A resource room for children with special needs, an inclusive class, setting up a meteorological site and much more: 18 projects are being implemented in Bilozerske by the winners of DTEK’s Do-It-Yourself Community competition. Thanks to grants from the company, 224 volunteers will make their hometown more comfortable, energy efficient and barrier-free.
‘DTEK ENERGY is a responsible and reliable company interested in sustainable development of the towns where it operates. This is the eighth competition that helps caring residents of Bilozerske community implement their initiatives. The activity of the participants and the company’s grants ensure improvements in our society,’ said Vitalii Vilkhovyi, Director of DTEK Bilozerska Mine.
The Safe Environmentally Friendly Town project has already been implemented. The initiative group has installed video surveillance cameras in places far from the town centre. Four cameras were installed in the town park and one camera was installed in front of the hostel on Skhidna Street. Now, residents of Bilozerske feel safe when walking along the alleys, because the police are watching live broadcast from the cameras.
Three winning projects aim to create a barrier-free environment. The Happy Zone project is among them. An initiative group of parents and educators of the Rainbow kindergarten will improve the resource room for the effective teaching of special children. Interactive equipment will help kids with developmental disabilities overcome fears and successfully adapt in a team.
Volunteers of the Good Intention project — the top project in voting — are making active efforts. Participants are equipping the porch, paths and parking for vehicles on 25 Oleksandra Yermakova Street. Harmony Condominium Association is located in the same house, where almost half of the town’s population regularly pays the rent.
‘It was difficult to walk through the courtyard in rainy weather. We don’t have a parking lot by the road. Therefore, those who drove to Harmony, left their cars on the sidelines. There have been multiple car accidents at this place. Thanks to DTEK, we will be able to make the area around the house clean, comfortable and safe,’ said Mykola Tkachuk, Project Manager.
In 2021, 32 communities in 11 regions of Ukraine have taken part in the competition. The company received 667 bids, from which the project jury in each individual community selected the winners based on the specific criteria. Initiatives in the social sector, ecology and energy consumption, health care, sports, urban and rural improvement, as well as cooperation between communities, are among the winners. This year, the competition has placed particular emphasis on creating a barrier-free environment and inclusion in a broad sense. The Do-It-Yourself Community project was transformed once DTEK joined the First Lady’s Business without Barriers initiative. 60% of the programs and initiatives that communities and volunteers submitted to participate in the competition are based on accessibility principles.