Searching For The Way Out Of The Social Dead-Lock

Julia Kachalova

"The Setting - My City. The Time of Action – This Moment!"

      This was the slogan of the social campaign in the city of Kaluga which we would like to tell you about. This campaign is totally different from the pre-election boom readily demonstrated by the mass media. Its aim is to bring in the citizens to the work of changing life conditions in their city; show people the ways of applying their creative energy, embodying their ideas and projects.
      It seems that the idea of "housebuilding" is the best variant of that "national idea" so much longed for by a Russian soul. Yet there is nothing "national" in this idea (like any other except the one to "beat the Jews to save Russia"). There is nothing original in it either – the citizens of all developed countries are quite active in making exterior and interior order in material and spiritual areas of their lives. We, on the contrary, have got so used to the state of helplessness and dependence, to waiting for outside changes, for which we hope like for deliverance, got so used to rely on czars and other leaders to make order, that this trivial idea looks new and fresh for us. The campaign in Kaluga couldn’t even be compared with the pre-election agitation carried on by large political groups aiming to win in this year elections to the State Duma. The scale of the campaign and attention paid to it by the mass media is completely different. But the Kaluga campaign is unique in its meaning for the future of the civil society in Russia. This campaign has started "from underneath", meaning by initiative of the citizens themselves, and the people it is aimed at are considered to be the bearers of creative power and not just objects of political manipulation. The campaign was started by several small non-commercial organizations, most of them working with young people. They got tired of waiting for the authorities to find time and money to pay attention to the younger generation’s needs along with the state of the city environment. So what have they decided to do in particular?

The Motto Is – Start Now!

      Ilya Savchuk, head of the Educational Center "Academy"
"Our Center is a young organization, and its area of activity is modern educational technologies. We have been cooperating with the secondary school #19 for some years. The school is situated in the city center, but the front of the building doesn’t make it or the street it’s standing on look better. The graffito has been crumbling down for a year, and it’s good if not to the pupils’ heads. We are now working on the project of decorating the school facade with a colorful "fresco" painted by the schoolchildren themselves. The schoolchildren will take part in all fazes of the process, from generating artistic ideas to their realization. We named our project "Bright Colors", and it is too a part of new technologies – technologies of awaking interest to life and to one’s environment."
      Alexander Pronin, head of the Youth Art Development Center "Key" (in Russian the word has several meanings, including "source"– Translator’s comment)
"We decided to organize a demonstration program which would show the creative potential of young people of our city. There is an extraordinary number of talented boys and girls in Kaluga, but all of them need spectators and listeners. They must feel that they are interesting to somebody else. Money is not that important for them, as one might think; what they really need is another kind of support. We hope that our project will help creative youth find it."
      Yulia Isaeva, director of the non-commercial partnership "Eco-Strategy"
"Together with "Ugra" National Park we have organized an ecological-educational Center "Green Ray" in the district "Kaluga-2". The local teenagers are very much interested by our Center, because the district is relatively new and doesn’t have developed infrastructure and recreational areas. After talking to the inhabitants of the district, most of which are young families, we realized that people are ready to come together and help landscape the territory for their children to play. There is a peace of land around the Center that we could make look better. We would like to bring in the citizens on the work of landscaping of the playground that will be designed by children themselves. Besides, there are hydrosulfuric lakes on "Ugra" territory that is near "Kaluga-2" known by their unique healing effect. We also plan to make an "eco-trail" to the lakes and are sure that their healing waters will attract other people from neighboring communities."
      Dmitry Galkin,
The major activity of our organization is role plays with schoolchildren. It is obvious that young people would like to find an outlet to their energy, try themselves in something more serious than play. Very many teenagers are eager to join acting youth organizations and groups, but they do not possess any information of neither the groups, nor the initiatives they could take up. We decided to found the Service of Youth Initiatives that will collect and put out the information of this kind and hold the annual festivals of youth initiatives."
      Alexander Tokarev, director of the workshop and studio Center "Akvilon"
"The basic principle we are following from the beginning is "to keep up with oneself" without trying to keep abreast or apace with anybody else. Each member of our organization does the work he likes and can do professionally: architecture, design, advertising, woodwork, artistic handweaving. There are children in each studio working next to the "pro’s". We all take part in arranging exhibitions, festivals, seminars, club meetings. Our new project, "Territory Z", is the benchmark, the "zero" level in our search of ways and methods of young people self-organization by useful work changing the look of our home town.

