Co Creative Communities
Funding: Federal Foreign Office of Germany
Partners: MitOst e.V., EcoHub
Duration: June – December 2024
Budget: 1,400,000 UAH
Project management: Yuliia Alenina, Yuliia Nepyk, Olha Bondarenko
Contact: office@insha-osvita.org
Co Creative Communities is an educational project implemented in cooperation with MitOst e.V. (DE) and EcoHub (ARM), aimed at strengthening grassroots and local democratic processes in Ukraine and Armenia.
In times of crisis, particularly during war, representatives of marginalized groups face even greater discrimination and rights violations. Activists working with these groups therefore require individual support, stronger horizontal networks, and the development of new tools.
The program focused on developing practical skills and exploring new tools in the areas of participation, communications, accountability and transparency principles, and risk management in crisis conditions. Special attention was given to the participation of women and representatives of vulnerable groups.
In 2024, the program included:
- A three-day offline dialogue focused on strengthening connections within the Ukrainian activist community and identifying current needs and demands. The meeting took place in Kyiv on September 12–14 and brought together 25 participants: leaders of NGOs and informal groups, activists working with people displaced by the war, veterans, people with disabilities, children and teenagers, neurodivergent people, the queer community, single mothers and fathers, and others.
- A study visit of seven Ukrainian participants to a meeting organized by our partners from the Eco Hub Foundation in Vanadzor, Armenia. This exchange enabled participants to compare and reflect on the experiences of two post-Soviet countries, identify similarities and differences, and distinguish effective and ineffective practices. The Vanadzor programme also included a meeting with representatives of local authorities focused on participation practices from the perspective of the public sector.
- A series of online workshops dedicated to transforming abandoned spaces into public spaces, participatory budgeting and community engagement in decision-making, as well as social cohesion as a method for addressing the challenges of wartime.
The outcome of all meetings within Co Creative Communities was the development of a toolkit: a manual featuring a collection of participatory tools developed by a group of Ukrainian, Armenian, and German experts. It systematizes the experience and insights gathered during the offline meetings in Kyiv and Vanadzor, as well as the online workshop series. The toolkit is available via the link.
The project is implemented by Insha Osvita in partnership with MitOst e.V. and EcoHub with funding from the Federal Foreign Office of Germany.
