Cooperation for citizen participation and community development in Belarus

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1 Cooperation for citizen participation and community development in Belarus

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3 SUMMARY Introduction 1. The Future is in Your Hands 2. Creation of the virtual museum of the Struve Arc Arc: uniting people and cultures 3. Development of a mini sanctuary The Island as a factor of sustainable development of Vezhny village 4. Together to solve the problems faced by disabled children and orphans in Rechitsa 5. Developing social services and psychological care for cancer patients as socially vulnerable group of Smarhon population 6. Using local capacities as the main resource to create innovative touristic product 7. Cooperation of the local community and the local authorities in creating a bicycle infrastructure in the neighbourhood 8. A green route between the three lakes 9. Greenways for local development in the countryside Conclusion This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union. The content and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the Association of Local Democracy Agencies and its partners and do not reflect the opinion of the European Union.

4 Introduction The project TANDEM Cooperation for citizen participation and community development in Belarus results from long-lasting cooperation between Association of Local Democracy Agencies (ALDA, France) and Lev Sapieha Foundation (Belarus). The partnership started in 2006 and since then the two organisations have been investing mutual efforts to reinforce local self-government and civic participation at local level in Belarus. ALDA is an international non-governmental organization working actively to foster human rights and local democracy especially in the Western Balkans and in the Eastern partnership countries and Eu neighborhood countries. It was founded in 1999 as an initiative of the Council of Europe s Congress of Local and regional authorities and has developed into one of the biggest ngos connecting the local authorities and civil society dealing with human rights, democracy and active citizenship at the local level ( Lev Sapieha Foundation is a non-governmental, non-political, non-profit organization founded in 1992 with the aim of supporting and fostering the development of civil society and self-government at the local level. It also works on the promotion of democratic ideas and practices in the economic, scientific and cultural fields ( Following the ACSOBE - Acting social rights in Belarus and REACT REinforcing ACTions of capacity building for civil society projects, implemented in Belarus from September 2006 to August 2010 by both partners and supported by the European Commission, a growing number of civil society actors returned with new ideas to continue the activities. These actors developed different ideas of civic initiatives for targeted areas in Belarus. The main goal was to implement concrete actions in order to promote participation of civil society in the sustainable development of local social and economic strategies. The ACSOBE and REACT projects aimed at promoting social and cultural rights and at strengthening dialogue between civil society groups and local governments in Belarus. The partnership building process aimed at involving different types of non-state actors in order to promote a rich and profitable exchange between different partners. one of the results of this project was the development of new relationships between different organizations. These new relationships facilitated the development of new Civic Initiatives to support sustainable development in a way that was more understandable for the general population. The project TANDEM that was implemented in facilitates citizens active engagement in the local development process, promotes cooperation between local authorities and non-state actors and implements concrete actions in this field. The general focus of the project is supporting civic initiatives in order to foster citizens and civil society organizations action in favor of sustainable development. We encouraged the participants of the project to develop their own ideas for local social or cultural projects and to share their experience with colleagues through the promotion of small social initiatives locally. The most important point was to develop initiatives which address local needs of local people. Thanks to our participants intense activity on social issues, we managed to gather numerous project ideas. The approval of the proposals by the Department of Humanitarian activities under the Presidential Administration facilitated a lot the implementation. The next step consisted in shaping these initiatives and providing their initiators with consultancy and support, as well as strengthening their knowledge in project management. Two initiatives were implemented in partnership with EU municipalities. Seven civic initiatives are basically small projects, designed and implemented by non state actors very active at the local level. The nine projects have significantly contributed to strengthen participation of NSA, to promote development processes, to reduce poverty and to foster sustainable development in rural areas of Belarus. The action took place in Gomel, Golshany, Vezhny, Rechitsa, Smorgon, Braslaw, Minsk, Sporovo and Beloozersk. Some educational activities were held in Minsk region to give more visibility to the project in Belarus. This publication aims to provide an overview of all the initiatives that were implemented and of the results that were achieved. 4

