




The two-day training session, which concluded the pilot component of our project for representatives of community media organizations, has come to an end. During these very intensive days in Lviv, participants discussed and practiced modern tools, models, and conditions for sustainable development. The training was part of the “Improving Media Resilience in Ukraine” project, implemented by IRMI in partnership with Fondation Hirondelle, with financial support from Swiss Solidarity.
The training was intended for the NGOs, who, as you may remember, were awarded mini-grants under the pilot project to implement professional development ideas. That was one of the components of the support to the NGOs and, we believe, to the media environment as a whole. What did the participants discuss, and what did the trainers teach? The training essentially consisted of two parts, allowing for a comprehensive discussion of all components of sustainable development and covering the tools to enhance the productivity. During the first part, the discusscusions were around the development of media organizations, the different stages, and the analysis of NGO capabilities. Then, the participants learned to seek resources, manage projects, and engage with communities and their audiences. There was a lot of practical work, discussions, and presentations – this is the “golden rule” of effective training, which always applies to our trainings.
A bit of participants’ feedback.
Natalia Voitovych, Ty-Media (Lviv):
An opportunity to structure my knowledge and understand the mistakes was valuable. I guess, a great result following these two days would be to sit down to writing a proposal for a new project!
Oksana Mospaniuk, Ivano-Frankivsk Association of Media Workers:
I was confident that I knew a lot, but I realized that this is not the case, despite our successful cases and programs. Now I am stepping out of my comfort zone. Thank you!
Kateryna Sereda, Mykolaiv Media Hub:
Grant work is not my professional duty, I am a journalist. But we have to do it to survive. We do a lot of things intuitively, unsystematically. That is why this training is so important for us – we can systematize our work, understand where to move, what to pay attention to when working on a project, how to make it high-quality and achieve results.
Maksym Zabelya, NUJU:
I’m especially grateful for the slew of practical exercises over these two days. This does not happen often. It is very important to hear how to position ourselves and evaluate what exactly we do and how we do that, what mistakes could be avoided. Special thanks for the great atmosphere during those two days!