? Preschoolers and students invited their families to participate in an urban game called “Take control on energy”, which has already become a tradition. There were more than 30 teams. In 7 stations with mysterious names such as “enlightened stalking”, “mission-emission”, “warm side of life”, “dress up your house”, etc., the participants racked their brains over riddles associated with the use of energy in their daily lives. Using a special map, they discovered subsequent stations, and in promotional shopping bags provided by the Municipal Office made from recycled advertising banners, they gathered treasures/souvenirs related to the different stations: energy-efficient light bulbs donated by Philips Lighting Bielsko, fairy tales of Little Red Riding Hood donated by PK Therma (local district heat distributor), LCD room thermometers - a promotional gadget of the Office of Energy Management as well as mascots and brochures from Tauron-Dystrybucja or exclusive miniature car models from FIAT Auto Poland. It was worth racking one's brain for two hours so that no one left empty-handed. As many as 13 teams won generous awards. The participants, while waiting for the results of the urban game, enjoyed the presentation of molecular cuisine performed by chef Mateusz Czekierda and actress Iza Kapias. They prepared exquisite dishes using Czaniecke Makarony products (a local manufacturer of pasta), which delighted everyone with extraordinary flavours. The company literally covered the game participants richness of different types of pasta produced locally.The festival ended with as much energy as it began - with music made by DJ Adus and delightful saxophone playing by Krzysztof Sandecki. The good climate of the event was ensured by the continuous entertainment provided by Radio Bielsko from its field studio in Słowacki Park.

See you next year!

Watch a video report from the event https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LiBWFBBeHg

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