5 1. The Future is in Your Hands NGO Association of Children and Young People of Gomel (ASDEMO) Project location: Gomel Gomel is the second biggest city of Belarus. As Gomel city has been growing quickly, the local authorities realized that they could not provide the necessary infrastructure on an adequate pace to support the expanding needs of young people. New buildings host more and more families whose children do not have access to an arranged space to spend their free time. In order to solve this issue, the local authorities of Gomel contacted the oldest regional NGO ASDE- MO, the Association of Children and Young People of Gomel, actively involved in children and youth issues in the city and its region. The collaboration between members of the local Council and ASDEMO led to the project Future is in Your Hands. For ASDEMO, this joint initiative was an opportunity to encourage local people to develop and implement their own project. ASDEMO held session of consultations with local inhabitants and it was decided to build a sport ground and in order to have an inclusive and successful implementation the initiative group was established to coordinate the work. Despite high interest among local inhabitants to have a sport ground, the project faced the passivity of people. They welcomed the initiative but were not prepared to play an active role in the implementation. For that reason the number of people involved in the project was less than foreseen. Most active participants were the members of ASDEMO living in the target district. During the spring-summer months in 2012, the preparatory work took place: the initiative group got the map extract from the city architects Institute, the field was arranged, and necessary equipment was purchased. The sport installation was realised together by the project manager, initiative group, local inhabitants and local community services. Children and teenagers were the most active participants, spending their days on the field. The inauguration of the sport ground was celebrated by a friendly mini-football tournament between school N 72 and the local sport club. Since its opening, the sport ground has become very popular in the neighbourhood, a place where children and young people practice football, basketball and other sports. The project became a clear successful case of cooperation between local authorities and civil society organisation in solving important matters for the neighbourhood. It strengthened the links between authorities and citizens, improved visibility of ASDEMO and gave ground for future joint initiatives. 5

6 2. Creation of the virtual museum of the Struve Arc Arc: uniting people and cultures The Department of Culture at Regional Executive Committee of Oshmyany through the Information and Local History Center of Golshany Project location: Golshany A series of marks in the ground running through ten countries from the north coast of Norway to the Black Sea is known as the Struve Arc (2,820 km long). It refers to a surveying work realized by astronomer Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve ( ) in the quest to determine precise values for the Earth parameters. He used the surviving nodes of what is known as a 265-point triangulation network, in other words, marks on the ground facilitating the understanding of the dimensions of the Earth. This work enabled various improvements in producing more precise mapping and in navigation. Five of thirty four points of the Arc which are included in the UNESCO heritage are situated on the territory of Belarus. One of these points, Tupishki, is situated in Golshany district (Oshmyany region). The group of active citizens of this district interested in promoting world heritage initiated a project to create a museum of the Struve Arc. The initiative was supported by local authorities and a member of the National Parliament. The managers of the project were interested in promote the Oshmyany district to national and foreign tourists, but also to raise awareness of local people about other countries where the Struve Arc runs and their cultures, and to improve international cooperation in public and scientific fields. As the output of the project the Museum collected unique exposition and information materials on culture and traditions of the states where the Struve Arc runs; handout materials and informational leaflets were produced; encyclopedias, touristic guides and maps were purchased. Especially for the Museum the Belarusian cartographers produced the map of the Struve Arc. 6

7 Cooperation for citizen participation and community development in Belarus TANDEM Programme, 2013 The Museum has modern equipment and this attracts attention of wide audience, especially young people. Meetings with historians and specialists on local history are held regularly. The Museum has its website struve.by where visitors can find historical fiche on the Golshany triangulation point, photo gallery, information on each country of the Struve Arc, touristic information on Golshany and its area. The museum staff elaborated excursions for children and young people and give lectures for school pupils. Animation programmes on the Tupishki triangulation point itself have become very popular. School pupils use the materials of the Museum to prepare presentations at school. The Museum has been included in cross-border touristic itinerary Travel on O shmyany highlands, excursions for children from bordering Lithuanian regions are organised. Tourists from Lithuania, Finland, Belgium, Russia and other countries have visited the Museum so far. Contacts with other countries of the Struve Arc have been activated. Many municipalities in Belarus and abroad, especially in Latvia (Gulbene municipality which was partner of this project) and Lithuania (Medininkai), which also host other survey triangulations of the Struve Arc are interested in developing further cooperation. The world geodesic community expressed its very positive assessment of the Museum as a place and a tool which promotes the geodesic science and profession. The implementation of the project encouraged active position of local population, cooperation between initiative citizens, became topic of dialogue with local authorities and initiated further social development of the region. Assistance by the authorities has facilitated very much the process and gives a big potential for the future development of the museum of the Struve Arc. The new cultural object on the basis of Golshany rural Council successfully joined the rich range of historical-cultural objects in ancient Golshany town. 7

