Young participants from Croatia, France, Italy, Malta, the Republic of North Macedonia and Romania took part in the summer school “Get involved. Participate for Europe and your Town”. After presentations, workshops and visits to different institutions, they left Strasbourg for their hometowns on Saturday – spreading the message of European cooperation to their communities.

The summer school was part of ALDA’s project INTACT. It familiarised the participants with the concepts of youth involvement and democracy on local and European level. Moreover, it also gave them the opportunity to learn about project management and creating youth participation projects themselves.Participants were actively involved in activities and discussions and it was their contribution that made the event a success.
Activities included presentations given by representatives of the Municipality of Strasbourg, the Council of Europe and the Director of the Association of Local Democracy Agencies. Working groups on European values and democratic principles were organised. The summer school was an important occasion to deepen these topics and share opinions.Although each participant expressed his or her own ideas, there was a common feeling about the most important values for the whole group. This agreement on basic principles can be considered a first achievement of building European identity.

A simulation of European Parliament work was also organised to make participants more familiar with EU institutions and to put into practice the knowledge gained in the workshop on EU institutions.
To top the programme off, two visits were organised. The first one led the participants to the European Parliament, where the MEP Rainer Wieland received them warmly. They then and one at the Council of Europe where François Friederich held a lesson about democratic principles and a presentation of the role that the Council has in this field.
The Summer School concluded with a workshop about Project Management.This was a useful opportunity for participants to learn how create their own projects. They also developed ideas about how to improve active citizenship and encourage young people to become more active both locally and at EU level.
The project INTACT is co-funded by the European Commission in the framework of the «Europe for Citizens» programme. ALDA wishes to thank the Municipality of Strasbourg and the Crédit Mutuel for their generous support.

On July 13 and 14 a preparatory partner meeting for LDA Armenia took place in Yerevan to discuss the establishment of an LDA in Armenia. The participants in the meeting were among others Region Rhône Alpes, Regional Administration of Friuli Venezia Giulia, Union of Communities of Armenia, Urban Foundation for sustainable development and CISP Italy. Furthermore Mr. Nersisyan mayor of Ijevan, Mr. Manukyan, Vice Mayor of Gyumri, Ministry of Territorial Administration in Armenia, Counterpart International and GIZ also participated in the meeting.
The future partners of the LDA decided that LDA Armenia will be hosted by Gyumri municipality with a satellite office in Ijevan. Gyumri is the second largest city in Armenia and was selected since it will provide a good basis to allow the LDA to work on a national level. Furthermore the vibrant civil society in Gyumri and the possibilities to improve the situation for cooperation between civil society and local authorities were stressed as important factors. In addition to this, Gyumri is also linked with Kutaisi which provides a strong basis for developing the cooperation with Kutaisi city and LDA Georgia, which is located in Kutaisi.

The LDA will work to improve local democracy and involvement of citizens and NGOs in the work of local authorities. It is important to ensure that the LDA is independent of the local authorities in Gyumri and to ensure that it can work on a national level. The LDA will aim to serve as a bridge between Europe and Armenia and will bring Armenian practice to Europe and European experience to Armenia – and at the same time operate as a link between Local Authorities and NGOs in Armenia. Finally the LDA will also work to ensure cross border cooperation in South Caucasus and will work to promote peace and understanding in the South Caucasus region.
The meeting confirmed Region Rhône Alpes as lead partner for the LDA, while Regional Administration of Friuli Venezia Giulia, CISP Italy, Union of Communities of Armenia, Ijevan and Gyumri will be partners of the LDA. There will be a further process during the coming months to involve more international partners and to select national and local Armenian NGOs to be partners of the LDA.

The partners at the meeting confirmed October 27 as the official day for the opening ceremony of LDA Armenia in Gyumri and will work to initiate the selection of a delegate and registration of the LDA as a Foundation before that date.
The LDA will be located in the right wing of the building (see photo) which hosts other public associations and NGOs in Gyumri.

For further information please contact peter.sondergaard@aldaintranet.org
Background document on the LDA in Armenia here.

The first Steering Group Meeting of the Project Civil Society in Action for Partnership and Dialogue was held in Mostar on 5th July and hosted by the partner organisation Local Democracy Agency Mostar. Introductory information on the project background and preparatory phase was prepared by Stanka Parac, ALDA Southeast Regional Programme Coordinator, DzenanaDedic Delegate of LDA Mostar and MajaVejzovic, LDA Mostar Project Coordinator.

