About us

Petnica Science Center is the biggest and, probably, the oldest independent nonprofit organization for extracurricular, informal science education in South Eastern Europe. Since 1982. Petnica has organized more than 3,000 programs (seminars, workshops, research camps…) for nearly 50,000 students and science teachers in 15 disciplines of science, technology and the humanities.

Petnica Science Center educational activities are aimed at helping participants develop observation and reasoning skills, data and fact gathering techniques, argumentation and communication skills, as well as a readiness for continuous learning and enrichment of knowledge and experience. Students are encouraged to think freely, to think logically and critically and cooperate with colleagues from different cultures and countries.

The majority of our programs are designed for secondary-school students, although there are a lot of programs for primary-school pupils, university students and science teachers.

In its work, Petnica relies on a wide network of over 800 professional associates who, as guest lecturers, mentors or advisors, participate in the creation and execution of various programs. They come from over a hundred higher education institutions or research institutes, and today most of them are former participants of Petnica programs.