What’s So Special in It?

      These initiatives were supported by the most authoritative and influential citizens: business managers, mass media executives, deputies of the city Duma, artists and public characters . They all joined an informal structure, the so-called Council of Support, to help non-commercial organizations and their campaign with anything they needed.
      You could ask, "It that all?" That was the reaction of one "Arguments and Facts" journalist who told me: "Why, I also tidy up my apartment and clean the floor!" It’s not that easy to explain what is so special in this campaign in Kaluga – there is nothing shocking or sensational going on, nothing so attractive to the mass media. But it is surprising that journalists don’t realize that nobody is touched by scandals anymore, and around 90% of sensations are thumbsuckers. By contrast, the things going on in Kaluga are unparalleled in spite of their small scale. The people have made their choice not under pressure or by necessity, but absolutely free. Won’t you agree that if we don’t tidy up our apartment, wash dishes and floor, dust the furniture for a couple of months, our home will turn into a pigsty suitable only for the devotees of such exotic style. So housecleaning is not a strong argument, because it is done by necessity and not free choice. The citizens of Kaluga did not face such a necessity: they could well go on living as they had – like the rest of the country. Their decision was not motivated by any necessity, that’s why it was an ethical choice. And this is a highly important point today!
      The second aspect, which is no less important, is that making the city look pretty is not the main aim, but more likely a side effect. And the main aim is to induce people to feel their responsibility instead of the common Russian "wisdom": "Why do I need more that others?" (meaning, I don’t want to work more than others – Translator’s comment)
      At last, the foundation of the Council of Support is an extremely important factor. The non-commercial organizations can do what they like, some might think – they are full of loonies! If they want to paint schools with frescoes or make trails in the wood – leave them alone if they don’t have anything better to do. But the Council is totally different! There are bankers, and company directors, and deputies, and high executives, and other "serious people". They all have work to do – why have they made this venture?! And what for? There is no profit here – nobody would talk of profit when one has to invest money without any interest or dividends. So why do they meet and argue and huff and puff, share their money and connections and whatever riches they have? When they were asked about it, their answers were mostly like the following: "I think such a public organ is necessary to the city", "I am interested to know what will come out of it", "I was interested by the idea", "I wanted to find like-minded men". From these answers it is evident that all of us, in spite of our social status, are sick and tired of "survival", isolation, and the feeling of dependence.
      But even this is not the main point. The heart of the matter is that the experiment in Kaluga has given birth to a completely new approach to the regional problems which is based on the voluntary consolidation of different kinds of resources and further directional use of these resources to solve an interior problem. Money, equipment, materials and instruments, personal free time and heart – all these are the resources of the community.
      The traditional approach to regional problems supposes that "outlanders" are invited to solve it. They may be officials from some ministry or department, managers or counselors; what they have in common is that they are not concerned with this particular area and its problems, moreover, they are not interested in the final solution of the problem, as they make their living with the existence of the problem and not its solution. The problem region itself and its inhabitants are viewed as nothing but the objects of cares by these experts. One can easily see that this kind of approach is not very efficient, and the resources granted by the state (no matter how big or little they are) are not used for the region development but are spent for the experts’ salaries.
      The citizens of Kaluga are trying to find the basically different way to solve the problems of their city, which is based on the formation of so-called "social capital". With this approach the problem is confronted by the local institutions and the population, and not some experts from "outside". The success is determined by their ability to form connections and consolidate their resources. Besides, formation of social connections within a community has one more positive effect – it inhibits social aggression. The scientists who have studied behavioral characteristics of humans and animals assert that for both personal contacts not only are a background of complex mechanisms inhibiting aggression, but by themselves can lower the aggressive impulses.
      There are only the first spontaneous steps made in this direction in Kaluga, but it’s due to their spontaneity and "amateur" nature in its best sense that we believe these steps to be of great importance. They give us hope that in the end Russia will become a normal democratic state. Though it can only happen when not just a handful of "advanced" people but the majority of citizens will connect the words "right" and "personal responsibility" in their mind and will be ready to join in changing the society.