On September 28-29, an event took place in Ivano-Frankivsk region, bringing together over fifty civil society leaders, students, teachers, and creative individuals from ten regions of Ukraine, united by the idea of ​​building the potential of Ukrainian communities based on the resources of Ukrainian cultural heritage.

The first part of the event took place in the cultural space “Vagabundo Underground” in Ivano-Frankivsk. Representatives of CSOs and initiative groups presented the results of their own public participation projects to preserve or save the cultural heritage of Ukrainian communities, supported by ARPI with funds from the NED Foundation in 2019-2023. This year's sub-grant project executors impressed with the creativity of their initiatives.

· Wooden Eyes of the Minority, Chernihiv region. The executor is the youth initiative group of the NGO “Union of Minority Women”. The project has collected a collection of ancient window opening ornaments, which have long been used in the Mensky community by folk architects-decorators and may be forgotten / lost due to people's lack of understanding of the value and significance of the region's inherent window carving culture. Within the framework of the project, patterns were recreated, an educational campaign was conducted for the population by creating means of promoting heritage for various target groups.

· Okhtyrka: the heartbeat of Slobozhanshchyna, Sumy region - NGO "Okhtyrka Youth Center". The goal of the project was to involve active youth of Okhtyrka in learning and popularizing cultural heritage. Within the framework of the project, filming was conducted and a promotional video of the Okhtyrka community was created for a youth audience. The focus of the project was on natural and cultural heritage sites that survived racist attacks, as well as those that are carefully preserved by local enthusiasts for future generations. The project brought together Okhtyrka students and well-known specialists in the creative industries to develop a promotional concept, conduct expeditions and create a video.

· Summer Youth School Pryluka-2023, Chernihiv region - NGO "Artistic Colors". The project conducted a broad educational campaign for children and youth by organizing and conducting a summer camp for schoolchildren and teachers of the city of Pryluky. The summer school provided its participants with thorough knowledge of the history of Pryluky, the participants explored the features of heritage sites and identified their own potential as defenders and future interpreters of the cultural heritage of their region. The school's mentors were famous art historians, employees of famous Ukrainian museums. To promote heritage among young people, the project team prepared and published useful printed products.

· Virtual 3D restoration of destroyed monuments of Zhytomyr region and installation of stands with their augmented reality - NGO "Zhytomyr Regional Organization of the Ukrainian Society for the Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments". The project aimed to interest students, future architects, in activities aimed at preserving unique architectural objects of the Zhytomyr region, as well as to draw the attention of the public and local authorities to the catastrophic state of such objects. The project team involved active Zhytomyr students who, together with project experts, produced six 3D models of historical buildings that were lost or significantly damaged during the Soviet period and/or did not receive proper care after the declaration of independence of Ukraine. The project significantly raised the level of public interest in buildings that once belonged to historical figures or were prominent religious and cultural institutions. Thanks to the augmented reality stands, every visitor to the communities of the Zhytomyr region will be able to see the original appearance of once luxurious and important structures in the development of the region and, which is quite likely, offer their own vision of their revival.

· Theatrical costumed excursion on historical explorations of antiquity in the Trostyanets community, Sumy region. - Public organization "Center for European Integration of Slobozhanshchyna" (remotely). The project gathered a bright creative team that oversaw the process of searching for ideas for creating costumes and a scenario for an educational excursion in the Trostyanets community, in particular competitions for such ideas among schoolchildren. Based on the selected proposals, haute couture costumes were made, an excursion for city residents was prepared and tested, which is planned to be held for visitors on a regular basis after Ukraine's victory in the war with Russia and the end of martial law.

Graduates of ARPI training and grant programs supported by NED had the opportunity to present the impact of their initiatives on communities, their value and role in uniting local residents even during the times of Russian military aggression against Ukraine. Active figures of local democracy and the cultural movement for the preservation of community heritage presented their views on the impact of initiatives of the year before last and the past, including Svitlana Guslyakova, co-founder of the NGO for the preservation of the multicultural heritage of Bratslav “Bratslav Region Development Institute” of Vinnytsia region, and Olha Kuntysh, founder and organizer of the MammothFamily festival to promote the Mezyn community, where the oldest settlement of primitive people in the world was located in Chernihiv region. Sofia Sadova presented how local residents’ respect for the industrial heritage of the New Divide in Lviv region increased after the creation and broadcast of a documentary with the stories of residents of the 70-year-old community. Lviv residents Hanna Gavryliv and Natalka Stepanenko gave an overview of successful actions to support castle heritage in the Lviv region and beyond using forms and methods developed in cooperation with the CSO network for supporting communities with heritage, which is curated by ARPI.

The forum also became a platform for disseminating unique practices of cooperation between caring community representatives towards saving heritage. ARPI collects such initiatives within the framework of the project, getting to know unique people, learning little-known or completely unknown details directly from carriers of intangible heritage and public enthusiasts who literally save the buildings of their native cities from non-existence. ARPI prepares and posts publications of successful stories on its own website, as well as on social networks. By the end of 2024, it is planned to publish at least 15 articles with infographics.

The part of the forum that truly impressed the participants was a lively discussion of masters of Ukrainian culture, art, and public activists on the territory of the “Pototsky Palace” space (Ivano-Frankivsk). The questions The fate of the lost heritage and what should communities do next? or The ideal community with heritage. What is it? were answered by Taras Prokhasko, Kostyantyn Hrubych, Ihor Stepurin, Yarema Stetsyk, Dmytro Kochnev, Olena Shcherban, Halyna Barankevich, Iryna Rachkovska-Bakovetska. The recording of the broadcast is available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/bLyfRmo1ZXQ.

To familiarize participants with the results of public participation campaign initiatives for the preservation of cultural heritage, the forum organizers chose Pasichnyanska and Nadvirnyanska communities of Nadvirnyanskyi district. The study visit program included a recreation area in the village of Vovchynets of the Ivano-Frankivsk city community, created by the Department of Economic Development, Ecology and Energy Saving of the Ivano-Frankivsk City Council within the framework of an EU project, a 16th-century architectural monument Pniv Castle, the Museum of Oil and Gas Production of Galicia, the ruins of a castle in the city of Nadvirna, which is cared for by the initiative group “Krasnodvir Castle Club”, a private museum of chivalry and the Museum of the History of Nadvirnyan Region.

The forum became a platform for the creation of new initiatives between representatives of different communities, an opportunity to slow down and think about the principles for the formation of future post-war strategies for the development of the country, in connection with its unique human and cultural potential. Presentations, discussions, and live meetings with thought leaders allowed participants to gain unforgettable experience for application in new endeavors and adjustment of management approaches and communication tools to effectively engage local residents to build heritage democracy at the local level.