500 projects to empower citizens and contribute to the creation of a democratic society in Europe and beyond

From civic engagement to migration; from environment to youth and social inclusion: ALDA crossed the line of 500 projects implemented!

Words are not enough to express this important achievement, which is the demonstration of the ALDA’s fruitful first insight: believe in the power of citizens as change makers and democracy promoters. Changing people’s lives for better is the goal behind every single action; thus, easing the conditions in which people are living in, and supporting a democratic outcome of every initiative.

Yet, the world has posed several challenges since the very beginning: fundamental values are at stake and extreme behaviours are spreading all around. What can we do? How can Civil Society Organisation act and counterbalance this anti-democratic drift?

There is a necessity of investing in the democratic culture, in the participatory mechanisms and in the empowerment of future generations: ALDA’s 500 projects do that

By localising actions, by engaging with local communities and by creating a space of dialogue among institutions and citizens. There is a necessity of investing in the democratic culture, in the participatory mechanisms and in the empowerment of future generations: ALDA’s 500 projects do that.

On the one hand, having a consortium of different stakeholders within each project favours an intercultural exchange and cooperation; on the other, it increases mutual knowledge and the sense of community, thus encouraging the development of a collective approach to common matters.

With its projects, ALDA is addressing the above-mentions issues through decentralised cooperation and participatory mechanisms, enabling people with new tools to react and face problems. The Rude Awakening project, for example, developed an interactive videogame taking place during the WWI. Aimed at raising awareness on European historical and cultural heritage, while stressing new educational and emotional perspective on war and peace, through this output the project not only stimulate the reflection on the present situation, but also it firmly underlines the importance of peace and the necessity of its safeguard.

More on a scientific note, but still having the well-being of people at the centre and still focusing on the necessity of local community, the LIFE Beware project addresses climate change and the consequence of it in the urban and rural areas. It calls for experts and CSOs to collaborate to reach a common strategy for climate adaptation, especially on flooding risks.

Last but not least, leading an international membership, made of 300 realities, and being in its turn member of several global network, all ALDA’s projects have a world-wide ranging, and meet one or more Sustainable Development Goals, thus localising the latter and cooperating to the achievements of the UN AGENDA 2030

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More on examples among the 500 projects: