Road to Success of your Community

How can people make their community better and how to ensure improvement through local authorities? How to involve the locals in the initiatives? Denys Tsutsaiev and Nadiia Artemyeva, coordinators of “Active Community” in the Kyiv region and civil activists shared their experience.

When the citizens have some initiatives, is it necessary for them to seek support from the deputies?

N. A. Citizens’ appeals are registered and received by the local authorities and have to be taken into account by the responsible institutional bodies. The appeals are then transferred to the relevant Commissions and are considered in the session of the Council. When the solution is lacking support from at least one deputy, the process could be delayed. A person could later receive the answer that the issue cannot be solved with the support from the authorities.  

It all depends on the human element – the situation within the Council, the political will of the Head of the Council, the structure, and the deputies – and whether the elected authorities are ready to communicate with the citizens. 

D. Ts. A lot also depends on the scale of the issue. When no action from the authorities is needed, the issue will be easier to solve. In situation, when the issue is more extensive, the solution will rest on the deputy’s willingness to devote their time and effort to the cause.

The activists provided some examples.

Issue: a bus stop is old, ragged, and inconvenient.

Initiative: a resident made a proposal to renovate the bus stop.

Solution: the permit was issued quickly and swiftly.

Issue: burning leaves, tree branches, and vegetable tops

Initiative: implement composting in the village, provide consistent waste transportation to the compost pit.

Solution: You should be aware that the process can be slow-paced if the initiative requires more from the local authorities than just issuing a permit. However, this kind of issue has to be dealt with in direct contact with the village mayor, as the local self-government body has to allot a land plot to create a compost pit as well as a vehicle to transport the waste. Denys Tsutsaiev shared that the activist went to see the mayor almost every day for two months, made calls and made the change possible.

N. A. It is possible to solve an issue faster and easier if you provide the local authorities with justifications and the solution paths.

Nadiia Artemyeva provided an example: A block of flats was supplied with low-quality raw water. An appeal was submitted by the residents, they included justifications and the laboratory report. Such issues are not easy to resolve, so it is necessary to provide real evidence.

How to get the citizens interested in the positive change?

N. A. Positive examples in the very community play a big part here.

It can be challenging for people to start acting. Many people still live by the saying “Don’t jump before you are pushed,” – it is deeply embedded in the people’s psyches.

It is hard for people to even take a step towards improving their own comfort, not to mention doing something for the community. For this reason, it is necessary to talk about the positive changes within the community. Many people are ready to participate, to change things, but there is often no one to take the first step. We had an illustration of this with a square garden that was needed in a village. We were amazed with how many people were willing to contribute, after one person stepped forward and suggested a location and initiated the process of park creation. Therefore, it is extremely important to have people in community who are driven and ready to start the process.

D. Ts. It is essential for those people to be ready to communicate with other residents. They will receive calls of people asking them to do things, however, they will have to guide the members of the community. It is important, that we provide support and make suggestions based on our experience, not do everything ourselves – this is an effective approach.

The activist shared a story about a woman who was watching videos about the communities’ success and who soon started coming up with her own ideas and submitting whole plans, including pictures and detailed outlines, of what she wanted to do.

What are the factors that promote the citizens’ engagement?

N. A. It is necessary to not only communicate that the issue is present, but also to suggest the ways to deal with it. Citizens should be involved in both searching for ways to address an issue and the actual process of dealing with it. The cases, where no huge efforts are required and it is possible to start with simple changes, are the best inspiration to start doing. Note. The mission of the “Active Community” is to achieve prosperity through the democratic development of Ukrainian communities. The goal for 2025 is to activate and involve at least 1% of citizens in decision-making and promotion of reforms in Ukraine on a systemic basis for the well-being of Ukrainian communities. The initiative was created through the activities of the Institute “Respublica”.