D-EFFECT in the Spotlight during the Interreg South Baltic Monitoring Committee Meeting

Yesterday, during the Monitoring Committee meeting – held this year in the Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship to mark the Polish Presidency – we had the honour of presenting the D-EFFECT project. The meeting aimed to showcase the outcomes of projects implemented in the region and their impact on local development and the quality of life of its residents.

The D-EFFECT project – Lessons in Democracy for Civil Society: Integrating the Youth Perspective into Policy-Making at All Levels in Line with the Youth Strategy 2022–2027 – was presented by Marcin Żuchowski, Director of the Association of Polish Communes Euroregion Baltic (lead partner), and Maksymilian Grzeszczak, representative of the Municipality of Olsztynek (project partner).

During the presentation, the main objectives of the project were outlined, with a focus on the development of local democratic festivals as an innovative method of encouraging youth civic engagement. Specific tools were showcased, such as roundtables, live history lessons, cross-sectoral activities, and local civic initiatives. The speakers discussed the progress of project implementation and the challenges related to broad inclusion of young people and local communities. They also highlighted the local perspective by sharing concrete results and experiences from the project’s implementation in the Municipality of Olsztynek.

The D-EFFECT project was warmly received by members of the Committee, who expressed appreciation for its value and alignment with Priority 4.1 of the programme – strengthening cooperation between civil society actors in the South Baltic region.