Ukraine

All-Ukrainian Youth Civic Organization “Young Rukh”

$50,000
To raise awareness about the negative impact of corruption among students, their parents, and the administration of institutions of higher education, and to encourage transparency, accountability and respect for the law in Ukraine’s higher education system. Young Rukh will monitor corruption in Ukrainian universities and carry out a nationwide anti-corruption information campaign.

American Center for International Labor Solidarity

$520,000
To improve the capacity of the free trade union movement and its allies to bring Ukrainian laws into compliance with international labor standards and promote those standards to the general population. The Solidarity Center will build the capacity of trade union trainers, enable them to reach more rank-and-file members, identify future activists, and promote dialogue between trade union leaders and local government officials in Ukraine.

Association “Spilnyi Prostir”

$50,000 *
To promote transparency in the Ukrainian media, specifically with respect to press coverage of national and regional politics, and to reduce media bias in reporting on key political issues. Spilnyi Prostir will research hidden political messages in the Ukrainian press; examine media bias by collecting data on news stories; hold public discussions on these issues; and make recommendations to the press and government.

Association “Spilnyi Prostir”

$50,000
To monitor standards of news coverage in Europe, Ukraine, and Russia; to initiate a public discussion that will shed light on the role these standards play in the region’s public discourse; and to move Ukrainian and Russian standards for covering the news closer to those observed in Europe and the Americas.

Center for Civil Liberties

$50,000 *
To improve the knowledge and skills of a new generation of human rights and civic activists in the former Soviet Union, and encourage greater cooperation among young human rights activists from different countries. The Center will organize pilot sessions of its international youth human rights school, and develop a variety of other resources for human rights activists.

Center for Research on Social Perspectives in the Donbas

$50,000 *
To increase the availability of objective information about Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, and Luhansk oblasts, and about the impact of Kyiv politics on the regions, as well as to strengthen the role of the Internet as a source of objective news about Eastern Ukraine. The Center’s correspondents will cover local political developments, and will write analytical pieces and news items for the Center’s Ostriv website.

Center for the Study of Social Processes and Humanitarian Issues

$29,736
To support a three-person team of journalists covering regional news in the Eastern Ukrainian city of Luhansk. This project will be carried out in cooperation with an organization called “Our Town,” which will support a similar team in Ivano-Frankivsk in Western Ukraine, and with the Center for Research on Social Perspectives in the Donbas in the Eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk.

Center of Information and Documentation for Crimean Tatars

$60,000 *
To ensure that the Ukrainian public and political elite have access to objective information concerning the Crimean Tatars, and that Tatars are informed about Ukrainian government policies that relate to the Tatar population, and about the results of cooperation between Tatar representatives, the Ukrainian government and NGOs. The Center will publish a journal and an electronic bulletin, and monitor press coverage of Tatar issues.

Cherkassy Committee of Voters of Ukraine (Cherkassy CVU)

$19,290
To raise public awareness of the relationship between political parties and policy-making in Cherkassy oblast. Cherkassy CVU will monitor the activities of political parties both inside and outside the local legislature, carry out two roundtables for party representatives and other civil society figures, and carry out a number of activities designed to increase public awareness of political parties.

Cherkassy Regional Committee of Soldiers' Mothers

$27,132
To secure international standards of human rights for Ukrainian servicemen. The Committee will present soldiers in military detachments in five Ukrainian oblasts with information about their rights in a variety of forms, including lectures, trainings in human rights defense, and publications; monitoring groups consisting of servicemen and members of regional Committees of Soldiers’ Mothers will be established to observe conditions at military detachments.

Democratic Initiatives Foundation (DIF)

$50,000 *
To stimulate informed debate and dialogue among civil society, government and the general public on issues relating to Ukraine’s transition to democracy. DIF will conduct expert surveys and public opinion polls on important social, political and economic issues, to help ensure that Ukraine’s leaders are informed about public opinion, while at the same time informing the public about important policy debates.

Dniprovsky Center for Social Research

$25,000
To conduct a survey on government-press relations in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Results of the survey will be sent to government officials, published in the regional press, and used to prepare for seminars and roundtables described below. The Center will also establish a working group of researchers, journalists, and NGO representatives to support the project by carrying out research and preparing reports on various topics relevant to the program.

