Until the start of the new school year, the windows of three Chisinau high schools – “Ion Creanga”, “Onisifor Ghibu”, and “Tudor Vladimirescu, will be replaced with thermopane windows. The schools became winners in a contest held within the Increasing Energy Efficiency of Chisinau and Sevastopol Municipalities Based on Existing Positive Experience Project, which is financially supported by the European Commission and the Cooperation in Urban Development and Dialog Program, Info-Prim Neo reports. The students were to write by an essay on how their school saves energy. Initially, the authors planned to select one winner of the Top Prize of €100,000, but the sum was insufficient for thermally insulating one building. Thus, it was decided to replace the windows of three schools, said the head of the Foreign Relations, Regional Cooperation and European Integration Division Gabriela Ciumac. “It’s not logical to insulate the walls if the windows allow cold air to pass through,” she stated. The contest involved one fifth of the education institutions working in the municipality of Chisinau. Besides the replacement of about 600 windows at the three high schools, works to increase energy efficiency will be carried out at the schools “Alexandru Ioan Cuza” and “Minerva”, to the value of €8,500. The project was approved by the European Commission at the end of 2009. Its total budget is €673,000. The money is distributed equally among Chisinau and Ukraine’s Sevastopol.