OPENING OF THE FIRST THEMATIC WORSHOP OF PROJECT SINEGRI IN
SKOPJE
Today , on 03.12.2014, Wednesday , at the Hall of the Council of the City of Skopje, the first
coordination meeting took place of the project SINERGI - Social Integration through Urban Growth
Strategies. The first thematic workshop of the project SINERGI in Skopje will last till Friday,
05.01.2014.
The opening of the first coordination meeting began by an address from the Head of the
International Cooperation Department, Ms Meri Kostovska who welcomed the guests and wished
them success during the next few days of work.
- On this occasion we have the opportunity for creative debate, exchange of knowledge and
experience which will be of great importance for us as a local authority, due to the interdisciplinarity
of participants coming from local authorities or city administrations, universities and civil
organizations from four partner-cities in this European project. The SINERGI Project focuses on the
promotion and realization of EU knowledge and experience for citizen participation in urban
planning and development, using the best practices of partner-cities in the project. The acquired
knowledge and promoting cooperation in various political, social and other groups will contribute to
the process of social integration and the development of strategies for urban social development,
said Kostovksa at the opening.
On the first day of the first coordination meeting , the Head of the Spatial Planning and Organization
Department of the City of Skopje, Mr. Aleksandar Janakievski, addressed the attendees, and
professional presentations were given by the Dean of the Faculty of Architecture – Ss Cyril and
Methodius University, prof. Minas Bakalchev, the Deputy Head of the Spatial Planning and
Organization Department of the City of Skopje, Mr.Aljosha Shopar, and prof. Alessandro Armando of
the Polytechnic University of Turin, who gave a presentation on "Architecture of effects: process
design in public transformation."
During the next two days, all the activities of the coordination meeting will be held at the Faculty of
Architecture - Ss Cyril and Methodius University.
The aim of the SINERGI project is to establish a network of cooperation between the city
administration, experts, civil organizations, which will work to promote and achieve the knowledge
and experiences of citizen participation in urban planning and development. Within the framework
of the project, a series of activities are organized that will create a platform for the exchange of
knowledge in a creative and open debate and communication between local authorities, universities
and research communities, civil organizations and citizens. This platform should enable the use of
new and digital tools for better analysis and understanding of the processes that shape our cities,
but most of all, it needs to allow different social groups and groups with different interests to take
active participation and exchange knowledge with experts, researchers and activists, and with joint
efforts to develop strategies, projects and communication tools that will enhance the process of
managing the city. This complex network of different stakeholders will enable decision makers to
reconsider their perception of the modern city and will allow new and integrated urban knowledge
by means of urban management policies.
The project "Social Integration through Urban Growth Strategies - SINERGI" is a project funded by
the program "Europe for the Citizens 2014-2018", with the participation of partner cities such as
Skopje (Macedonia), Turin (Italy), Zagreb (Croatia) and Lisbon (Portugal).