The DemoVersity was aimed at bringing opinion-makers and trendsetters from Ukrainian civil society, academia, and international community to Volodymyr Dahl East Ukrainian National University in order to raise the awareness among youth, especially affected by the armed conflict in the eastern Ukraine, about democracy, good governance, and the role of the civil society in the democratic transformation of the country.

 

The DemoVersity's team of civil society experts spoke of the idea of self-organization, explained key aspects of democracy, and inspired participants for more meaningful actions and far-reaching initiatives. The Democracy University created "Space for Civil Society" within the university and invited the most active citizens to participate.

 

In his speech, Ihor Kohut from Laboratory of Legislative Initiatives called for direct democracy and united civil society to reform Ukraine. "Today, there is a huge demand on people's participation in reform processes. It is important that people decide policy initiatives directly without any go-between."

 

Speaking in favour of IDPs' rights to vote during upcoming elections, Serhiy Tkachenko from Donetsk branch of the Committee of Voters of Ukraine emphasized: "Elections itself are not a participatory democracy. Participatory democracy is bigger; it is based on human rights and freedoms. We should fight for our rights. We should demand from authorities to respect our rights."

 

Andriy Andrushkiv, who provides communications support to the Reanimation Package of Reforms, spoke of the importance of communications in law development process. "Without effective communications, any process would not be successful. When you are planning any transformations, do it with followers."

 

Vojtech Hledik from the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme elaborated on governance transformations due to volunteerism, which possible, to his mind, through trust building, cooperation, information exchange, active citizens, and participation in decision-making.

 

"Civil society is the oxygen of democracy. Civil society acts as a catalyst for social progress and economic growth. It plays a critical role in keeping Government accountable, and helps represent the diverse interests of the population, including its most vulnerable groups," UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in his message for the Day.