LDA from Brtonigla is a non-profit organization founded in 1996 with the support of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe and partners from Italy, Switzerland, France, Municipality of Brtonigla and the Region of Istria in order to support the development of local democratic processes, promotion of human rights and active citizenship in Istria County.

Since 2009 LDA acts as association and promotes democratic, social, cultural and economic development based on the principles of tolerance, dialogue, respect of human rights, cultural cooperation and freedom of expression. Its work is based on reciprocity, involvement, and participation of civil society, as well as the exchange of experiences between the partners involved.

Principles of LDA

The Local Democracy Agency was founded on the principles of decentralized international cooperation and since 1996 is a member of the Association of Local Democracy Agencies – ALDA – (www.alda-europe.eu), a Europe-wide network based in Strasbourg, France. At the beginning of its work, at that time Local Democracy Embassy, as the international organization was responding to the current needs of the territory based on the multi-ethnic character of the area and the large presence of autochthonous population belonging to the Italian national minority who were the main factors in the process organization establishing. In this context, ALD was a successful tool for the promotion of a multicultural society and coexistence in the area, as well as a support in the development of democratic institutions at local level.

In recent years, after Croatian accession to the European Union, ALD is focusing its work on the promotion of European values, informing citizens about the European integration process and the advantages of EU membership, as well as part of its work is directed at young people working on improving and encouraging social inclusion, respect for cultural diversity and active citizenship among young people from Istria.