Yardi-supported nonprofit Life Education for All was founded in 2014 in Cluj Napoca, Romania. Life Education for All aims to carry out non-formal education activities for disadvantaged children and young people and renovate and equip schools across the country. “In the last ten years, we have carried out many projects that have positively impacted over 60 schools in Romania and over 10,000 children,” said Mindrut Oana, president of Life Education for All. Life Education for All plans to renovate at least one school this year and equip ten schools with equipment, furniture and supplies and replace existing infrastructure (lighting and faucets) with equipment that reduces energy consumption. “We will also continue our projects for literacy development, career counseling and entrepreneurial skill development for high school students,” Oana explained. Yardi funding has helped Life Education for All renovate a kindergarten, equip 12 schools in Romania with outdoor learning furniture, and purchase supplies for two other schools in Cluj. Volunteer Opportunities Life Education for All has plenty of volunteer opportunities, including helping with painting schools, arranging and equipping libraries or reading spaces, arranging outdoor learning spaces, setting up ITC laboratories, and more. Find out how to get involved, and Life Education for All will find a volunteer project that suits you best. “Investing in quality education is the best investment we can make for our future as a society,” shared Oana. Find future non-profit profiles...
Educalise Association...
Aiding Romania's Youth
Yardi is committed to supporting the community in every city where our offices are housed. Each year, the company distributes philanthropic aid to organizations selected by its employees. In 2021, Yardi offices supported more than 350 nonprofits worldwide. For the remainder of the year, we will be bringing you the stories of those organizations and insight into how they aid their communities. Today we bring you across the world and introduce you to Educalise Association, founded in 2019 in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Educalise is a non-governmental organization (NGO) that focuses on the education and health of children and social projects for special needs patients, including: Education: training and workshops, equipping schools and after-school facilities with IT equipment, furniture, and other goods such as painting, restoration, and re-decoration of school facilities and yards.Health: equipment for children’s hospitals with medical devices, restoration, and re-decoration of children’s hospital facilities and yards, various play-and-learn activities that improve the relationship between child and doctor, and educating children on what to expect when they receive medical care.Social: support to children with special needs and holiday campaigns. “Education is however key to all our activities; therefore, we include an educational component even in health and social projects,” shared Cristina Sălăgean, founder of Educalise. Funds from Yardi have been used to finalize The Fairy Stories Garden and a new blood-test room. Check out the video of the day the Cluj Yardi office had here. “What we are planning for the blood-test room is to bring from the U.S. a special chair, where the child and the parent sit on the same chair when blood samples are being taken.” Sălăgean continues, “The chair is the main piece of the room, but it will be accompanied by VR (virtual reality glasses) and other kids-friendly equipment that will...
On The Rise
Cluj-Napoca, Romania: A Closer Look
Cluj-Napoca, the second most populous city in Romania, and the home of Yardi Romania, is an emerging new real estate and technology market, boasting a quirky mix of old and new. Founded in 1213, Cluj-Napoca is a city brimming with history, with its eyes set on the future. An excellent example of the city’s evolution is Riviera Luxury Residence, a 91-unit luxury condominium project that will be one of a handful of green developments in Transylvania. Currently under development in the city’s hottest residential submarket, the Mărăşti and Gheorgheni neighborhoods, the project (pictured, right) has received Class A energy certification and is seeking a BREEAM Excellent certification as well. The $13.6 million (€10 million) development encompasses a bevy of sustainable features such as the use of energy efficient materials, solar panels, recycling and immediate proximity to mass transit. These will result in annual heating costs below $340 for a three-bedroom, 860-square-foot unit. “Five years into the economic recovery, the real estate market in Cluj-Napoca has finally started to improve. The first quarter of 2014 has seen important growth in all sectors of the industry,” says Anamaria Burca, managing partner at Coldwell banker Transylvania, the Coldwell Banker brokerage office in Cluj, which holds the exclusive marketing rights to Riviera. “As one of the strongest markets in Romania, second only to Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca attracts increasing numbers of investors who seek to capitalize on the strong demand for market-rate housing–both condos and rental apartments,” Burca added. Developed by local developer I&C Transilvania Constructii with Hungary-based general contractors Kész Építő és Szerelő Zrt., local architecture firm ARHIMAR and project manager CS Invest Consulting, the project is expected to complete in September 2014.It will comprise two-, three- and four-bedroom units ranging between 484 and 1,776 square feet, featuring expansive balconies or private gardens offering panoramic views of the city. Community amenities include a 5,262-square-foot spa featuring a fitness center and indoor swimming pool, professionally landscaped green spaces, children’s playground, 24-hour manned security, key-card and intercom access and onsite caretaker. Riviera Residence is located 300 feet away from a recently overhauled public park and lake and from one of the biggest commercial centers of the city, Iulius Mall, which houses a grocery hypermarket, a 12-screen theater, a medical clinic, a multitude of local, national and international retailers and a multi-story office component. A second, fully-leased phase of the office component, dubbed Iulius 2, is on the fast-track towards completion about 150 feet away from Riviera Residence. The office high-rise will house the consolidated local offices of Genpact and Office Depot. Riviera Luxury Residence will also mark the launch of a new product in the local real estate market: the guaranteed rental price. The product entails that condo units bought by investors and furnished according to Coldwell’s standards will be leased to renters by Coldwell at a guaranteed price. Both renters and condo buyers are expected to be plentiful. “The multifamily market is trying to accommodate an influx of new residents to the area, and construction activity is picking up as well, with a large number of apartment units currently underway,” Burca said, adding that the Cluj market is in an interesting position. “The Great Recession hit locally with a delayed effect. The effect began in 2009, but there were still several residential projects that were completed that year. By the end of 2010 and into 2011, however, the market had come to a complete standstill. Nothing sold, not units completed in private developments, not condos put on the market by owners. Had it not been for the First Home Program (a government-assisted housing initiative that aids young couples in purchasing their first residence), the market would have gone completely under. First Home kept us on life support.” Things have been looking up recently, however. “The local housing market has increased by almost 20 percent over the past 12 months. As the multifamily market tries to accommodate an influx...
