About organization

The history of Kaunas community centers activity began 10 years ago. For example, Petrašiūnai district community center is active for 10 years now. Until this year, however, activity of community centers was not coordinated and the enthusiasm of individual centers confronted and indifference and non-willingness to cooperate of the government. In 2003 April after the establishment of Kaunas city districts neighbourhoods, the situation began to change. It triggered the intention of activeKaunascity community to establish their own community centers.

The number of legal community centers grew to 18 during last two years. It was obvious, that currently the situation allows the representative of the community centers to exchangeinformation, to combine actions, to unite exertions in communicating with the representatives ofKaunascity municipality, especially with the personnel of district neighbourhoods. The good stimulus to establish coordinative organization for community centers was a conference about cooperation of community organizations and representatives of municipality organized by Nongovernmental Organizations Support Centre in 2003 May. The conference   participants of Aleksotas, Petrašiūnai, Palemonas, Šančiai, Panemunė, Šilainiai, Lampėdžiai etc. community centers agreed to unite exertions and after several months of discussions the coordinative board of the community centers was established. The member of Aleksotas community center professor Ramūnas Navickas was elected to be the chief of the coordinative board.

The new stage of the cooperation between community centers and the governmental institutions began. Various projects of partnership and collaboration began to be prepared and new contacts with community centers ofVilniushave been established. In communicating with the representatives ofKaunasmunicipality it emerged, that a non formal coordinative board could not be a partner of the municipality, therefore the Association of Kaunas community centers uniting 11 representatives of community centers was legalized. In communicating actively with the representatives of municipality, the collaboration treaty of Kaunas municipality and The Association of Community Centers was prepared and confirmed by the council of Kaunas city on the 15 of May in 2004. The municipality foundation sponsoring community centers was also established. Good perspectives for normal dialogue between the municipality and community centers and for mutual useful partnership emerged.