8 3. Development of a mini sanctuary The Island as a factor of sustainable development of Vezhny village Action Team for Sustainable Development of Vezhny village Vezhny village is situated in a unique natural landscape. This fact is proved by researchers of the National Academy of Science who have found there number of species of wild animals and plants included in the Red List of Threatened Species. The scientists issued special protection documents for the local forestry. Thanks to the efforts of the initiative group of local citizens, the creation of a mini sanctuary The Island on this unique territory became the strategic aim of the project. It was of utmost importance for the project initiators to create common good not only for the local community but for the whole Project location: Vezhny country with the most massive participation of villagers. The project started with the round table for all interested stakeholders where the technical issues of organisation of the sanctuary The Island were discussed. Villagers including school teachers, pupils and other active inhabitants together with ecologic associations took an active part in the preparation of the route. Overall, it gave new knowledge about the local nature and green way of life and an opportunity to participate actively in the local development of their own environment. 8

9 Cooperation for citizen participation and community development in Belarus TANDEM Programme, 2013 In addition, sustainable development became an important part of school education. Visits to the mini-sanctuary The Island were included into the local schools curriculum. Pupils of the local school became the first visitors of the route. Thanks to the free bus provided by the local authorities young greens from neighbouring town Svetlogorsk visited the route as well. The excursions start from Green Corners created in the school and the club in Vezhny. These Green Corners spread information about the mini sanctuary, about green way of life. The project allowed preparing and partly testing a specific course School in nature based on the experience of similar practices in the Nordic countries. The level of engagement and cooperation between villagers and local authorities has been encouraging. The authorities welcomed civic initiatives, which contributed to the local development and countered the lack of cultural and educational infrastructure. During the closing event of the project it was decided to create a database of project ideas to fundraise for the further activities in this direction. Local people gradually started to understand that the quality of their life depends not only on the local authorities, but also on their own efforts, on their civic position and civic activity. 9

10 4. Together to solve the problems faced by disabled children and orphans in Rechitsa Belarusian Society of Disabled People Project location: Rechitsa The project was a bottom-up initiative aiming at improving social inclusion of disabled children and orphans in Rechitsa. It involved the volunteer club Care based in Rechitsa high school who has been supporting children in difficult situation for several years already. The volunteers were actively supported by the journalists of the media company. The main goal of increasing children s social inclusion was reached through different objectives: the direct involvement of the children in activities dedicated to their well-being, and raising awareness and empowerment of the volunteers but also raising awareness of the inhabitants of Rechitsa about existing problems and possible way to resolve them. Members of the volunteer club organised six interactive events which allowed disabled children and orphans to communicate with other children in informal and empowering atmosphere. Two events included games, competitions, distribution of prizes and gifts: the International Children s day and Christmas Fairy Tale. Two table tennis tournaments between teams from Hospice for disabled children and the high school took place. Furthermore, the volunteer club helped the Hospice with two charity actions. Firstly, action Hello, School! consisted in purchasing staff stationery, books, and other items for the school year. The second action Realise a dream! was implemented together with the Red Cross and allowed to purchase gifts that the children had mentioned in their letters to Santa Claus. Such activities allow children in difficult situation the opportunity to get rid of feeling of exclusion from social life, to strengthen their self-confidence, to become more friendly towards their environment. The project was benefitting for the volunteers from the high school since it enriched their knowledge about methods of work with children deprived of parent s care. They shared this experience in social video advertisement on responsible parenthood disseminated on the local TV. The new experience was included in the handbook Forming active po- 10

