The second USE IPM focus group, USK

On March 25th, a focus group was assembled by the project team at the Faculty of Economics – Skopje, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University. The organization and facilitation of the session was performed by: Full Professor Stojan Debariev. Full Professor Aleksandar Naumoski, Associate Professor Aleksandra Janeska-Iliev, Teaching Assistant MSc Jasna Tonovska, and Demonstrator MSc Bojan Kitanovic.

The focus group was conducted virtually via the Microsoft Teams platform and with duration of two hours. Five respondents took part in the session, all of whom were experts in the field of sustainability and sustainability reporting. Among them, two represented the private sector, while the remaining respondents were aligned to international development organizations, civil society, and scientific-educational domains. The entire discussion of the focus group was recorded and securely archived, with the explicit consent of all participants.

The focus group involved five key participants deeply engaged in topics related to environmental, economic, and social sustainability, as well as the circular economy within the Macedonian context. These participants included Jana Nikodinovska, Manager at Ernst & Young. Member of the ESG committee in AmCham; Maja Stavreva-Stojanova, Sustainability Officer; Pavlina Zdraveva, Policy Advisor on climate change, environment, and air quality; Angelina Taneva Veshovska from the Institute for Research in Environment, Civil Engineering, and Energy; and Bojana Stanojevska Pecurovska, a Policy Researcher specializing in Environment and Climate Change.

The outcomes of this research effort will be used for the purpose advancing the project: “Up-skilling Researchers for Sustainable Entrepreneurship based on Innovation Process Management” (USE IPM). Inputs provided shall generate a frame for understanding the situation and general conceptualization of sustainability issues in North Macedonia.