On July 28–30, an intensive working meeting was held in Kremenets, Ternopil Oblast, bringing together the heads of 23 communities participating in the League of Leaders from various regions of Ukraine, as well as representatives of the U-NEXT Network’s coordination group.
The Cherkasy settlement community was represented at the meeting by Oleksiy Kryvokon, head of the Cherkasy Settlement Administration, and Olena Kashuba, head of the Community Development Department of the Cherkasy Settlement Council.
The communities are joining forces to identify effective approaches for engaging youth in civic life and local self-government, building a talent pool, and fostering development processes at the local level.
The event’s program included: an experience-sharing module; an introduction to and discussion of the concept of a youth initiative’s identity; coordination of an action plan and selection of tools for youth policy development; and the signing of Memoranda of Cooperation.
“The ‘U-NEXT: Youth Governance and Leadership Network’ project is original and powerful. Its strength lies in the desire of community leaders to actively involve young people in reconstruction and development processes. The project’s concept is the result of their training and collaboration last year through the U-LEAD program. At the same time, the young people themselves are driving the initiative forward: youth exchanges, internships with local government bodies, audits, and training—there’s a lot of valuable opportunities awaiting young people,” said project manager Eleonora Vyshniak.
“The Cherkasy community has joined the U-NEXT project because we are convinced that young people should be full-fledged partners in recovery and development. Despite all the challenges the Donetsk region is facing today, we strive to create opportunities for young people to learn, lead, find self-fulfillment, and participate in making important decisions. I am convinced that cooperation with communities from different parts of Ukraine, the exchange of best practices, and the joint implementation of youth initiatives will help build a strong, responsible, and active youth community,” said Oleksiy Kryvokon, head of the Cherkasy Settlement Military Administration.
The “U-NEXT: Youth Governance and Leadership Network” project is being implemented by the “Center for Civic Initiatives” Charitable Foundation as part of the “U-LEAD with Europe” Program, which is supported by the European Union and its member states: Germany, Denmark, France, Austria, Poland, and Slovenia.