Donetsk Branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine

$49,000
To continue to expand and upgrade its internet portal. In addition to adding a full-time reporter to its staff, Donetsk CVU will also redesign its website in order to increase its capacity to report on the activity of Donetsk oblast’s NGO sector. Donetsk CVU will also sign agreements with popular national news websites to distribute its information to a broader audience.

Donetsk Press Club

$29,730
To help develop the journalistic profession in the Donetsk region by carrying out 24 sessions of its press club to present the region’s journalists with a wider range of sources than they would normally have available. The project will also include efforts to distribute information through the Club’s web site, press-releases, and monitoring of how journalists use the materials with which they are presented in their own publications.

Eastern-Ukrainian Center for Civic Initiatives

$27,000 *
To facilitate citizens’ access to information, stimulate civic activity, and promote government accountability in Luhansk, Ukraine’s easternmost major city. Total Action will provide training to local activists in carrying out advocacy campaigns; hold a number of roundtables, public hearings and seminars to promote access to information, official accountability and civic participation; and provide mini-grants in support of approximately five advocacy campaigns by regional NGOs.

Europe XXI Foundation

$70,000
To develop criteria for evaluating the state of democracy, and more particularly, of civil society in the countries of Central-Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Based on this assessment, Europe XXI will develop a strategy for international cooperation between NGOs in order to defend civil society where it is under threat, particularly in Russia, Belarus, and other countries of the former Soviet Union.

Freedom House - Ukraine

$50,000
To produce the 2008 edition of its annual report on human rights in Ukraine, to distribute information on human rights in Ukraine to the public, and to produce a series of policy recommendations on the topic for the Ukrainian government. Using non-Endowment funds, FH will also continue its judicial monitoring campaign, focusing this year on the High Administrative Court.

Independent Center for Political Research and Journalism

$22,000 *
To facilitate greater public discussion of important issues facing Crimea, and encourage the discussion, development and implementation of practical policies for reducing threats to Crimean security and stability, such as ethnic and religious extremism. The Center will hold two roundtables, produce articles for publication in leading newspapers, and publish its own policy bulletin.

Institute for Euro-Atlantic Cooperation

$78,708 *
To hold six public hearings on Ukraine’s integration into the European Union and NATO on the basis of its Euro-Atlantic Network of regional NGOs. The hearings will be targeted at the Eastern, Southern and South-Central regions of Ukraine, specifically in the Donetsk, Luhansk, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Chernihiv, and Vinnytsya regions.

Institute of Mass Information

$35,000
To analyze current and pending Ukrainian legislation on the media, to monitor violations of press freedoms and attacks on journalists, and to increase public awareness of the many issues that still face the Ukrainian press. The Institute will conduct independent field investigations in cases of extreme pressure or intimidation against journalists. It will publish frequent bulletins and an annual report about violations of journalists’ rights.

Kharkiv Committee of Voters of Ukraine

$25,000
To organize ten three-hour public debates on regional politics with an audience of about fifty people each, along with a variety of informational activities to increase the impact of the debates. The debates will be similar to that of debating societies in British universities, in which two sides present arguments in favor of and against a proposition, which is then voted on by the house.

Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group (KHPG)

$46,000
To promote legislative reforms that will ensure Ukraine’s compliance with international human rights standards; strengthen the capacity for human rights monitoring and advocacy in Ukraine; and improve Ukrainian officials’ and citizens’ knowledge of human rights. KHPG will produce publications on human rights, create a virtual human rights library, monitor draft legislation, make recommendations to lawmakers, and conduct a workshop for leaders NGOs leaders.

Kharkiv Institute for Social Research

$25,000
To encourage the development of human rights education in the Ukrainian police force, and foster greater respect for human rights by Ukrainian policemen. The Institute will conduct an educational program for psychologists of regional police departments, consisting of curriculum development and training sessions on preventing human rights abuses, which the psychologists will then apply in their home regions.

