In Irkutsk at the third Public Initiatives Fair, 15 projects received support, from sports and rehabilitation for disabled children to improvement and cultural programs. At the event held as part of the White Flower festival, patrons signed 18 agreements, and some initiatives found several sponsors at once. Find out which projects were recognized as Kind, Creative, and Expected, and how charity traditions are developing in the city.
15 projects were supported at the third Public Initiatives Fair, held on October 25 at the Irkutsk City History Museum. The event took place as part of the White Flower festival, which originated in Europe, and in Russia the charitable festival began to be held in 1911 under the patronage of the imperial family. In Irkutsk, since 2010, traditions of charity have been implemented, among other ways, through the Public Initiatives Fair, drawing the attention of city residents to socially significant projects.“Any public initiative in the city of Irkutsk is welcome. And if there is an opportunity to support it, the administration does so. The Public Initiatives Fair has taken off, and the number of projects increases every year. There are more and more people in Irkutsk who are conscientious and responsible. We can see that the city is coming together. And if we can do something, let’s do it. Public initiatives are what we strive for, involving people so that they can open up for our beloved city, and the administration, for its part, supports these efforts,” Irkutsk Mayor Viktor Kondrashov greeted those gathered.
The third Public Initiatives Fair was preceded by an awards ceremony for patrons who supported last year’s projects. They were presented with the “Do Good” badge. In addition, each of them took part in creating the painting “Bouquet of Irkutsk Patrons.” It was created right during the Fair. It was then put up for auction. The proceeds from the sale of the painting will, of course, be directed to charity.
This year, more than 45 applications were submitted to the Fair. All of them passed expert selection, and 20 different projects were presented to the patrons’ attention: support for sports, rehabilitation of children with disabilities, city improvement, and projects in the field of culture.
“The Public Initiatives Fair has been held for three years now — you could call it a small anniversary. Together with you, we have come to this date in big and small steps. And now we are eagerly waiting to see how the projects presented today will be received,” said Marina Kondrashova, chair of the board of the Heritage of Irkutsk Patrons foundation.
As a result, 18 agreements were signed at the third Public Initiatives Fair to support 15 proposed projects. Some of the initiative proposals will receive help from several patrons.
For the Fair participants who developed and presented their projects, of course, the main reward was the support of business representatives. In addition, some were also recognized with gifts. Thus, the “Good Project” was chosen — it was “Mom’s Room”; the “Creative Project” — “Snowball and Gingerbread Day”; the “Expected Project” — “Walks through Old Irkutsk-2.”
The projects of the third Public Initiatives Fair will be implemented over the course of a year. As a reminder, in 2010, 15 projects were presented at the Fair, 10 of which received support and were mostly implemented. In 2011, 17 projects were presented at the Fair, 11 of them were fully implemented. The total amount of support for public initiatives over two years is more than 6 million rubles.
Based on materials from the press service of the Irkutsk city administration