11 Cooperation for citizen participation and community development in Belarus TANDEM Programme, 2013 sition of personality within children and youth organisations which was prepared by the administration of the high school together with the volunteers for the national competition of methodical innovations. The project implementation was monitored by the local TV and local newspapers. Through this communication strategy, about people became aware of the problems socially vulnerable children face and how they can be addressed by ordinary people s involvement. The hospice administration made a film about difficult families. This tool will be used to promote responsible parenthood among Rechitsa inhabitants, including alcoholic mothers and other vulnerable groups. This film was nominated to the national TV competition. The most ambitious aim to engage Rechitsa local authorities in the activities and problem-solving process was not achieved up to now. Nevertheless, the project created a strong basis for future development in this direction. The project strengthened the volunteer club, provided it with new experience and made it able to address the local authorities with concrete proposals on how to improve the situation of socially vulnerable children. Through innovative volunteer activities the project had direct positive impact on the disabled children and orphans lives. 11

12 5. Developing social services and psychological care for cancer patients as socially vulnerable group of Smarhon population Belarusian Young Women Christian Association (Smarhon regional branch) Project location: Smarhon The project was developed by the Belarusian Young Women Christian Association (BAMHZh) to promote an innovative approach to cope with people suffering of cancer. More particularly, it aimed at improving the quality of life of cancer patients in Smarhoń. The main means identified as an effective way to achieve this goal were notably establishment of self-help groups and trainings offered to specialists in psychology and in social work on the specificity that is to work with this socially vulnerable group. Members of BAMHZh who initiated the project have been cancer patients themselves and are persuaded that patient s own positive orientation, support from the family and from qualified psychologists are a significant factor for successful treatment and rehabilitation process, hence the importance of both the trainings and awareness raising activities. One of the main challenges for the patients in surviving cancer is to overcome their fear and anxiety. However, in Belarus, specialisation for cancer psychologists does not exist, self-help groups are not developed enough. The project indeed developed comprehensive knowledge on the issue and activities for patients and their families, psychologists, doctors and local authorities. During the project, trainings for both specialists, and patients took place along with public awareness actions. The trainings encouraged psychologists to work with cancer patients and provided them with the necessary qualifications to do so. As for the trainings provided to the patients, they 12

13 Cooperation for citizen participation and community development in Belarus TANDEM Programme, 2013 helped them overcome their psychological and social self-isolation. The trainings were provided by a Belarusian psychologist, member of European association of psychodrama, having huge experience of work with cancer patients and their families. Psychological tests held after the trainings revealed that the mood of the twelve women who took part in the trainings was improved. Six of them have formed a self-help group (Help Unity). Doctors were able to inform their patients about the existence of the Help Unity group which facilitated the access to the activities for patients. Also, three patients and two psychologists became members of BAM- HZh, demonstrating their satisfaction with values and methodology of this organisation. The project got wide support from local authorities and from public medical care institutions, and was covered by local media (TV and newspapers). About 80% of local population was informed about the project inauguration and development. Three awareness raising actions targeted to diverse groups were put in place. A painting contest The Sun shines to all! was organised for children on 4 February, 2013, the World Cancer Day, in order to raise their awareness about such principles of Christian morality as beneficience, mercy, kindness, mutual understanding, to make them responsible for their way of life and their health. In October 2012, in the framework of the annual international action for the prevention of breast cancer Pink band BAMHZh initiated TV social advertizing on this topic. Members of this organisation and volunteers disseminated throughout the local community information materials related to this topic. Aiming to improve mood mainly of cancer patients, but also of visitors of the Territorial centre for social services Warm house a permanent photo exhibition I choose life! presenting Smarhon cancer patients was created. The development of the project in Smarhon helped to create a model for cooperation between doctors working in public medicine, department for social services at local Executive Committee, members of BAMHZh, group of cancer patients and their relatives. In the framework of this model the mechanism to redirect patients to the self-help unit through doctors, psychologists, newspaper, TV was developed. This unit gives great support for those patients who are interested in overcoming negative consequences of their disease. The project proved that the approach is particularly suitable for small towns and villages where the information circulates intensively between local inhabitants themselves, where specialists and public leaders know each other personally, have respect and trust each other, are open for cooperation. 13

