Project implementation lasted from April 2019 to July 2020 with the financial support of the Press, Education and Culture Section of the US Embassy in Ukraine.

The aim of the project was to strengthen the role of youth in the processes of positive change in Ukraine and develop the leadership capacity of young community leaders by supporting their social initiatives.

Target audience: young community leaders aged 16-25, active citizens of Sarny (Rivne Oblast), Bohodukhiv (Kharkiv Oblast), Kamyanske (Dnipropetrovsk Oblast).

Partners: Youth Center “MYR HUB” (Kamyanske), Kharkiv Regional Youth Organization NGO “Educated Initiative”, Bohodukhiv Collegium №2, Youth NGO SMART (Sarny), Sarny Secondary School I-III Stages №4, Sarny bakary “Skyba”, Sarny city council.

ACTIVITIES WITHIN PROJECT

  • two-day trainings by the organization experts on public activity, teamwork, communications, project management and other relevant topics for 66 active citizens of Sarny, Bohodukhiv and Kamyansky;
  • a three-day Changemakers Forum in Kyiv for 50 most active young leaders from all over Ukraine, which raised awareness of current reforms, developed leadership competencies, and established cooperation with policy makers and NGO leaders;
  • microgrant competition for project participants: ten best initiatives received financial support of up to UAH 5,000 for the implementation of their projects.

MAJOR RESULTS

  • young people became multipliers of activism and positive transformations; they disseminated information about reforms in Ukraine among fellow citizens, advanced their influence on the local decision-making process and became capable of meeting the needs and interests of young people in their communities;
  • a microgrant competition supported ten youth initiatives which included dozens of community public events engaging more than 700 residents, increasing social cohesion and mobilizing other community members;
  • two youth councils (in the city councils of Bohodukhiv and Sokal) and three permanent debate clubs were created in the course of the microgrant-winning initiatives implementation;
  • cooperation between microgrant project managers and local authorities, entrepreneurs and NGOs;
  • Handbook of Best Practices in Youth Participation was released in which young leaders shared their experience of implementing initiatives.