ACF/30
Organisation: Devetaki Plateau Association/ DPA
Partners : Friluftsroedenes Landsforbund/ FL, Norway and Zelenigrad Association/ ZA, Veliki Preslav
Project Name: Active Citizens in Villages
Project Duration: 39 months
Starting Date: 28.10.2019
End Date: 17.01.2023
The project aimed at increasing the awareness and involvement of the local communities in 13 villages, and to improve civic participation mechanisms. It targeted the two associations’ members, the people in the villages, and the municipalities of Letnitsa, Lovech, Sevlievo, and Veliki Preslav. The activities planned were logically directed to fostering the motivation of local communities to engage in the identification and implementation of projects and initiatives related to their living environment, the local development and the local government.
Implementation: A series of trainings and information meetings were held that broadened the citizens’ knowledge about the possibilities and the benefits of citizen participation and volunteering. Recommendations were addressed and incorporated by the municipalities in their Economic Development Plans 2027. New communication channels were created towards increasing the citizens’ awareness and limiting the influence of fake news. The flexible reaction of the project team and the Program Operator during the Covid 19 crisis allowed for these channels to be used for providing timely, reliable information about orders and requirements related to the pandemic situation. After the restrictions were abrogated, public discussions were organized in the villages where the local people identified challenges and recommended ideas and solutions. A total of 13 small projects were initiated by the communities and implemented by them. In addition, the Norwegian experience shared by the Friluftsrodenes Landforbund on working with local communities and volunteers inspired the adaptation and application of modern and effective models in the villages. Those models were later disseminated in other communities and municipalities. At the end of the project 4 discussions were organized with distinguished persons who engaged the attention of the people in the villages and enriched their cultural and social life.
Sustainability: Thanks to the project, the two organizations were able to introduce some modern out-of-the-box mechanisms for effective citizen participation of the small village communities in decision-making and in the implementation of initiatives. The new communication channels and the small projects proposed and implemented by the citizens have been working successfully and are being maintained provided the new volunteer models and the support of DPA and ZA. The experience of the Norwegian partners and the mechanisms adapted to Bulgaria were described in a short handbook and disseminated in the two regions, as well as among organizations and local authorities throughout the country. In the long run, these mechanisms are expected to be applied by other municipalities and communities in Bulgaria. During the last General Assembly of the DPA the members were of the opinion that the project had contributed substantially to the integrity and engagement of the community in the Devetaki Plateau. There were 15 new membership applications. As a whole, the project has had an immense impact on activating the local communities in the regions of the Devetaki Plateau and Zelenigrad, as well as on the institutional and organizational growth of the two associations. Finally yet importantly, the partnership with the Norwegian organization FL has been really beneficial and has deepened sustainably thanks to the visits of a Bulgarian group to Norway and the two trainings the Norwegian partners provided in Bulgaria.