14 6. Using local capacities as the main resource to create innovative touristic product The Braslaw District Public Association for Cross-Border Cooperation Euroregion Country of Lakes Project location: Braslaw Agro-ecotourism is a specific tourism concept referring to the gathering of tourists in rural areas, in full comfort residences with authentic design and environment. This concept is very much expanded in Belarus. Hundreds of agro-eco residences have grown throughout the countries during the last years. Braslaw area thank s to its unique nature hosts most of them, around 150 residences. However, these similar residences have never been linked so far. The manager of the project identified the creation of clusters as an effective way to coordinate the work of separate residences and to reorganise their services offered to tourists in a well developed and diverse way. The project thus aimed at creating conducive environment for self-development of rural areas in Braslaw area and strengthening their attractiveness, as well as increasing interest of the local community in participation in solving local issues. The project supported the residences in developing for each of them its unique style based on traditional handcraft. A number of seminars and practical workshops were organised for residences owners. During the workshops the participants got familiar with historical facts and practice of such crafts as work with linen, sheep s wool, pottery. One of the seminars focused on management and marketing of local traditions, as well as on the legislation regulating handcraft activities. Each residence interested in joining the cluster chose its specialty. For example, one of them decid- ed to host children festivals, while another one chose to work on activities related to fish (cuisine, souvenirs made of wood, straw, linen etc). Thus, every residence owner is able to focus on developing its own profile and the cluster offers to the guests the choice of unique residences. The future development of the touristic residences cluster in Braslaw area will include organisation of souvenir shops in the residences; organisation of workshops on handcaft for general public with participation of local craftsmen on commercial basis. The success of the project was proven by the local residences owners interest (the workshops and seminars were foreseen for 10 participants, while there were many more applicants). Not to mention the number of unexpected events which were not financed by the project: participation in presentations, seminars, fairs of residences where the project participants could share their experience and best practices with colleagues from other regions of Belarus and even one event on handcraft for school teachers from Daugavpils (Latvia). Another successful outcome was also highlighted by the fact that based on this project the participants developed a new initiative to promote sustainable development and green consumption and have already applied for financing. The project got its continuation when the association Euroregion Country of Lakes was invited to participate in the project of national scale Creation of rural touristic clusters in Belarus: innovation, integration and institutionalisation as factor of sustainable development of rural areas. The initiative to transform the residences into the education platforms to promote well-being led to the project Ecological footprint and green consumption within the cluster of agro-eco residences in Braslaw area: steps towards sustainable development of the region. 14

15 7. Cooperation of the local community and the local authorities in creating a bicycle infrastructure in the neighbourhood NGO Minsk Cycling Community Minsk Cycling Community (MCC) designed this project to contribute to the development of the bike infrastructure and cycling culture in Minsk. The project aimed at increasing the number of cyclists in Minsk as well as promoting cycling in general. The poor infrastructure and the policies of the Minsk authorities were assessed as the obstacle for the flourishing cycling culture of the city residents. To reach the objective of the project, the Minsk Cycling Community developed a number of actions targeting different actors. First, in the framework of implementation of the Concept of promoting cycling in Minsk, MCC established contacts with authorities of all districts of the capital and took active part in developing the bicycle infrastructure. During series of events with local authorities the existing bike infrastructure was assessed and proposals for its improvement were discussed. One of the identified problems of small number of cyclists is the lack of special parking places in the city. The bicycle parking slots model to be spread throughout the city was presented and some prototypes were installed. Second, Minsk Cycling Community wanted to involve local people in the bicycle infrastructure development. One of the actions undertaken was the creation of safe bicycling parking facilities involving local people. The target area was identified and an opinion poll among people living there was held. Despite obvious need to create special bicycle installations, residents of neighbouring buildings did not express any interest in participating in the implementation. Nevertheless the action was put in place and one roofed bicycle parking was made available for the cyclists in the neighbourhood. Project location: Minsk Third, the Cycling Community established cooperation with other groups which are promoting the barrier-free environment NGOs uniting people with disabilities. Together cyclists and wheelchair invalids organised the campaign for public control over respect for construction standards in Minsk. Both members of their organisations and volunteers participated in the assessment of the height of side walk on the renovated streets in Minsk. The results were presented to the public authorities. During the project period, MCC became member of the European Cyclists Federation (ECF) and has participated in the development of the fourteenth cross-border European bike itinerary Euro velo-2. The Euro velo-2 runs from Galway (Ireland) to Moscow (Russia) and passes through Belarusian cities, including Minsk. Thanks to efficient media coverage, the Minsk Cycling Community could inform city residents about Euro velo-2. As member of European Cyclists Federation (ECF), the Community is responsible for development of the itinerary through Belarus, its demarcation and cooperation with local authorities to make the road in compliance with ECF standards (type of roads, accessibility of food, frequency of accommodation facilities etc). The activities under this project were regularly reported on the web-site of the MCC bike.org.by. 15

