Civil Society

Did you help a fellow human in need? Did you clean up the park near your home? Did you and your friends organize an event in your neighbourhood? You are an active citizen, helping to improve the quality of life in the city, and we thank you for that!

Individuals or groups that organize communal events for a common purpose, but are not linked to the state or managed by it, make up civil society, which we often refer to as the 3rd sector of society.

There are also more organized forms, such as “civil society organizations”, whose members serve the general interest with democratic procedures. These organizations act as intermediaries between public authorities and civilians.

The City of Athens is inspired by citizen initiatives, and supports and promotes them, while also wishing to activate the City’s reflexes so as to ensure the City’s services reflect citizens’ new needs. Civil society actions can lead to changes in the City’s political priorities, improvement of its regulations, and a simplification of procedures.

Thus, in recognition of the contribution of active citizens to the confrontation of modern urban challenges, as a key component of any measures taken by the city, the City of Athens promotes the development of a colourful mosaic of actions and initiatives with a positive impact on the quality of life in Athens.

The City of Athens seeks to:

• Develop a relationship of trust with active citizens and civil society groups and organizations;
• Facilitate and promote the voluntary work of citizens;
• Support any initiative that improves life in the city;
• Make use of and learn from the experience organizations have gained in their field of activity;
• Contribute to the mobilization and active participation of more citizens.

synAthina – The City of Athens’ link to active citizens.

synAthina is the common space which brings together, supports and facilitates citizens’ groups engaged in improving the quality of life in the city. By coordinating the invaluable resource of citizens’ groups, the City of Athens actively listens to the needs of its people and is thus revitalized. By supporting the activities of the citizens the City creates a new perception about the relationship between civil society and local governance and cultivates their dynamic, bidirectional bond. SynAthina is an initiative of the City of Athens. It was created in July 2013.

Through synAthina:

• Citizens discuss, learn and gain awareness of the main urban challenges, and are encouraged to participate in public life.
• The city’s groups give presentations and briefings on their charitable, non profit-making activities.
• Citizens have the opportunity to transform their ideas and proposals into practical data that is made available to municipal services.

Take a look at groups active in Athens, and join in, to make your neighbourhood a better place, at https://www.synathina.gr

Through synAthina, the City of Athens:

• Collates civil activities and identifies what civil society’s priorities are for the city;
• Facilitates groups and citizens in realizing their objectives, and encourages collaboration with other groups, sponsors and organization;
• Identifies the activities with the greatest impact on the city, and seeks to make use of them in the framework of local government;
• Ensures that the City’s reflexes are sharp, so as to improve the services provided in relation to citizens’ new needs; Civil society actions can lead to changes in the City’s political priorities, improvement of its regulations, and a simplification of procedures.

SynAthina office: Serafio Centre, Building B, 2nd Floor, Piraeus & Petrou Ralli street, Rouf.