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Description
The project is designed to generate sustainable changes in five selected communities through participatory processes, tailored and support and civic consolidation at local level, as well as by developing a good practice model for civic engagement in the decision making process of local public administrations. The project envisages the development and implementation of a pilot program that aims, as a first step, to activate and connect the community by establishing and educating/informing civic groups, as well as the organization of community consultations on investment decisions and the activity of the local public administration. Subsequently, we intend to carry out local campaigns (civic and legal actions, petitions, hearings, advocacy) to monitor the local public administration, to participate actively and constantly in all its activities (public meetings, organized debates, inquiries) and to change / promote investment decisions and public services which will benefit at least 10,000 citizens in each town. We expect that creating in each selected town / county a civic group made up of local leaders, young people, activists or entrepreneurs will initiate actions and organize consultations that will count 1250– 2500 locals. The civic groups will benefit from assistance, good practices, leadership training programs and technical workshops from top practitioners (local public administration experts, foreign investors, national activists). Relevant lessons and insights from past local campaigns will be promoted in mainstream media and social media. Advocacy initiatives at central level promoting government decisions in spending or investing public money with extended citizens’ consultations will be set up and intensively endorsed. At the end of this pilot program, we estimate to have established five civic groups at the local level that will have promoted five relevant changes in the selected communities to the benefit of at least 50,000 citizens.