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Description
Września commune inhabitants (Wielkopolskie province) are facing problems related to poor quality of public transport, bothersome investments (large farms) or limited access to culture. At the same time, in the ranking of social engagement run by the ‘Wspólnota’ civic magazine, our commune is on the losing end. We will address these problems by organising workshops with experts who will present examples of initiatives increasing social activity. We will, among others, propose a workshop on how to start a rural homemakers’ club which our partner in the programme, the Rural Homemakers’ Club from Gulczewo will help us with. We will also engage in environmental initiatives – we will plant trees together and collect litter from neglected areas. We will organise bicycle rallies letting commune inhabitants discover natural and cultural richness of their place of residence. To sum the project up and maintain its effects, we will prepare a publication with basic knowledge on active civic initiatives.
Summary of project results
The residents of the municipality of Września (Wielkopolskie Voivodeship) face problems related to the poor quality of public transport, onerous investments (large industrial farms) or limited access to culture. At the same time, in the rankings of social and civic involvement of the "Wspólnota" magazine, our commune took one of the last places. Inadequate public transport makes daily life difficult, and limited access to culture and social activities has a negative impact on residents'' quality of life. With our activities, we wanted to contribute to reducing the nuisance of these problems.
As part of the project we conducted:
• 10 expert workshops with residents of villages in our municipality on public transport, cultural life in the countryside, and the history of the region. These workshops were not only aimed at education, but also at encouraging residents to actively participate in community life.
• 6 rural clean-up actions that involved residents in caring for their surroundings and improving the aesthetics and cleanliness of the places where they live.
• 4 tree planting campaigns, which not only contributed to the greening of the countryside, but also integrated the local community through neighbourhood picnics.
• 2 bicycle rallies, promoting a healthy lifestyle and allowing residents to get to know their region.
As part of the project, we also published a guide for residents, which included useful information and tools for active participation in social and environmental life.
Our project targeted rural residents, including members of local housewives'' clubs, village councils and any other interested residents.
From our observations, it seems to have had an impact on these people. Above all, there has been a visible increase in the social activity of the residents and their willingness to undertake more joint activities.
As part of the project, we disseminated the ‘Civic Toolbox’ guidebook, which is a summary of a previous project implemented by our organisation. The guidebook is a compendium of knowledge on how to solve selected problems of rural residents. We have now reprinted it and distributed it at promotional meetings in the Września district. A total of 10 such meetings were held and attended by 300 residents of our district.