Monitoring and assessment of the needs for transforming participatory processes in community development and just transition of the Ladyzhyn City Territorial Community
Representatives of the Association of Coal Communities of Ukraine took part in an online meeting dedicated to the presentation of the results of a comprehensive study:
“Monitoring and assessment of the needs for transforming participatory processes in community development and just transition of the Ladyzhyn City Territorial Community.”
The meeting focused on two key areas:
➡ presentation of research findings on citizens’ participation in community decision-making processes
➡ discussion of next steps to strengthen this participation in the context of just transition
The study, presented by the NGO “Civil Society Development Forum”, will serve as a foundation for launching a new project.
During the meeting, Oleksiy Kovalenko announced the launch of a new initiative: “Just Transition of the Ladyzhyn Community: Development through Participation and Partnership.”
The key focus is shifting from formal engagement of residents to real partnership in decision-making processes.
The initiative includes:
➡ updating the community statute
➡ introducing modern participation tools (public consultations, participatory budgeting, working groups)
➡ strengthening open and transparent communication with residents
It also includes the development of effective feedback mechanisms that will enable residents to influence the formation of community development priorities.
Oleksiy Kovalenko emphasized that today, without active public participation, successful transformation is not possible — engagement of residents is a key condition for effective change.
Within this project, the Association of Coal Communities of Ukraine acts as a partner and will support just transition processes through:
➡ engaging residents in development planning
➡ strengthening participatory mechanisms
➡ working with target groups (IDPs, veterans, youth, NGOs)
➡ delivering trainings and capacity-building activities
➡ supporting project development and grant applications
The event took place within the framework of the project “Assessment of the needs and capacity of the Ladyzhyn territorial community to develop and implement a just transition plan through participatory approaches,” implemented by the NGO “Civil Society Development Forum” in partnership with the Ladyzhyn City Council and the NGO “Agency for Local Economic Development of Ladyzhyn”, with the support of the International Renaissance Foundation.
