LocationsFostering Inclusive Civic Engagement: Reflections from the Environmental Justice Bootcamp
September 25, 2025
There are rooms you walk into that feel ordinary and then there are rooms that hum with possibility. This August in Prizren, the Environmental Justice Bootcamp hummed. Women leaders, youth activists and grassroots organizations filled the space with energy, ideas and courage.
When talking about Kosovo’s civic space, we often paint a picture of fragility, space fractured by politics and constructed by history. Despite all this, I wondered: what if fragility isn’t where it all ends? What if fragility is simply the act of laying the cobblestones for resilience?
Environmental justice, social inclusion and women’s empowerment were the starting points for what became a depiction of trust, solidarity and inclusion.
The bootcamp was part of UNDP’s broader regional initiative to enhance civic space, strengthen social cohesion and introduce innovative public engagement models, alongside partners including UNDP Georgia, UNDP Moldova and the UNDP Istanbul Regional Hub. In collaboration with the Youth Initiative for Human Rights (YIHR), these efforts are working to show that inclusive civic engagement is possible, even in the most complex contexts.
What Set This Bootcamp Apart
The distinguishing feature of this bootcamp was the ambience of comfort and openness that surrounded it. From the beginning, participants were encouraged to express their insights freely – and in doing so, we uncovered the barriers that shape our individual ability to participate in civic life.
In conversations with local NGOs, the women we spoke to shared stories that were both personal and powerful. Some spoke quietly about the trauma they carry; others about the exhaustion that comes from trying to do good in a world that often doesn’t make space for them. These were women staff, volunteers, and programme beneficiaries whose daily realities are shaped by gendered expectations, social hierarchies and the lingering weight of distrust in institutions. Their voices remind us that civic life isn’t just about policies or programmes, it’s about real people navigating complex barriers every day.
Many women described how trauma, stigma and exhaustion weigh heavily on them and affect their involvement in community work. Others pointed towards how entrenched gender roles, rigid hierarchies and weak institutional trust limit their opportunities to engage. These reflections revealed that civic exclusion is not one-dimensional; it is personal, social and structural all at once.
As Fatbardha Haxhiu, a psychosocial counsellor with NGO Medica Gjakova/Đakovica, explained:
“The barriers to taking part in community activities are both personal and structural. Many women face trauma, stigma and emotional exhaustion, which makes it hard to engage. Socially, gender roles and hierarchies still silence voices. On a structural level, there are too few accessible spaces, limited resources and a lack of trust in institutions. Even when opportunities exist, they often don’t feel inclusive or empowering.”
(Fatbardha Haxhiu, center, wearing glasses, during the bootcamp group discussion.)
Her words reiterated an undeniable truth: at its core, civic participation is not defined by formal invitations, but by the assurance of spaces that are safe, supported and welcoming.
Bridges Across Borders
Inclusion is far from a simple concept. It is multifaceted and requires more than extending invitations. It demands addressing the barriers that shape everyday life and limit participation. From a non-majority perspective, Jelena Durlević, a Kosovo Serb activist with NGO Casa, emphasized how language can serve as an invisible barrier to civic engagement, even for those already engaged in cross-community efforts.
Reflecting on her experience, Jelena shared:
“In my hometown, Kosovo Albanians and Kosovo Roma are also living there, so I have always felt comfortable working and socializing with everyone. Still, language sometimes felt like a barrier — but through this bootcamp, I noticed efforts being made toward mutual understanding.”
(Jelena Durlević, center in black, during the bootcamp group discussion.)
Her perspective provided a foundation for examining civic cohesion and the ways in which it is cultivated. Cohesion is not achieved simply by bringing people into the same space it requires sustained attention to language, accessibility and trust. These are essential to ensuring meaningful participation.
Sustainability and Inclusion Go Hand in Hand
The bootcamp revealed that many environmental projects overlook the importance of involving diverse groups of people raising the questions: who gets included and who gets left out?
One example came from DyVo Lab, a sustainable design platform that turns recycled plastic into accessories and integrates environmental education into schools and communities.
Their work is both creative and innovative. But as Urtesë Zeneli from DyVo Lab admitted, the inclusion of minority groups remains a persistent challenge:
“Through our efforts we are trying to include minority groups in our work, but engaging with and communicating with such groups often poses serious challenges. It is essential that we come together and work together and look for better ways of reaching out to those who continue to be marginalized.”
(Urtesë Zeneli presenting her experiences during the bootcamp.)
This reflection laid the groundwork for a key conclusion: inclusion is not achieved solely through good intentions. It requires purposeful action, deliberate strategies and trust-building over time.
Energy, Inequality, and Justice
Another strong theme that emerged throughout the bootcamp was the intersection between environmental justice, energy access and how these interconnected issues affect us differently and unequally. For many communities in Kosovo, energy poverty is not just about technology and infrastructure, it’s also about dignity and survival.
Trainer Liri Kuçi captured this reality:
“Energy and environment do not belong only to professionals; they involve us all and depend on our unity to be as efficient as possible. We should not repeat the mistakes we are facing today but create something sustainable for future generations.”
(Liri Kuçi providing training at the bootcamp, 15–17 August 2025.)
Participants discussed how energy poverty disproportionately affects marginalized groups, particularly Kosovo Roma community, who often face impossible trade-offs between meeting immediate needs and securing long-term stability. Recognizing this, the bootcamp framed sustainability not as a technical challenge but as a social justice issue. To build sustainable solutions, inclusion must be at the center.
Why It Matters
By the end of the three days, the bootcamp had become more than a training. It was a space of connection, trust and shared purpose. Participants left not only with new knowledge, but with a renewed sense of solidarity and a recognition that fragility can give way to resilience when people come together across divides.
The next steps are already underway: mentorship and small grants will support grassroots initiatives born from these discussions, ensuring that ideas are carried forward into action. But perhaps the greater legacy lies in this collective lesson:
Inclusion is not a box to tick. It is the heart of civic engagement and the only way to build a future that is both sustainable and just.
The Environmental Justice Bootcamp showed that even in fragile contexts, civic space can become a place of resilience. By centering on women, young people and marginalized groups, it created a model for what inclusive engagement can look like in practice.
In Prizren, over the course of three days, we saw that change is possible when communities, institutions and individuals commit to listening, learning and building together.
Story by: Sara Çeshko, United Nations Volunteer (UNV) with UNDP Kosovo; Enhancing civic space, social cohesion and innovative public engagement models project.
Photos: Blendë Pira, YIHR
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