The Civil Society direction embodies CEDEM’s mission to promote the development of an active and responsible citizenry. Combining efforts, providing training to others, and creating communities of responsible and proactive citizens forms the foundation for positive societal transformations.

The focus of the Civil Society direction at the Center for Democracy and Rule of Law is to provide legal and advisory support to civil society coalitions, strengthening democratic society in Ukraine. Additionally, our projects serve as platforms for training, networking, and uniting civic activists, volunteers, and NGO leaders to create and implement successful, impactful projects. CEDem also works on social projects aimed at increasing personal responsibility among citizens in the fields of health and public safety.

Key current projects within this direction include:

• Kyiv Without Tobacco Smoke, which in 2012 advocated for a ban on smoking in public places and now focuses on regulating electronic cigarettes and banning advertising and open displays of cigarette packs.
• The “For Safe Roads” Сampaign, working to reduce traffic fatalities and injuries in Ukraine through legislative advocacy and social advertising.
• The Open University of Reforms, a joint project with the Reform Support Team Coalition, which since 2015, after three months of training, internships, and project implementation, graduates about 30 motivated young people twice a year, ready to participate in reforms.
• The Advocacy School, established in 2018, serves as a platform for sharing expertise and strengthening the potential for positive change.
• The Communication School: in 2019, CEDEM began training civic activists on creating creative social campaigns, writing press releases, and engaging with media.
• The Security School: launched in 2022, focusing on developing a culture within NGOs to care for their own safety. We hold an annual Security School to enhance activists’, volunteers’, and NGOs’ skills and knowledge in digital, physical, legal, and mental security.
• The Mentoring Program: founded in 2019 to strengthen advocacy and other capacities of civil society organizations across Ukraine. It is an approximately 8-month annual program pairing organizations as Mentors and Mentees to jointly implement advocacy projects.

Past initiatives include:

• Ukraine Civil Society Sectoral Support Activity, implemented from 2019 to 2025 in partnership with ISAR “Yednannia” and the Ukrainian Center for Independent Political Research. The project aimed to improve the environment for civil society activities and strengthen institutional capacities of NGOs. CEDEM advocated for legislative updates related to NGO activities, helped counter harmful legislative initiatives, strengthened partnerships with government bodies, and conducted impactful information campaigns to raise citizen awareness about the role of civil society in the country.
• Financial and institutional support for the Reanimation Package of Reforms, the strongest coalition of civil society aimed at key reforms, of which CEDEM is a co-initiator.
• The “100 Responsible Citizens” initiative, launched in 2021, to promote and showcase acts of responsibility. We engaged responsible citizens from across Ukraine – representatives of different ages, genders, and backgrounds – united by the shared desire to improve the country.