Eight NGO — partner organisations included from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia were present to discuss the activity plan proposed, the contents of the local awareness raising actions, the capacity building programme envisaged in the year one and to design the thematic framework of the opening conference scheduled for the beginning of October in Tuzla considering the recent developments and surveys conducted as regards the municipal co-operation agreements with civil society organisations. The conference coordinated by the partner organisation Citizens’ Forum Tuzla will serve as the launch event of the two year project aiming to reinforce the role of civil society organisations in building partnerships with public sector with particular focus on the areas of local development strategies, antidiscrimination policies, gender equality, youth and environment protection. Further to this, the conference will help determine the modality and methods of local awareness raising actions and CSO-s capacity building in support to increased citizen participation at local level which will be organised in cities of Tuzla, Zavidovici and Prijedor during the first year of the project.
In order to achieve the objectives set with particular regard to strengthening the issue based networking at local level, it was decided to establish two working groups which will become operational after the launching conference for CSO and LA capacity building and for monitoring the adoption/implementation of the municipal co-operation agreements whose members will be proposed/recruited by the partner organisations.
Partners in the action also agreed on establishing the communication procedures and close collaboration in information dissemination through existing CSO networks. Necessary administrative decisions were adopted in order to fulfil the requirements of the contracting procedures of the action taking place in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
During the next four weeks, the project first visibility and promotion products will be designed (logo and leaflet) and the preparatory activities for the launching conference in Tuzla initiated.
Partners in the project with substantial expertise in CSO networking and promoting citizen participation: LDA Mostar, LDA Zavidovici, Citizens’ Forum Tuzla, DON Prijedor, Democratic Centre Bihac, Centre for local development Breza, LDA Osijek and LDA Subotica.

President of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, is the new Vicepresident of ALDA.
The long lasting member of ALDA was elected by the Assembly of ALDA members, that took place in Bydgoszcz (9th of July).
Mr. Renzo Tondo (President of the Region) is represented by Alessandro Perelli in the Assembly and in the Governing Board of ALDA.

The Friuli Venezia Giulia Region is lead partner of the LDA of Niksic in Montenegro and partner of the LDA of Verteneglio-Brtonigla, in Croatia (Istria Region).
This election was proposed by the Governing Board for the involvement of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region in ALDA and in all its programmes, projects and objectives.
The representative of Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, will be vicepresident until the next General Assembly of ALDA that will be probably held in that Region in 2012.

On July 13 and 14 a preparatory partner meeting for LDA Armenia took place in Yerevan to discuss the establishment of an LDA in Armenia. The participants in the meeting were among others Region Rhône Alpes, Regional Administration of Friuli Venezia Giulia, Union of Communities of Armenia, Urban Foundation for sustainable development and CISP Italy. Furthermore Mr. Nersisyan mayor of Ijevan, Mr. Manukyan, Vice Mayor of Gyumri, Ministry of Territorial Administration in Armenia, Counterpart International and GIZ also participated in the meeting.
The future partners of the LDA decided that LDA Armenia will be hosted by Gyumri municipality with a satellite office in Ijevan. Gyumri is the second largest city in Armenia and was selected since it will provide a good basis to allow the LDA to work on a national level. Furthermore the vibrant civil society in Gyumri and the possibilities to improve the situation for cooperation between civil society and local authorities were stressed as important factors. In addition to this, Gyumri is also linked with Kutaisi which provides a strong basis for developing the cooperation with Kutaisi city and LDA Georgia, which is located in Kutaisi.
The LDA will work to improve local democracy and involvement of citizens and NGOs in the work of local authorities. It is important to ensure that the LDA is independent of the local authorities in Gyumri and to ensure that it can work on a national level. The LDA will aim to serve as a bridge between Europe and Armenia and will bring Armenian practice to Europe and European experience to Armenia – and at the same time operate as a link between Local Authorities and NGOs in Armenia. Finally the LDA will also work to ensure cross border cooperation in South Caucasus and will work to promote peace and understanding in the South Caucasus region.
The meeting confirmed Region Rhône Alpes as lead partner for the LDA, while Regional Administration of Friuli Venezia Giulia, CISP Italy, Union of Communities of Armenia, Ijevan and Gyumri will be partners of the LDA. There will be a further process during the coming months to involve more international partners and to select national and local Armenian NGOs to be partners of the LDA.
The partners at the meeting confirmed October 27 as the official day for the opening ceremony of LDA Armenia in Gyumri and will work to initiate the selection of a delegate and registration of the LDA as a Foundation before that date.
The LDA will be located in the right wing of the building (see photo) which hosts other public associations and NGOs in Gyumri.

