Beşiktaş Municipality Has Received the Partner of the ELDW Award

Beşiktaş Municipality once again has been awarded the title of “Partner of the European Local Democracy Week 2022”.

As part of European Local Democracy Week coordinated by the Council of Europe, Beşiktaş Municipality has been awarded the title of “Partner of the European Local Democracy Week 2022” thanks to the new implementations initiated in 2019 under the theme “Protecting the Environment: Local Communities Take Action”. Aiming to share the activities and experiences of local governments put forward in 2022, The Annual Coordination Meeting of the European Local Democracy Week (ELDW) took place yesterday at the Council of Europe. Turkey, Luxembourg, Portugal, Lithuania, Ukraine, Romania, Malta and Serbia are among the 21 member municipalities of the Council of Europe that received awards as part of the meeting.

During the opening ceremony, Secretary General of European Local Democracy Congress, Mathieu Mori, conveyed the condolences of Council of Europe for those who lost their lives in the earthquakes occurred in Turkey. After Mori’s speech, the congress program continued with member local governments giving their presentations.

As the Beşiktaş Mayor Rıza Akpolat was not able to attend the meeting due to being actively on duty in aid coordination for the earthquake disaster in Türkiye, Coordinator of Foreign Relations Directorate, Pınar Çakmak, attended the meeting on behalf of Beşiktaş Municipality.

Beşiktaş Municipality was deemed worthy of the title of “ELDW Partner 2022” for its exemplary activities that strengthen democracy such as the Organic Wastes Turns into Compost Blends application, English Speaking Club, Festival against Ecological Destruction, Separation and Collection of Packing Waste at Source, EU Erasmus+ Projects, MealsForStudents App, 65+ Digital Literacy Trainings, Beşiktaş International Meeting and Stakeholder Meeting 2022. The quality and inclusivity of the works put forward by Beşiktaş Municipality was praised by ELDW Spokesperson Bryony Rudkin.

The new theme of ELDW in 2023-2024 has been selected as “Local Communities: Emphasizing Democratic Resilience”.