The RESIS Institute together with the Local Community Development Foundation - Stip continue their cooperation within the Public Council Network (PCN) with the new project for the establishment of the #LocalActive platform, part of the LocalActiveMedia project.

Guided by the idea of ​​opening and expanding discursive spaces in the public sphere for local communities and groups, the LocalActiveMedia project will develop a specific form of Community Media, which will be used by local civil society organizations and their constituents in the Eastern and Southeastern regions of North Macedonia. The #LocalActive platform will be open for joint creation of content of interest to local communities and groups, with the primary goal of influencing the realization of the communication rights of vulnerable categories of citizens.

Communication rights are a specific complex of human rights, which refers to equality of access and chances for communication in the public sphere. The LocalActiveMedia project stems from the idea that non-profit media in local communities are key to fulfilling the communication rights of these communities, especially the vulnerable categories of citizens. The #LocalActive platform will function as a communication channel for all civil society organizations that work with local communities and vulnerable groups in the Eastern and Southeastern regions of North Macedonia.

RESIS and LCDF – Shtip have started implementing the first phase of laying the foundations of a functional platform that will serve the citizens of these two regions by Mapping the vulnerable categories of citizens in the Eastern and Southeastern regions who are not denied equal access to communication in the public sphere for various reasons. This Mapping will further serve as a basis for thorough research to assess the needs and communication habits of local community groups, which in turn will serve to develop the Program Concept for the new community media platform #LocalActive.

This is the first project of its kind in the country that will test the possibilities for coordinated action of local vulnerable groups and local civil society organizations in support of the communication needs of citizens. The project is supported by the non-profit foundation National Endowment for Democracy (NED).