ALDA General Assembly 2011 took place in Bydgoszcz (9th July 2011), the day after the important International Conference on “Volunteering for Democracy”.
ALDA members approved all the documents presented at the end of a challenging year for the Association.

“After the achievements of the first ten years of existence – stated Mr.Keith Whitmore, President of the Congress of the Council of Europe in his speech — the Association has become an important player in local democracy-building and a genuine driving force behind cross-border co-operation at both local and regional level – not only in South-East Europe but also increasingly in South Caucasus and the rest of the Eastern Partnership countries. And let’s not forget the crucial role played by ALDA in promoting the entry of South-East European countries in the European Union, and preparing the ground at local level for their future integration”.

ALDA and the Local Democracy Agencies, since their creation, have been actively promoting democracy and respect for human and minority rights in the countries of South Eastern Europe and of Southern Caucasus.
Some of these countries are at the threshold of the European Union, though there are a number of challenges to be tackled before that step will be carried out.

Volunteering is a fundamental instrument for the growth of democracy. Europe believes in its strengthening and intends, with the European Year of Volunteering, to promote the involvement and the participation of European citizens.
At the moment one hundred million of European people are active in a voluntary service and the main objective of the year is to develop this part of active citizens. In order to raise the goals the activity of all the European countries all involved and active to support the volunteering. Is very important.
This is what has come out during the international conference on “Volunteering for Democracy”, organised as part of the European Year of Volunteering 2011, jointly by ALDA and the Bydgoszcz City Hall, that was held in Bydgoszcz, Poland (8th of July).
The event, which main aim was the promotion of voluntary services and civil participation, represented the launching event of the first Polish Presidency of the European Union for Kujavy and Pomerania Region.
It was attended by 150 representatives from civil society groups and local governments from all over Europe.
Keith Whitmore, President of the Congress of the Council of Europe, participated and opened the Conference with a speech.
“What we need today – stated Mr Whitmore — is the practical partnership between local and regional authorities and the volunteer sector, and a practical framework for their cooperation. The authorities at the grassroots should support voluntary organisations, help with the training of volunteers and provide guidance in voluntary project management. They should themselves set a good example by actively participating in voluntary projects. A particular attention should be paid to involving young people and youth organisations, including setting up youth councils or assemblies at local and regional levels. Our objective should be to bring together local and regional authorities and civil society to spread expertise and good practices, raise awareness and encourage exchanges of experience – in other words, to build partnerships for the benefit of our citizens and the improvement of local democracy and self-governance”.
John Macdonald, Representative of the European Commission, Head of Task Force European Year of Volunteering, addressed the audience through a video message underlining the role of volunteering for the growth of citizen participation and democracy.
“The event of such kind – stated the Mayor of Bydgoszcz, Mr. RafałBruski– is exactly what we need locally and regionally. A phenomenon of participation is what local community sees as democracy. The visible need to promote formal and non-formal levels of these activities is both: a task for and ambition of local authorities of Bydgoszcz. I am sure this experience has shown a path and clear direction for public institutions and non-governmental organisations”.
ALDA President, Mr. Per Vinther, underlined that wherever people help and support those in need, society gains in cohesion and democracy. This is why ALDA and its members work to promote the active citizenship and the civil participation both in Member States and neighbouring countries.
The conference included formal and non-formal participation; representatives of several European Ngo’s and Institutions illustrated the experiences of their organisations and countries in the field of voluntarism.
The conference was part of a three-year VIT project (Very Important Twinning) – “Europe for Citizens” programme. The project envisages 20 international events.

Dear visitors,
Welcome to the webpage of the Association of Local Democracy Agencies, ALDA. The internet is only one, but certainly a very important, communication tool which we shall continue to develop and make available in order to inform all the people about our activities and if possible motivate them to engage in similar worthwhile activities with us or other partners. Below I have summed up the far-reaching endeavours undertaken by our Association.

