The Regional Territorial Public Self-Government Forum was held in Perm.

Photo: Vitaly Koksharov

Representatives of Perm TOS (Territorial Public SelfGovernment)  joined  the  activists from across the region to develop solutions for the development of territorial public selfgovernment in the region.

In Perm, at the Youth House (185 Petropavlovskaya St.), the Forum of Territorial Public SelfGovernment of the Perm Region was held under the motto :  “Uniting People — Developing the Territory!”. The event brought together more than 300 TOS leaders, representatives of government bodies, youth, and the expert community. Representatives of all territorial public selfgovernments of Perm took part in the forum.

The TOS movement in the regional capital has long and strong traditions. The first organizations appeared in 1990, and today 114 TOS units operate in the city, covering more than 650,000 residents with their activities. Perm TOS organizations are rightfully considered among the most efficient in the country, implementing hundreds of projects annually on improvement, creation of public centers, and tourism development.

During the official opening of the forum, an awards ceremony was held. Winners of the regional contest “Leaders of Public SelfGovernment” received their welldeserved awards.

The central event of the forum was the plenary session “TOS. Development Prospects” aimed at reviewing  modern approaches to TOS work in Russian regions and the prospects for the movement’s development in the Kama region. Representatives of other federal subjects shared their practices of successfully implementing public initiatives.

The forum’s work continued at four discussion platforms and three practical laboratories. Participants discussed the integration of students into TOS projects through the “Learning Through Service” program, mechanisms for interaction with the municipal team to solve local problems, and the development of local tourism. At the youth platform “First in TOS”, novice activists presented their own projects. In the practical laboratories, community leaders mastered social design tools and received methods for preventing emotional burnout.

Many initiatives that have been successfully implemented in the Perm Region for a long time are becoming an example for territorial public selfgovernment in other regions. “It is important that the forum unites caring people, true patriots of their small homeland,” noted Zakhar Yudin, Director of the AllRussian Assembly for the Development of Territories and Public SelfGovernment.

The forum became an effective platform for exchanging experience and strengthening horizontal ties between activists of the Kama region and other regions of the country.