We spoke with Natallia Allen, co-founder of MigAct, about advancing civil society and enabling meaningful civic participation, especially for marginalised communities. Drawing on her own migration journey, Natallia works to create inclusive spaces in Prague where all residents, whether of migration backgrounds or Czech-born, can actively engage in civic life. Since 2024, EPIM has supported MigAct’s development in collaboration with AMIGA.

Since 2022, EPIM has supported over 24 projects aiding war-displaced Ukrainians across Central and Eastern Europe. In 2024, our strategy shifted toward holistic, long-term community building, fostering inclusive networks, addressing migrant needs in broader societal contexts, cultivating belonging, and supporting migrant leadership. Our partners work across the region on healthcare, education, public spaces, civic engagement, and job creation to strengthen inclusive and democratic communities.

We spoke with Claudia Șerbănuță, co-founder of Communities of the Future in Romania (ACV), about transforming public libraries in Central and Eastern Europe into hubs for civic engagement, democracy, and belonging.

In this EPIM Partner Stories interview, we spoke with Loredana Urzica-Mirea, Executive Director of eLiberare in Romania, about the organisation’s work to prevent human trafficking and sexual exploitation. eLiberare operates four Centres for Detection and Notification of Cases of Trafficking, develops tailored prevention resources, and builds local communities of allies against trafficking.

In this Civil Society Spotlight, we spoke with Anikó Bakonyi, Director of the Refugee Programme at the Hungarian Helsinki Committee, about the organisation’s work protecting the rights of refugees and other disadvantaged groups in Hungary. Since 2010, the programme has focused on human rights monitoring, counselling, advocacy, and reporting, and Anikó has served on the board of the Berlin-based Civil Society Forum since 2018. EPIM has supported the Hungarian Helsinki Committee since 2021.

Two years from the invasion of Ukraine and the resulting displacement into CEE, the need of the hour is to pivot to a long-term approach of creating inclusive societies in the region, building upon the solidarity displayed by host populations and the collaboration established between civil society, government and other actors including the private sector.