On Thursday, June 12, 2025, we held the concluding conference as part of the PROTEUS project at HUB 385, Petračićeva 6 in Zagreb. The PROTEUS project – Protecting EU Values and Fundamental Rights through Public Participation and Civil Society Assistance in Central Europe, is implemented by CERANEO in Croatia, and the project is co-funded by the European Executive Agency for Education and Culture (EACEA) through the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) program of the European Union, the Transatlantic Foundation, the European branch of the GMF, and CERANEO.
At the beginning of the conference, Ana Zadelj Kovač, project manager at CERANEO, greeted the attendees and presented the goals, project activities and results of the PROTEUS project. After its presentation, the presentation of individual projects of the microgrants followed. Representatives of civil society organizations from different parts of Croatia presented their projects: Čakovec Community Centre Platform, Goats of Mljet, Peace Group OAZA Beli Manastir, Association ANCHOR- preschool teachers in the protection of children rights in preschool, Local action group in fisheries and aquaculture Dunav Sava, Delfin Pakrac and Youth for Marof.
In the second part of the conference, we held a panel discussion on the topic of Challenges of Civil Society Development in Rural/Peripheral Areas of Croatia. The panel was moderated by Prof. Dr. Gojko Bežovan, and the panelists were Assoc. Prof. Dr. Danijel Baturina and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Jelena Matančević from the Faculty of Law in Zagreb, Department of Social Policy, as well as representatives from various civil society organizations – Mira Bilopavlović from the Delfin Pakrac, Andreja Grubišić Đuran from Local action group in fisheries and aquaculture Dunav Sava, Velinka Buljan from the Goats of Mljet, Dijana Filipović Grčić from the The Association for civil society and quality of life Srma, Vesna Nedić from the Peace Group OAZA Beli Manastir, and Katarina Turković Gulin from the Association ANCHOR- preschool teachers in the protection of children rights in preschool. Through an interesting and dynamic discussion, the panelists discussed about the challenges of sustainability, participation, and collaboration with local stakeholders in the community, as well as the opportunities and potentials for the development of local networks. The issue of developing local philanthropy and promoting volunteering, especially among youth, was also raised. The relevance and timeliness of the topic were also supported by examples from other participants.
We conclude that civil society organizations are the main generators of innovations and changes within their local communities, and those from less developed areas need additional support to further develop civic activism and EU values.
More about the implementation and results of the project can be found in the BROCHURE
PROTEUS is funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or EACEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.