16 8. A green route between the three lakes Initiative Group for Sustainable Development of the Sporovsky Village Council Project location: Sporovo When the initiative group of Sporovsky Village Council was developing the idea of the project Green route between the three lakes it aimed to join the efforts of local inhabitants, school pupils to act as one team at local level with support of the local authorities towards improvement of the quality of life in the local area. The creation of the green route became such a joint action. Then, the green road was inaugurated with a bike ride on 7 July. The ride gathered environmental-friendly tourists from all over Belarus and from border towns of Poland The creation of the green route started with the identification of the itinerary. Its marks, the paper guides, information stands along the route as well as presentation CD were prepared and produced by the efforts of school teachers and pupils. Together with local forestry the resting place for tourists was arranged. 16

17 Cooperation for citizen participation and community development in Belarus TANDEM Programme, 2013 and Russia. The event started with a visit to the local museum exposing peasant way of life in the period from the 19th to the beginning of 20th century. Then the participants celebrated Kupalle a traditional summer festival. In the end, the 40 cyclists followed a 25 km green road visiting historical places. Since then many side activities have been in place: traditional festivities in different seasons, photo exhibitions, traditional Belarusian cuisine tasting, etc. The project was finished by a round-table with participation of all partners. Most active participants of the project got the certificates for their activities. Further development of green tourism in the area was also discussed during this round-table. Local organizations, school teachers and pupils, as well as other villagers were involved in all stages of the project implementation. The project helped to raise awareness of local people about green tourism, green way of life and sustainable development. Another positive outcome of the project is that the green road Between the three lakes became a unique touristic point in the region and made the area particularly attractive for visitors from Belarus and abroad. Villagers got the possibility to diversify their income by providing services for tourists. Even though the practice demonstrated that accurate business planning of touristic activities in the region is necessary for the sustainable development of self-employment of local inhabitants. Finally the project also allowed developing an innovative model of comprehensive support for pedagogical initiatives aimed at creating new approaches in the work with local community. It has been approved by the Ministry of Education of Belarus and will be implemented in the local school during the coming three years. 17

18 9. Greenways for local development in the countryside Center for the Promotion of Entrepreneurship of the Village Council of Beloozersk The project aimed at activating the local community in Beloozersk through the involvement in creation of greenways around the town and the lake Chernoe. The local community and people s dependence on local authorities was a challenge to overcome, as it was commonly accepted that only the local authorities were responsible for the quality of life in the region, and not the citizens themselves. Beloozersk is situated near the lake Chernoe which was selected as the target area for the action. This lake has the potential to become an attractive place for the local inhabitants to spend their free time, to organise outdoor activities and for tourists. The objective was fully achieved and had many positive outcomes. Local population, owners of touristic residences, pupils of Beloozersk schools, local entrepreneurs, tourists, members of the Village Council and the Executive Committee took part in the project implementation. With participation of pupils, local youth, active villagers the lake border was cleaned, became appropriately equipped to host tourists: it has a car parking, a pavilion, and access to electricity and water. A service for bike hiring was made operational and offers five bicycles for cycling tours to the lake and around. The project also raised awareness of local residents about recycling and respectful attitude towards nature, in additional to their role in community life in general. It is important that local people also became more open to tourists coming to the lake. 18 Project location: Beloozersk The project revealed the huge field of work for further development in the tourism sector. The project implementation demonstrated that local regional shops still offer very limited choice of touristic equipment. There is a clear need to develop this business in order to satisfy the demand of tourists traveling in the area. The project contributed to the efficient cooperation between local inhabitants, local authorities and local entrepreneurs. Cooperation with international partner Association of Entrepreneurs of Gulbene municipality (Latvia) was also established. The most active participants of the project Greenways for local development in the countryside founded the club Inspiration to continue to develop the local community s initiatives. Inspired by the success of this project, its participants developed a new project in the same vein entitled Local entrepreneurship and economic development and applied to USAID for financing. These activities contributed to improve the status of the Center for the Promotion of Entrepreneurship in the field of organisational development. In the new project its representatives provide expert support on organisational development for new participants.

19 Conclusion Civil society capacity building and local community development are issues that have been tackled by many European programs in Belarus, but unfortunately until now this hasn t been a success story. This can be explained by not taking into consideration the challenges of approaching Belarusian issues with tools and practices, which have been developed and successfully used within the European Union member states. Sometimes the Western European organisations start working in Belarus without knowing enough about certain aspects and peculiarities of Belarusian life and society. The traditional occidental methods used with success in Europe cannot be applied directly to Belarus. There are too many specificities of the country to allow such strategy to be successful. At first sight, it might appear that in many aspects the state system and social organization in former Soviet Union states have a lot in common with institutions in Europe. However, if they are similar in the formal appearance, they are in fact totally different from one another in practice. What is needed is a full respect for the principle of local ownership of development strategies and a full support to the locally and jointly designed strategies and tools. Moreover, during the 1990s, both in Belarus and in the EU, many thought it would be possible to copypaste European forms of life and activity in order to replace soviet style institutions. The practice has shown that this approach is like a game of words when you try to give a new name to old things. Many actors shared the idea that teaching people to work in a slightly different way, acting in their own way, providing them with access to information would be enough for sustainable development. After the breakup of the Soviet Union, some newly independent republics, especially the Baltic ones, got rid of these illusions very quickly. In Belarus they live on. The structure of courts, the police, local administrations, collective farms, schools of all levels and some other institutions remain unchanged. A lot of energy and creativity of Belarusians goes to the improvement of the functioning of the structures, organizations, and institutions that we got from the Soviet Union. The form of this improvement has not changed since the end of 1980s, and is usually described in simple countable categories: «more glasnost», «more freedom», «more democracy», «more resources», or the other way round «less bureaucracy and corruption» etc. Interestingly, many Europeans think the same way while honestly trying to help in solving our problems. However, there cannot be more freedom where it has not been at all. It is impossible to fight corruption if people are not familiar with other ways of solving social problems. Most of these attempts show the obvious and simple principle of human activity: it is always simpler to continue some activity than to change it radically. With our project we attempt to change this attitude. We want to encourage people to take action rather than to wait for external help. We hope this experience will give incentives to local community building and institutional maturation of local actors. Civil society organizations in Belarus face many difficulties in the dialogue with the government and need to reinforce their capacities in local development actions. Moreover the fact that local authorities do not have relevant autonomy from the central government does not encourage the involvement of grass-roots organizations in local development processes - actually rather the contrary. Support to Civil Initiatives among local actors will raise awareness about the role of NSA in the definition and implementation of development strategies at the local level. Such projects do not limit to the presentation of valuable experiences and best practices: it is also a convenient tool to enable the various stakeholders to develop their networking. The Civil Initiatives serve as solid anchor points which will keep on working on the protection and promotion of public interests at the local level and on which future local initiatives will be able to rely. We hope that this publication will help to promote these initiatives and their continuation in the future and will ensure follow-up and inspiration for others. ALDA and NGO Lev Sapieha Foundation 19

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