OREANDA-NEWS. MMC Norilsk Nickel summarized the result of “Nashe future - Nasha responsibility” social projects contest. 62 projects submitted by the NGOs as well as government and municipal organizations of Norilsk, Taymyr and Dolgano-Nenetsk district were declared the winners. The contest was organized by the Polar Division in order to support the initiatives of non-government organizations aiming to create and develop favorable social environment and improve the quality of life in the region. The grant fund of the contest totaled RUB 25 mil.

Out of 186 projects submitted for the contest independent experts from Norilsk, Krasnoyarsk and Moscow selected the best projects proposed by organizations, which poses the potential to implement original and innovative projects. Majority of the winners were educational organizations - 40%, followed by community organizations -35% (8% of which were communities of native peoples), 15% - of the projects were submitted by cultural organizations, 4% were submitted by social security authorities and 2% were submitted by sports, youth and ecological organizations each.

According to the Director of the Social Policies Department of MMC Norilsk Nickel - Svetlana Ivchenko: “The contest enabled us to, on one hand, enhance the knowledge of the participants with respect to social planning, which will give them the opportunity to further promote their ideas and projects and, on the other hand, support the projects, contributing to the involvement of local residents in the solving the current problems of the region”.

The winners will receive grants from Norilsk Nickel for implementation of the projects, ranging between RUB 200 thousand and RUB 1.2 mil. depending on the category. The activities, conducted within the scope of such projects, will be aiming to foster scientific creativity in children, healthy lifestyle, preserve cultural heritage of the local peoples, promote volunteerism, social support of the different categories of the local residents, landscaping of urban and township areas as well as preservation of the objects of historical and cultural heritage.

The palette of winners' ideas is extremely diverse: it ranges from teaching children how to cook national cuisine, cure hides, catch fish and hunt to setting up a Japanese literature and paintings appreciation club. Implementation of such projects will grant opportunities to each one of the local residents to participate in an activity which is of interest to them.

Award ceremony for the winners and contest participants will be held on November 8, 2013 in the Norilsk Palace of Culture.

“Nashe future - Nasha responsibility” - is a pilot project, implemented by MMC Norilsk Nickel in Norilsk and Dolgano-Nenetsk district of Taymyr, aiming to develop the culture of charity and social partnership (transition from mentoring mechanism to competitive allocation of resources).