How many times have you felt that your elected city, regional, or national representatives lack an understanding of your community, that they don’t know your neighborhood, and the challenges it faces feel distant to them?
And how many times have you wished for a real opportunity to get involved in decisions that directly affect your environment, thinking that if such a chance came, you might find the time, courage, or even resources to speak with local officials about your concerns and ideas for improvement?
One of today’s greatest challenges lies precisely in this area: How can we ensure better decision-making at the local level? Decision-making that is more just, inclusive, and effective? Whether we are discussing social cohesion, urban planning, or climate adaptation, decisions made without engaging citizens are no longer sufficient.
In our rapidly changing world, citizen participation is no longer a lofty democratic ideal, it is a necessity. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development underscores this point. While the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are often associated with poverty reduction, education, or climate action, the promotion of democratic institutions and processes is also one of their core pillars. SDG 11: "Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable" and specifically point 11.3, which focuses on participatory urban and strategic planning, was the core theme of the Vilnius seminar.
At the seminar on 1 July, four Czech experts explored various dimensions of citizen participation related to SDG11. They presented Czech know-how and good practice to colleagues from Lithuanian municipalities, ministries, NGOs and think tanks. Zuzana Khendriche Trhlínová from the Ministry of Regional Development discussed strategic planning and presented key methods and experiences for involving citizens at the national level. She offered practical tips (both formal and informal) on how to enhance public involvement, and shared real-world examples, including participation maps, workshops, and online platforms. She also provided guides, surveys, and questionnaires, accessible via QR codes for participants to use in their own work.
Tereza Fasurová from IPR Prague presented a structured plan outlining essential steps for successful participatory planning in public spaces. She emphasized the need to analyze key aspects at the beginning, during, and after a project. The participants appreciated the opportunity to compare different projects' constraints, conditions, and contexts. The interactive format also allowed them to discuss challenges in implementing participatory methods and share effective strategies to make them more engaging.
Linda Seitlerová and Eva Gregorová, representing the “Dáme na Vás” initiative, introduced participation-related projects developed in Brno. These included participatory budgeting, civic proposals, and school-based initiatives. Their presentation sparked a broader discussion with representatives from Vilnius, Kaunas, the Lithuanian Ministry of the Interior, and EDU Vilnius.
The successful event concluded with an informal garden discussion at the Embassy of the Czech Republic. Participants had the chance to ask specific follow-up questions and share experiences with the Czech delegation after a full afternoon of presentations. Nearly 50 guests attended the seminar, including participants from Lithuania, the United States, and South Africa. The seminar was made possible by funding from the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs in support of the 2030 Agenda.