From 2 to 4 June 2022, the jubilee, 10th in a row, NGOs’ Open Days were held, an event organized by the Government Office for Cooperation with NGOs (GOfNGOs) to bring its programmes and activities closer to the citizens.
As part of the NGOs Open Days, associations organize numerous creative workshops, lectures, performances and actions, and in other innovative ways present their socially useful projects and programs, but also opportunities to involve citizens in volunteer programs. By organizing this event, the Government Office for Cooperation with NGOs (GOfNGOs) wants to increase the visibility of the activities of associations, especially those that implement programs and projects of interest to the common good funded from public sources, and improve the perception of associations in public.
This year, citizens had the opportunity to participate in a total of 141 different events organized by associations, and an overview of all registered events as part of the NGOs Open Days 2022 can be found on the application Udrugeinfo.
The most successful associations will be awarded for their participation in the NGOs Open Days 2022 - a total of 5 associations that opened their doors and thus presented their work and activities to the public, and submitted to the GOfNGOs reports on activities, will win an annual subscription to the magazine Udruga.hr awarded by the NGOs Open Days 2022 in cooperation with the magazine Udruga.hr.
As part of the NGOs Open Days 2022, on Thursday, June 2, 2022, a conference
„CSOs' role and contribution in resolving crisis situations and building new models of assistance and support“ was held on Lake Granešina.
The conference participants were introduced by Ms. Helena Beus, Authorized Director of the GOfNGOs, and Mr. Danko Relić, President of the Council for the Civil Society Development followed by discussions within two panels - „Contribution of associations in crisis management“ and „Association in the construction of new assistance and support models.“
As part of the panel - „Contribution of associations in crisis management“ on behalf of the Ukrainian Community of the City of Zagreb, the umbrella organization of Ukrainians created to preserve the cultural values of Ukrainians in the Republic of Croatia and active connection with the homeland, said Marija Melesko. faced with completely new challenges of assistance to the home country and that they are strongly engaged in the care of refugees and the provision of various forms of humanitarian and other assistance. Anthony Šeperić from the Jesuit Refugee Service, an international Catholic humanitarian organization present in more than 50 countries around the world, which has been active in Croatia since the Homeland War, spoke about advocating for the rights of refugees and displaced persons and the integration of refugees. Irena Petrijvčanin Vuksanović, state secretary of the Ministry of Interior also participated in the discussion talking about providing assistance in crisis situations and Danko Relić from the Association of Public Health „Andrija Štampar“ who spoke about the protection of mental health and providing psychological support to the local community and refugees. Josip Granić from the Croatian Mountain Rescue Service (HGSS) presented the educational activities of HGSS and commented on the challenges they face, but also the model of unmanned systems that will soon be in the process of certification through the mechanisms of the European Union.
As part of the panel - „Association in building new models of help and support“ Antoana Silov from the association Doctors of the World stressed the importance of mental health care and psychosocial support, while psychologist Ella Kravchenko, expert associate in the Croatian Red Cross Migrant Protection Service spoke about free psychological assistance provided to his Ukrainian compatriots. Danijela Štimac from the Ministry of Health also participated in the panel, talking about the activities of the Ministry in the context of the pandemic, but also general care for the mental health of communities, while Željka Markulin from the Office for Non-Governmental Organizations presented the possibilities of financing the topics rights and values. Martina Horvat, the social pedagogue from the Ambidexter Club commented primarily on the impact of the crisis on already vulnerable groups.
The conference was also attended by a delegation from the Republic of Serbia, which visited the GOfNGOs and numerous civil society organizations in Zagreb, Zagreb surroundings and Petrinja as part of the project „Dialogue for Change - Support to Civil Society Organizations“. The project is funded by the European Union and implemented by the Belgrade Open School, while the GOfNGOs is an associate on the project. solving specific problems in the community.
The conference „CSOs role and contribution in resolving crisis situations and building new models of assistance and support“ was broadcast live through the
GOfNGOs YouTube channel and the video is also permanently available on the YouTube channel.
As part of the NGOs' Open Days 2022 the two „Walks through the history of association in Zagreb“ were held to bring the public closer to the rich history of associations in Zagereb that have significantly contributed to socio-economic development and laid the foundations of modern civil society. During the walk, interested citizens and the delegation of the Republic of Serbia visited historical sites important for the activities of the association and got acquainted with the details of the work and activities of these associations.
Also, this year, in cooperation with the Croatian Public Relations Association, GOfNGOs published the Public Call „Communication support to socially benneficial programmes of the associations“ on the topic „Role and contribution of associations in crisis management help and support“. This Public Call seeks to increase the visibility of the activities of associations in these areas, giving associations the opportunity to obtain professional communication support in promoting activities they are already carrying out to contribute to building peace and security. The publication of the results of the Public Call is expected by the end of the June 2022.
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NGOs' Open Days