Since 1999 ALDA – and some of the individual Local Democracy Agencies in our network even longer – have been actively promoting democracy and respect for human and minority rights in the countries of South Eastern Europe and of Southern Caucasus.
Some of these countries are at the threshold of the European Union, though there are a number of challenges to be tackled before that threshold can be crossed. ALDA and the Local Democracy Agencies through helping local communities create a better life for all of their inhabitants have constantly kept in mind that this effort should also be targeted to help the countries in question prepare themselves for the “demands” of EU membership.
Recently, involvement in the Civil Society Forum of the Eastern Partnership of the EU, EaP, has led ALDA to increase attention on the countries of Eastern Europe and intensify its longer term activities to help strengthen and promote the role of civil society in Belarus and Georgia as well as engage itself in the other countries of the EaP. To this one might add our ongoing cooperation with civil society organisations in EU neighbourhood countries on the southern rim of the Mediterranean.
ALDA enjoys the support of members in most of the countries of Europe, i.e. regional and local authorities, NGOs and individuals. Based on its commitment to a Europe for All, ALDA has become a dedicated partner of the EU within the programme Europe for Citizens and has together with its members been implementing many projects to promote civic participation in its various forms, including volunteering.
I wish you and interesting and inspiring read, browsing through our site.
Per VINTHER
President

Sicilian Region and ALDA promote the second meeting with the mayors in Sicily on «Active citizenship and participation for local governance in the Mediterranean» (Catania 1st of July 2011, conference hall of ESA Palace, via Beato Bernardo, 5).

Following the meeting held the 19th of April 2011 in Palermo, the Sicilian Region, the Association of Local Democracy Agencies (ALDA) and several Sicilian Municipalities, have started the elaboration of a series of planning paths for the promotion of a stable partnership in the Mediterranean.
How can local governments to become positive leaders in Sicily of a new concept of local governance in the countries of the Med, which from the bottom, try to give concrete answers to the causes of migration and the problems they bring to their communities?
One possible answer to this question will try to give tomorrow in Catania the Sicily Region, in particular the Department of Foreign Affairs in Brussels, led by Dr. Francesco Attaguile, and ALDA, Association of Local Democracy Agencies, with Director Antonella Valmorbida, who organised a second meeting with the Sicilian municipalities.

Tomorrow (Friday 1st of July 2011, 10.00) at the conference hall of ESA Palace, (via Beato Bernardo, 5) will discuss the theme «Active citizenship and participation for local governance in the Mediterranean”.
The Association of Local Democracy Agencies (ALDA), in collaboration with the Sicilian Region has achieved, among other initiatives, a project for the entrepreneurial and managerial training of citizens of the Maghreb to «capitalise» their ability to develop new activities in their country of origin or to facilitate a full integration in the host countries.
In line with the «Palermo Declaration», signed by 50 institutions representative of 20 countries in May 2010 during the conference «United by the Mediterranean» organised by the Sicilian Region, ALDA is strongly convinced of the importance of strengthening the euro-Mediterranean partnership for the promotion of human rights and participation of all citizens in the life of local communities in which they live.

Many Sicilian municipalities have joined the meeting, which aims to promote the development of synergies between the activities of ALDA, Sicily Region and Sicilian municipalities interested in promoting local governance and participation of citizens in Europe and in the Mediterranean, sharing experiences and best practices among the actors involved. The ultimate objective of the meeting is to develop local projects, within the project guidelines and funding of the European Community, as an opportunity for stable cooperation for development and peace in the Mediterranean.

The General Assembly of Concord, that took place in Brussels on 21th-22nd of June, with around 120 participants, voted on and approved ALDA’s application to become its associate member. At the General Assembly, the Confederation also accepted three other new members: The Romanian national platform FOND, Islamic Relief Worldwide and Handicap International.

Concord is the European NGO Confederation for Relief and Development. Its 18 international networks and 26 national associations from the European Member States represent more than 1600 European NGOs vis-à-vis the European Institutions.

ALDA is looking forward to being part of Concord and participate actively in its work. ALDA is in particular interested in sharing experience with the Confederation and its members on ALDA’s work in development, such as project under the Non State Actor and Local Authorities programme. ALDA is currently running two projects under this programme, the Working Together for Development project and TANDEM in Belarus.
ALDA believes that the membership of Concord will provide ALDA with the opportunity to bring its expertise and experience in development at the local level to the benefit of Concord and its members and that the work with Concord will provide access to important expertise for ALDA’s work.
More information about Concord can be found at http://www.concordeurope.org