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Description
For several years we have been collaborating with a Ukrainian Center for the Civic Advocacy on projects relating to civic engagement of the youth and the civic education. We believe there is a great need for inter-generational initiatives. According to the data from the United Nations, societies of Europe are getting older, with around 18% and 16% of Polish and Ukrainian citizens currently 65 years of age or older, respectively. We know from public consultations we have conducted in Lublin that very few seniors engage in civic activities. Similar problem can be noticed among the youth. According to our studies, only 15% of the young people in Lublin engages in volunteering. Our partners from Lviv point to a similar problem in their region. In our previous projects, seniors were eager to engage with young people and both groups saw it as beneficiary, naming the exchange of experiences, learning new perspectives, or developing openness for different needs among the benefits. We will engage seniors and the youth in organizing civic initiatives in Lublin, where we are currently based, as well as in western districts of Ukraine, where our partner operates – Lviv, Volhynia, and Ternopil. We will conduct two series of workshops focused on collaborating, diagnosing social needs of local communities, and conducting animating initiatives. The participants will be divided into groups, and then design and implement civic initiatives in their communities. We will also organize two exchanges – one in Przemyśl in 2021, a town on the border between Poland and Ukraine – and one in Lviv in 2022. The participants will get to know each other, exchange their experiences, and plan and implement their final projects. The collaboration between people living next to the border, often with a difficult history, will help develop and strengthen the neighborly relationship between the Poland and Ukraine.
Summary of project results
We have been working with the Ukrainian Advocacy Centre for several years (even before the escalation of the war in Ukraine) working on youth engagement and civic education. In our experience, intergenerational activities are now needed. According to the United Nations, societies in Europe are ageing, currently about 18% of the Polish population is over 65, in Ukraine it is 16%. From the public consultation carried out in Lublin, we know that few senior citizens in our city are involved in social activities. A similar problem can be seen with young people - according to our research, only 15% of young people living here volunteer. Our partner from Lviv pointed to similar problems in their region. In our previous projects, senior citizens were keen to get involved with young people and both groups saw a lot of benefits in this - exchanging experiences, learning new perspectives, developing an openness to different needs.
We involved senior citizens and young people in the implementation of community initiatives in the Lublin area, where we operate, and in the western Ukrainian regions - Lviv, Volyn and Ternopil - where our partner operates. We conducted two cycles of civic education workshops for them, including on integrating different social groups and building cooperation, on creating a diagnosis of local community needs and conducting animation activities. The participants/women were divided into groups, after which they developed and implemented community initiatives in their communities. We also organised two exchanges - in Przemyśl and Lviv. Participants got to know each other and exchanged their experiences, and together they planned and implemented recent initiatives. For example, there was a meeting for senior citizens and seniors where they discussed scams and theft, or another group of young people organised a collection of animal food, which culminated in a fair where they sold cakes and donated the money and food to animals in Ukraine. Cooperation between people from border areas - with an often difficult history - established and developed relationships between participants from Poland and Ukraine.
From our interviews with project participants, we know that we have succeeded in integrating and encouraging greater social involvement of Polish and Ukrainian citizens.
The project was aimed at raising awareness of the idea of intergenerational dialogue and acquiring new skills in working with intergenerational groups by representatives/facilitators of Lublin-based CSOs and schools. During a 16-hour programme, 45 people were trained in methods of working with such groups and thanks to this, the products of a previous project implemented within the framework of the Active Citizens - National Fund programme "Good neighbourly intergenerational dialogue" were disseminated. The grantee - on the basis of evaluation questionnaires - declares that participants will use the materials in their workplaces, some of whom are already using them.