Dear Members, Partners, and Friends of ALDA,
As we gather at the close of 2025, I am honoured to address you on behalf of our entire community, our Governing Board, Advisory Board, the network of Local Democracy Agencies, and all those who stand with us in our mission to strengthen democracy from the ground up.
This year has been one of extraordinary intensity. Across our neighbourhood and within the European Union itself, we have witnessed growing polarisation, shrinking civic space, unprecedented waves of misinformation, and a widespread sense of democratic fatigue. Ongoing and emerging conflicts continue to affect our partners and the communities we serve, reshaping priorities and demanding urgent, coordinated responses.
Yet, amid these challenges, 2025 has reaffirmed something essential: local democracy strengthens democracy and remains the most powerful antidote to the challenges our societies are experiencing.
Throughout this year, ALDA has expanded its work to enhance participation, resilience, and good local governance in all directions. We have consolidated partnerships, scaled up our thematic hubs, and played an active role in key policy dialogues at both European and international levels. Our team has delivered hundreds of activities reaching thousands of citizens, empowering them to participate meaningfully, voice their needs, and become actors of democratic change.
In 2025, we also reaffirmed a central pillar of our identity: engaged and empowered citizens are at the heart of any inclusive and effective democratic model. When people are equipped to participate meaningfully, and when institutions create the conditions for this participation to flourish, we see stronger communities, deeper social cohesion, and renewed trust.
This year, ALDA continued to innovate. We refined our global advocacy work, deepened cooperation with EU and international institutions, and supported the resilience of civil society actors in some of the most challenging environments. We accompanied new LDAs in their growth, celebrated important milestones within our network, and continued shaping the European debate on democracy, participation, and local governance.
In doing so, we also reaffirmed our commitment to peace, human rights, and the protection of all people affected by conflict. We continued, and will always continue, to support Ukraine and its population, hoping for an end to the ongoing brutal Russian aggression and the restoration of peace and justice.
At the same time, we stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people, advocating for the protection of civilians, the respect of international law, and a just and lasting peace for all.
As we look toward 2026, we see both challenges and opportunities, but we approach the year with confidence. Our strength lies in the communities we support, in the resilience of our members and partners, and in the dedication of people like you.
Let us carry into the new year a shared conviction: democracy is not an abstract principle. It is something we practise every day, in neighbourhoods, schools, municipalities, and local associations. It is built by citizens who engage, by institutions that listen, and by partnerships that endure.
On behalf of ALDA, I extend my warmest wishes for peaceful holidays and a happy New Year.
May 2026 bring renewed strength to all those working for democracy, human dignity, and community resilience.
Thank you for walking this path with us, and for believing, as we do, that when local communities thrive, democracy thrives.
Nataša Vučković, ALDA President
Watch the Winter Holidays video made by Antonella Valmorbida, ALDA Secretary General, and discover the 2025 highlights of ALDA – the European Association for Local Democracy!