Kremenchuk City Committee of Youth Organizations

$24,947
To foster growth of youth organizations in rural areas of Poltava and Cherkassy oblasts. The regions that have been selected for the project are ones in which youth groups are either few or entirely absent, and where civil society is weak. The program will consist of training for NGO leaders; a mini-grants competition; and publication of a guidebook for NGO activists and a quarterly newsletter.

Luhansk Regional Public Organization "European Choice" Business Club

$20,000
To encourage discussion of issues relating to Ukraine’s European integration among university students and faculty, high school students and teachers, local journalists, political leaders and businesspeople. European Choice will continue its focus on high school teachers and students, while expanding its network of high school “Euroclubs” into rural regions of Luhansk oblast in Eastern Ukraine to disseminate accurate information about European integration.

Luhansk Regional Women's Legal Defense Public Organization "Chaika"

$45,000 *
To continue a program of monitoring local legislatures for transparency and adherence to campaign promises. The monitoring will be accompanied by a variety of activities intended to mobilize public interest and encourage citizens to take greater responsibility for monitoring the activities of their elected representatives. Chaika will also begin preparing for the 2010 presidential election by training activists on identifying and preventing violations of voters’ rights.

Lviv Committee of Voters of Ukraine (Lviv CVU)

$20,000
To develop methods for monitoring local government bodies following the introduction of a pure party list system for all Ukrainian elections. The Lviv CVU will monitor and publish information on the fulfillment of campaign promises made by parties in the Lviv oblast council. It will also distribute the monitoring principles and analysis of their application to regional and national networks of NGOs.

Mykolaiv Development Foundation

$25,000*
To increase the professional capabilities of NGO leaders and to train them in conducting public advocacy campaigns to defend citizens’ rights. The Foundation will offer training to 50 NGO leaders, and will award small grants to carry out advocacy campaigns to organizations across Mykolaiv oblast. It will also conduct extensive media outreach to publicize its program.

National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI)

$210,000
To promote systematic cooperation between the democratic forces in the parliament (Rada) and within the executive branch. NDI will provide an opportunity for Rada members, Chairman Yatsenyuk, and staffers from the Presidential Secretariat and the Cabinet of Ministers to learn from the collaborative experiences of Western democracies through consultations in Kyiv and study missions abroad. NDI will help participants address obstacles to cooperation in conjunction with Western experts from the U.S., Canada, Poland, and Norway.

Odesa Committee of Voters of Ukraine (Odessa CVU)

$27,000
To develop methods for monitoring local government bodies following the introduction of a pure party list system for all Ukrainian elections. The Odesa CVU will monitor local and regional legislative assemblies and conduct a public campaign to establish ties between voters, deputies and political parties in legislatures in southern Ukraine. It will also publish two informational bulletins and an analytical report.

Open Society Foundation - Ukraine

$55,000
To increase voters’ awareness of the performance of their elected representatives and political parties, and mobilize public demand for a transparent and accountable political process. The Foundation will monitor and publicize the activities of the Ukrainian Parliament; produce publications and a bulletin detailing the work of deputies from each party or faction; and conduct roundtables to examine the accountability of elected officials.

Public Organization "Our Town"

$25,590
To support a three-person team of journalists covering regional news in the Western Ukrainian oblast of Ivano-Frankivsk and surrounding regions. This project will be carried out in cooperation with an organization called the Center for the Study of Social Processes and Humanitarian Issues, which will support a similar team in Luhansk, and by the Center for Research on Social Perspectives in Donetsk.

Public Organization “Telekritika”

$60,350
To increase website functionality, monitor program content of regional media outlets, and lobby for greater transparency in public broadcasting. Telekritika will update its website with a blog, allowing each of Telekritika’s approximately 90,000 monthly users to become a citizen journalist. Telekritika will also publish a monthly journal chronicling trends in Ukraine’s media.

Rivne Committee of Voters of Ukraine (Rivne CVU)

$25,000 *
To conduct a six-month program intended to help secure greater accountability and transparency in local legislatures in Rivne oblast, in Northwest Ukraine. Rivne CVU will monitor deputies’ adherence to their parties’ platforms in the cities of Rivne, Sarny, and Dubne; publish two brochures in separate editions for each city; and conclude the program with a roundtable for representatives of political parties.

