{"id":7521,"date":"2022-02-03T11:08:18","date_gmt":"2022-02-03T09:08:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/funky.ong\/?p=7521"},"modified":"2026-05-20T11:34:55","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T08:34:55","slug":"mic-bilant-pe-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/funky.ong\/en\/mic-bilant-pe-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"2021 in summary"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n

Cite\u0219te \u00een format PDF<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n

Read it in PDF format<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

In 2021, we got vaccinated and specialised in online events. We met less often at the main office in Colivia, but we doomscrolled<\/em><\/a> daily because we had a lot of news to pick from: the fires in the old hospitals, which are saturated with oxygen, the accelerated spread of fake news and the extreme societal division when it comes to vaccination. Besides this, we carefully followed the irresponsible political crisis last autumn, alongside the eternal nonsensical way in which politicians behave regardless of the season. The sociologist Barbu Mateescu wrote an article in retrospect of 2021, here<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the beginning of 2022, it is not really easy for us to be the \u2018on-call\u2019 optimists. Even so, our heart grows when we meet new people, either in workshops, partnerships or even within our team. In this regard, we welcome Ana Dragomir, who will help with the research and communication sectors. So, we are entering 2022 with the hope that we are not the only ones who are still determined and eager to stay here and to make a difference. We are also thinking about the 2024 elections, when four rounds of elections (European Parliament, local, parliamentary and presidential) will be taking place in the course of one year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let's see what the second year of the pandemic looked like for us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
In the field of work<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We're expanding through a Funky Republic<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The main news of 2021 is that we have started a project that will be keeping us busy for two years, in an attempt to reach those civically-fit citizens outside the Capital. The Funky Republic<\/strong><\/a> will be a network of local organisations, set up to support active citizenship and constructive dialogue between local authorities, citizens and civil society representatives. Our activities will involve conducting training in the areas that we are already devoted to, as well as creating an index of transparency and openness of local authorities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

As a teaser of this index, the project began with an analysis measuring the transparency of municipal budgets<\/a>: more specifically, we researched the extent to which the more than 100 municipalities in Romania comply with the current legislation when drafting and approving local budgets. The Funky Republic will become more visible to the public in 2022: we are currently making an extensive research effort behind the scenes <\/em>to identify 2 large, 2 medium and 2 small cities, plus a village where we can expand our work. We have a shortlist, but we are going to validate it with the help of sociologists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Guard in hospitals<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"\/<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This year as well, somewhat predictably, we have witnessed 4 fires in medical units and hospitals. After each one, the authorities promised that they would investigate the reasons behind the calamities and come up with solutions. As the solutions were slow to come, we realised that what we see is just the tip of the iceberg<\/a> and that it is important to keep an eye on what is happening in hospitals. Our tool in this fight is the On Guard<\/strong><\/a>app, through which we encourage doctors to tell us, anonymously, what irregularities they see in hospitals. We facilitate this process because we are aware that the whistleblowing culture is seriously underdeveloped<\/a> in Romania. In 2022, we will start a new project related to whistlebloweri<\/em>in partnership with journalists from Recorder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Editorial projects<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Bucharest Bulletin<\/strong>, our editorial project launched in 2019, is still trying to survive with a small team and a limited budget. In addition to some breaking-news<\/em>that were also picked up by the mainstream press (The parallel vaccination<\/a>, The Covid protection medallions purchased by the Voluntari City Hall<\/a>, Mayor B\u0103lu\u021b\u0103's online trolls<\/a>, European funds during the pandemic<\/a>), we also organized six debates, part of the series Great Bucharest<\/a>. It was an opportunity to reflect on the future and ask ourselves, alongside experts, journalists and other NGO members, what our capital may look like in the next 30 years. Developed in the context of SIDU Bucharest<\/a>, \u201eThe great Bucharest\" continues in 2022. Last year, we focused on six major topics:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
  1. North vs South<\/li>
  2. The heating element<\/li>
  3. Warning, falling plaster!<\/li>
  4. Sustainable transportation<\/li>
  5. The metropolitan Bucharest<\/li>
  6. Bucharest 2050<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Additionally, we helped the journalists raise 10.000 Euros in a crowdfunding campaign<\/a> to investigate who is benefiting financially from the pandemic, which companies are winning tenders<\/a> and where it smells of corruption. The publication's website has also received a small refresh (but it's still a long way to a modern one), and readers can subscribe to the weekly newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n