On April 25, 2024, within the framework EU supported project “Civil Society STAR Initiative”, regional volunteering forum was held by the Education Development and Employment Center (EDEC) and Shida Kartli Regional Hub – Society “Biliki”.
The forum was attended by young people (high school students, students), volunteers, teachers, representatives of local non-governmental and community organizations, self-governments, media and various groups of society.
The purpose of the forum was to popularize the culture of volunteering among the youth of the Shida Kartli region, to promote communication between volunteer organizations and persons interested in volunteering, as well as to increase the awareness of regional public organizations among the population, to inform the population of the region about their activities, implemented projects, and to increase trust in civil society organizations.
Within the framework of the forum, in a specially allocated space, an exhibition of the activities of community associations, civil society organizations operating in the Shida Kartli region took place. The representatives of the organizations offered the persons interested in volunteering to engage in volunteer activities. At the forum, parallel sessions were also organized – a panel discussion on the topic: “Volunteering and the role of civil activism in strengthening civil society” and a meeting with young people on the topic “Volunteering and civil activism”. At the end of the event, the winners of the competition “Creative ideas using digital technologies to present/solve problems in the community” were revealed.
The joint initiative of Shida Kartli youth centers “New Generation” and “Innovator” was named the best by the jury, which aims to create a YouTube channel and through it establish direct communication with young people to discuss ways solving existing problems and challenges. The initiative will be supported by “a iliko”- Shida Kartli regional hub. “Caritas of Georgia” organization will support the initiatives of the young people from two villages Skri and Shindisi.
The forum was organized within the framework of the European Union (EU) and Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung funded project “Civil Society STAR Initiative: CSOs as Sustainable, Transparent, Accountable and Resilient Development Actors in Georgia“(2021-2025).
The project is implemented by a consortium led by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation (KAS) together with the following non-governmental organizations – Center for Strategic Research and Development of Georgia (CSRDG), Civil Society Institute (CSI), Counseling and Training Center (CTC), Education Development and Employment Center (EDEC) and European Institute of Policy (IEP).