Regional Information Center for Women (RICW)

$42,490
To expand its activities from the small towns of Kirovohrad oblast to the village level. From among the staff of the 20 local centers that make up RICW’s Civic Education Network, RICW will select participants for training through a series of four seminars. The seminars will cover: family law; elections; human trafficking; and the role of civil society in rural areas. RICW will prepare training materials for these seminars.

School for Policy Analysis of the Kyiv-Mohyla Academy

$45,000*
To increase public knowledge of and involvement in the process of constitutional reform. The School will convene an expert working group that will research and discuss proposed constitutional reforms, conduct a public information campaign to stimulate broader public discussion of constitutional reform, and hold a competition for university students on writing an ideal constitution for Ukraine.

Smoloskyp, Inc.

$65,000 *
To strengthen networks among promising young Ukrainian activists and scholars, expose young people to democratic values and principles, and engage the next generation of Ukrainian activists in the country’s development. Smoloskyp will organize a series of seminars and roundtable discussions, publish its monthly bulletin and a journal, continue to expand its website, and operate its Samvydav (Samizdat) Archive and Museum.

Sumy Regional Committee of Youth Organizations

$33,000 *
To develop the NGO sector in rural areas of Northeastern Ukraine. The Committee will hold three training seminars on organizational management for NGO leaders from rural areas of Sumy, Chernihiv and Poltava oblasts. It will also help develop a network of NGOs to address socially important problems, such as human rights violations and corruption, in small towns and villages in the region.

Ukrainian Catholic University

$42,000
To support the Religious Information Service of Ukraine, an online news agency (www.risu.org.ua) that covers church-state relations, freedom of conscience, and conflicts between Ukraine’s various faith communities. In addition to being sources of significant social tension in Ukraine, these conflicts are often exploited by political and business forces seeking to advance their own interests or to slow Ukraine’s democratic development and integration with the West.

Ukrainian Center for Economic and Political Research

$50,000 *
To improve citizens’ and officials’ knowledge of important political and economic issues; promote reform of the Ukrainian political system by encouraging debate and analysis of important developments in Ukrainian politics; and promote greater cooperation between politicians, officials, and NGOs in developing Ukrainian legislation and policy. The Center will publish five issues of National Security and Defense, one of the most widely read Ukrainian policy journals.

Ukrainian Center for Independent Political Research (UCIPR)

$70,000 *
To promote transparency in the Ukrainian political system by encouraging debate about, and analysis of, important developments in Ukrainian politics, and by providing access to unbiased information on the activities and decisions of Ukraine’s government. UCIPR will monitor the national legislature and propose amendments to legislation to ensure correspondence with democratic principles.

Ukrainian Helsinki Human Rights Union (UHHU)

$43,000 *
To encourage awareness of human rights in Ukraine, among both citizens and government, and at the domestic and international levels; to improve communication among human rights NGOs; and to help NGOs advocate for improvements in Ukraine’s human rights practices. UHHRU will publish the its annual report on human rights in Ukraine, and hold a number of networking meetings for Ukrainian human rights activists.

Vinnitsa Regional Committee of Youth Organizations

$29,000*
To increase the level, and improve the quality of youth civic activism in central Ukraine’s Vinnytsa, Khmelnytska and Cherkassy oblasts. The Committee will provide training to local youth leaders on NGO management; strengthen its network of regional NGOs; publish a monthly bulletin and a handbook on NGO management; and organize a competition for the best civic initiative among participants in its network.

Vinnitsa Youth NGO "Nashe Podillya"

$27,000*
To support and strengthen developing civil society organizations and informal social movements in nine Ukrainian regions. It will hold a series of seminars on NGO management for the staff of new organizations, and will conduct a short internship program to allow NGO leaders to gain experience working with larger organizations. Nashe Podillya will also organize a mini-grants competition for developing regional organizations.

Youth Alternative

$98,394
To support parliamentary internship programs. Youth Alternative will select 30 students from leading Kyiv universities to serve eight-month fellowships in the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s national legislature. One hundred twenty students from universities in eighteen regional cities will serve five-month internships in local Radas. Interns will participate in a variety of training, academic and research activities during their internships.