EDITORIAL
    
Full steam ahead

In the passing month there were a lot of happenings organized by the civic associations working in Macedonia. In spite of the fact that June is usually an introduction to the hot summer when the temperatures reaching up to 40 degrees cease almost all the activities, this time it was not the case. In almost all of the sectors where the civic associations work, there has been a meaningful event. The ecological organizations gave rotten and green apples, symbolically sending a message to the polluters and ones who contribute to preserving the environment; the women organizations have started, or more precisely, have intensified the campaign for women’s participation in politics; the journalists and media’s associations at special tribunes have looked for the answers for trust building in the media associations in Macedonia and have continued with the training for the journalists; the training for the members of the associations have also continued: solving conflicts, institutional development and organizational strengthening etc.

In June, a part of the citizens’ associations announced that they were going to deal with the elections, some of them restricting to observing the electoral process, while some of them actively participating in motivating the citizens to use their right to elect and vote given by the Constitution.

There are really no signs of decreasing the intensity, the activities continue full steam ahead.

Finally, another event which marked the month. Three citizens’ organizations, one local self-government and one company have been given awards for civic society and democracy and awards for sustainable development. MCIC, in order to impel the positive models in the civic society and the sustainable development and to fill the gap uncovered by any of the traditional awards, this year it awarded the Open Society Institute of Macedonia Foundation, the Humanitarian and Voluntary Roma Association “Mesecina” from Gostivar and the City of Skopje with the Civic Society and Democracy Award, while Komuna AD and Polio Plus were given the award for sustainable development “Hert Jan van Apeldorn”.

Gonce Jakovleska