Local Voices

Meet the people shaping PlaceCRAFT's pilot regions. Through Local Voices, we introduce inspiring local people and explore their work, their connection to place, and their perspectives on local development.

• Balanji Organic Farm & Fehér-tó Association | Šandor Balanji •

Šandor Balanji is an organic producer, association leader and village organiser from Lukino Selo, Serbia. His work has always been guided by a larger purpose: using the knowledge, products and relationships of the village for the benefit of the whole settlement.

Through the Balanji family farm and the Fehér-tó Association, Šandor brought together agriculture, environmental care, cultural activity and regional cooperation. His story shows how rural places can be strengthened by recognising and building on the assets they already have.

Together with his family, Šandor developed an organic farm rooted in Lukino Selo’s long gardening and vegetable-growing tradition. Their work demonstrated how local knowledge and sustainable production can become part of a place’s identity. In 2017, their organic spinach, presented as “Spinach from Carska Bara”, received the “Best of Serbia 2017” title in the organic product category, connecting the village with quality, responsibility and recognition beyond its borders.

Šandor carried the same approach into community life through the Fehér-tó Association. Tomato Day, first organised in 2005, transformed a familiar local crop into a shared celebration of the village’s knowledge and traditions. It created a space where growers, families and visitors could meet, exchange experiences and recognise the value of something that had always been part of everyday life.

The Fehér-tó Art Colony created another way to connect people with place. By inviting artists to interpret Lukino Selo’s landscapes, houses and people, the initiative encouraged residents and visitors to see the village from new perspectives and preserve different stories of the settlement.

Šandor’s work reflects a key PlaceCRAFT principle: strong places are built by recognising and developing what already exists. He did not create a new identity for Lukino Selo, but worked with the village’s existing strengths, including fertile land, vegetable-growing traditions, proximity to Carska Bara, local knowledge and neighbourly relationships. Through these efforts, he created new opportunities for connection and cooperation, while projects such as “The Bega and the Timiș – Rivers That Connect Us” and the sister-village network connected Lukino Selo with wider communities across the region.

Many of the public activities paused after the COVID-19 period, and Šandor can no longer carry the same volume of work alone. Yet he remains committed to the future of the village. His aim is not to step away, but to share his experience, support younger residents and help build a wider group that can continue developing Lukino Selo.

Šandor Balanji’s story highlights both the impact of dedicated local leadership and an important lesson for sustainable place development: strong initiatives begin with people who care deeply about their surroundings, but they last when knowledge, responsibility and ownership are shared by the wider community.