An Award for EU-Ukraine Municipal Partnerships
Municipal partnerships between Ukraine and other European local governments are key drivers of recovery and resilience, reform and EU integration, mutual learning and long-term cooperation.
Through the Bridges of Trust (BoT) Community, we share good examples and success stories of municipal partnerships with Ukraine. And we are keen to discover more!
That is why the European Partnership Hub Secretariat, together with the Bridges of Trust Community, and supported by the EU and its member states through U-LEAD with Europe, initiated the Bridges of Trust Partnerships Award.
The award aims to recognise the efforts and commitment of all stakeholders involved in municipal partnerships with Ukraine to make it more visible at the national and European levels. Five municipal partnerships will be rewarded as Bridges of Trust Ambassadors 2026! Showcasing the geographical outreach and diversity of municipal cooperation in terms of topics, approaches and stakeholders involved.
BoT Partnerships Award 2026 is open for municipal partnerships of Ukrainian municipalities and their partners in the following countries: Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Montenegro, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, and Sweden.
Municipal partners are invited to apply jointly by using the application form below. Share your story with us!
How to apply? (Application documents below)
- Fill in jointly the form to tell us about your municipal partnerships by responding to six questions.
- Add the signed declaration of the two municipalities involved in the partnership.
- Send your joint application in English by 10 July 2026 to: bridges.of.trust.community@ccre-cemr.org
Application documents:
Application Form EN (Word Form) – to be filled jointly
Declaration of municipal participation EN (Word Form)
Further links:
Application Form UA (PDF) – for information only (not to be filled)
Declaration of municipal participation UA (Word Form)
Selected partnerships will receive:
- Official “BoT Ambassador 2026” label
- 1-year Acceleration Programme
- Strategic support and positioning
- Peer learning & Guidance
- Visibility at the European level
- High-quality storytelling
- Access to high-level events
Selection Process
- Pre-selection by BoT Community Actors: Each partner will nominate up to three municipal partnerships based on the quality, visibility and innovation of their cooperation approaches.
- Final Jury: a jury composed of representatives from CEMR, U-LEAD with Europe, and the European Committee of the Regions will select five BoT Ambassador partnerships.
- Validating Committee: the four All-Ukrainian Associations will validate the five BoT Ambassador partnerships selected by the Final Jury.
Partners involved in the pre-selection process:
- AFCCRE – France
- Association of Polish Cities – Poland
- Centre for European Perspective – Slovenia
- VNG International – Netherlands
- ALDA – Italy
- NALAS – Bulgaria, Croatia, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania
- Latvian Association of Local and Regional Governments – Latvia
- CEMR German Section & SKEW, Engagement Global – Germany
- SALAR International – Sweden
Further partners:
- The European Committee of the Regions
- ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability
- Cities4Cities
- Platforma
Partners involved in the validating committee:
- All-Ukrainian Association of Communities
- Association of Amalgamated Territorial Communities
- Association of Ukrainian Cities
- Ukrainian Association of District and Regional Councils
For more information, contact: bridges.of.trust.community@ccre-cemr.org
Project officer – Communications & Events
