Vibrant Regions for Democracy: Civic Mentoring for Resilient Communities

The project addresses the shrinking and increasingly contested space for civil society in Slovakia, especially outside major urban centres. Local civic actors are facing growing polarisation, declining trust in democratic institutions, pressure on NGOs, and limited opportunities for sustained cooperation with public institutions. At the same time, many towns and regions have active citizens, informal initiatives, community spaces and small CSOs that defend democratic culture, human rights, pluralism and open public debate in practice. Their challenge is not a lack of motivation, but a lack of stable background,capacity, contacts, methodological support and long-term accompaniment.

The Institute for Democracy at Matej Bel University has identified this need through its long-term work with Human Forum and Human Forum Region, including cooperation with local civic actors in around 30 towns across Slovakia. This experience shows that civic communities are strongest when they are rooted in real local issues, have at least a small core group of committed people, and are connected to peers, mentors, municipalities,CSOs, academia and other democratic actors.

The project therefore responds to the need to move from isolated events and ad hoc support towards a realistic system of civic mentoring for local communities. It will support8–12 local civic communities in western, central and eastern Slovakia and strengthenapproximately 60–100 active citizens in their core groups. The project will help them stabilise their teams, define local challenges, plan activities, cooperate with public institutions, communicate their work and participate in horizontal and vertical cooperation across the civic ecosystem.

The challenge is relevant to the EEA Civil Society Fund because resilient democracy depends not only on national institutions, but also on local communities capable of sustaining civic engagement, trust, participation and defence of democratic values where people live.

The project aims to create and test a realistic civic mentoring system for local civic communities in western, central and eastern Slovakia. It will move beyond one-off regional events towards longer-term support for local actors who strengthen democracy, human rights, pluralism and civic engagement in their towns and regions.

The project will run for 24 months, from November 2026 to October 2028, under Support Area 3.2 – An enabling environment for civil society supported. Its activities will include setting up the project and mentoring team, mapping the needs of local communities,developing and testing a civic mentoring methodology, mentoring selected communities,supporting horizontal networking among communities, and linking them vertically with CSO networks, municipalities, public institutions, academia and international actors.

The project will involve 8–12 local civic communities and initiatives, at least 10 mentors, and approximately 60–100 active citizens in local core groups. Mentoring will focus on stabilising core groups, defining local challenges, planning activities, communication,volunteer engagement, advocacy, cooperation with municipalities and peer learning.

Direct outputs will include a functioning mentoring team, a tested civic mentoring methodology, community development plans, mentoring records, local public or advocacy activities, peer-learning meetings, policy briefs, a “Living Democracy in the Regions” map,and a final advocacy document with recommendations for CSOs, municipalities, public institutions, academia and donors.

The Norwegian partner, Inland Norway University / Centre for Lifelong Learning, will contribute through expert online consultation and feedback on the methodology, bringing experience in lifelong learning, adult education, community learning and cooperation between academia, public institutions and civic actors.

The project aims to create and test a civic mentoring system for local civic communities in western, central and eastern Slovakia. It will move beyond one-off events towards longer-term support for local actors who strengthen democracy, human rights, pluralism and civic engagement in their towns and regions.

The direct beneficiaries will be 8–12 local civic communities and initiatives, at least 10 mentors, and approximately 60–100 active citizens involved in local core groups. They will benefit from mentoring, peer learning, networking, methodological support, advocacy tools and opportunities to cooperate with municipalities, CSOs, public institutions, academia and international actors.

Expected results include stronger core groups, better planning and communication capacities, improved cooperation with public institutions, increased ability to organise public or advocacy activities, and stronger links between local civic actors and the wider civil society ecosystem. At least 10 civil society organisations or civic initiatives are expected to improve their organisational capacity.

The project will also produce a tested civic mentoring methodology, community development plans, policy briefs, a “Living Democracy in the Regions” map and a final advocacy document with recommendations for CSOs, municipalities, public institutions,academia and donors. These outputs will make the needs of local civic communities more visible and support a more enabling environment for civil society.

Indirect beneficiaries will include local residents, municipalities, regional partners, public institutions and the broader democratic community. The Norwegian partner will add value through expert feedback on the methodology and experience in lifelong learning, adult education and participatory community development.