“CSO Alley in the city centre, master classes for children and adults, quizzes and quests, a ‘street podcast’ about important things, blood type testing, and lots of conversations and hugs!”

This is what the Union of Combatants and Veterans of the Anti-Terrorist Operation (SUVIATO) wrote about the Vinnytsia TogetherWeAct Fest on its Facebook page. It partnered with the EU Delegation to Ukraine in organising the fest, which was another activity of the Together We Act communication campaign dedicated to the European Union’s support for civil society organisations and independent media in Ukraine.

TogetherWeAct Fest was launched in Kyiv in May. The event in Vinnytsia became the third regional fest after Khmelnytskyi and Rivne.

The public event took place on the city’s European Square. One of the key highlights was the panel discussion “EU and Ukraine. Partnership, support and the future”.

Just like at previous fests, guests had the opportunity to visit themed interactive zones, take part in various competitions and training sessions, and learn a lot.

Around 30 media professionals, representatives of EU-funded projects, and diplomats took part in the press visit to Kyiv region. The journey was organised by the EU Delegation to Ukraine as part of the Together We Act communication campaign.

The journalists got acquainted with local initiatives implemented by civil society organisations with EU support.

In particular, in the village of Katyuzhanka in the Dymer community, the participants visited the youth hub Tviy Shlyakh (Your Way), which operates with the support of the EU. It hosts activities for children and young people. The hub is located in the dormitory of the local vocational school, which was the headquarters of the occupiers when the village was occupied.

The participants also visited Irpin. Right now, the local CSO Smilyvyi Irpin (Brave Irpin) is implementing the EU-funded sub-grant project Transparent Reconstruction: Monitoring the Reconstruction of Social Infrastructure in the Irpin Community. This is one of several projects that civil society organisations are implementing under the EU-funded Recovery Spending Watchdog project, which is being implemented by the Institute for Economic Research and Policy Consulting.

The press visit concluded with a discussion on the role and capacity of civil society organisations and the media in Ukraine’s reforms and its European integration: achievements and challenges in the context of EU support. Participants discussed the EU support for the development and strengthening of civil society and independent media in Ukraine, ensuring sustainability of EU-funded projects, and the engagement of citizens and media in Ukraine’s reforms and European integration.

Three floors, more than 1000 sq. m. of space with various workshops and workspaces for wood and metalworking, robotics, engineering, microbiology, ceramics and textile production, 3D printing, and more. This is the Pole (Field) Development and Product Design Centre, which was opened in July in Ivano-Frankivsk.

The centre was created and operated by the team of the METALAB urban laboratory as part of the EU-funded New Economy of Ivano-Frankivsk project. The Pole is located in the legendary Promprylad, a hub of innovation and creativity.

The name of the centre itself – Pole, a field in English, – hints at its mission: to foster ideas, products, and a professional community.

The goal of the New Economy of Ivano-Frankivsk project is to transform the city into a powerful innovative economic centre by supporting local innovators, businesses, and researchers. NEF receives funding from the EU under the Mayors for Economic Growth programme.

Such developments were undertaken as part of the New Economy of Ivano-Frankivsk project even before the Pole appeared as a physical space.

For example, the METALAB’s team held workshops on new product development. It also financed the purchase of a batch of raw materials to develop the technology of artificial leather from mycelium – and recently, the Mycelya Tech team, a participant in one of the training sessions, announced the release of the first batch of material ready for small-scale production. A few months earlier, the company had registered a patent for its micro-leather cultivation technology.

Keeping yourself in balance or in a normal mental state is difficult these days. But it’s possible – four webinars held in July as part of the EU-funded Culture Helps project were designed to help. It is implemented jointly by the Insha Osvita (Other Education) CSO and the German organisation ZUSA.

Qualified psychologists from the Psikultura (Psyculture) agency spoke about tools for self-analysis and self-adjustment, the power of social connections and their impact on mental health. They explained what to do and how to deal with traumatic memories and their impact, and what are the ways to deal with depression.

Self-analysis is one of the tools that helps cope with one’s condition, the webinars discussed. In addition to an in-depth presentation of the topic, they included active communication between psychologists and the audience, and participants could get answers to questions that were of concern or importance to them.

The July series of psychological webinars was the second one this year. The topics chosen were based on a survey of participants in the previous sessions held in March and April.

These webinars are part of the project’s individual grants programme. The programme also provides an opportunity for psychological relief for cultural managers working with the integration of internally displaced persons and Ukrainians who have been forced to move abroad into new communities. A grant of up to EUR 1,000 can be spent on sessions with a therapist, trips to a health retreat or resort, etc.

Family for People with Disabilities is a civil society organisation with over 20 years of experience. In June of this year, it launched a new project ‘Basic Social Services for Persons with Disabilities in Kyiv’ funded by the EU through EU4CSOs Empower UA and implemented by Network 100 Percent Life Rivne.

The project envisages that the CSO will support 15 children and 20 young people with disabilities.

The children and young people under the organisation’s care require pains taking and skilled care.The organisation’s specialists are working to develop their social and communication skills, improve their physical abilities and mental development. The project will last for a year.

Therefore, the project provides two social services at two locations of the organisation: social adaptation for adults with disabilities at the Inclusive Youth Day-Time Activity Centre ‘A Cup of Kindness’ and day care for children with disabilities at the day care centre.

A psychologist, a physical rehabilitator, and an occupational therapist work with the young people both in groups and individually. They work in a souvenir workshop, have cooking classes and more. They also participate in a self-advocacy club, learn to represent themselves and protect their rights, and go on hikes and sightseeing tours.

Children with disabilities are provided with day care. Currently, a group of ten children has been put together, with three social workers, as well as a speech therapist, a physical rehabilitation therapist, a psychologist, and an occupational therapist working with them on a regular basis. But there are also individual lessons according to a special schedule for other children who wish to attend. During the day, the children stay at the centre, are looked after, engage with specialists, go for walks and spend time together.

More than 200 people took part in 16 trainings of the ‘Strong Community: Protection from All Hazards’ project in the Mena community in Chernihiv region. The aim of the training was to provide the community with civil protection skills and awareness.

The project is being implemented by Dobri Initsiatyvy Menshchyny (Good Initiatives of Mena Community) in partnership with the Centre for the Protection of Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC) with EU funds.

The training programme was completed in July. The 10 trainings held in local communities focused on providing first aid to people in the event of an emergency. Such skills are crucial for reducing the impact of stress and traumatic events.

Another six trainings covered crowd management during an evacuation. Participants in these exercises gained the necessary knowledge and skills to act effectively and safely, which in turn can save people’s health and even lives.

Such exercises are very relevant for the community, which is just over 60 kilometres from the Russian border.

Natalia Burka, the leader of the Dyahova starosta district, attended one of the training sessions on evacuation rules.

In Dyahova, an early hazard warning system has recently been installed – four loudspeakers pointing in different directions of the village. This is also one of the outputs of the ‘Strong Community: Protection from All Hazards’ project. Such systems have been installed in seven municipalities and are equipped with batteries, so they can work even during prolonged power outages.

Entrepreneurship in a Youth Centre project took place in Lviv. Participants were trained in business modelling, target audience profiling, product development, and other entrepreneurial skills.

They also visited several social ventures in Lviv and worked on developing their own business models.

Get Started: Social Entrepreneurship in a Youth Centre is a project implemented by the Youth Platform and School of ME in partnership with a number of organisations and institutions with funding from the European Union. It involves eight youth centres from different regions across Ukraine.

Among them is the Dnipro Youth Centre.

The Dnipro Youth Centre is currently preparing to launch another social venture that will offer photo album production services for school leavers. Its future manager, Mykyta Ihrashayev, took part in the training in Lviv as well.

The project envisages delivering two training modules. The teams will also receive funding for implementing their business ideas in the amount of up to EUR 15,000. In addition, each team will be accompanied by a mentor who will help them launch their social ventures. The project participants will receive expert advice on legal, financial, marketing, social, and other aspects of doing business.

The overall project objective is to educate youth centres on how to support themselves through social entrepreneurship and thus become more sustainable and capacitated.