During these two days, among the discussed topics – the Ukrainian and Polish experience in the industrial spaces and infrastructure objects, adaptive reuse as a source for cultural development and creative industries, the maintenance of the cultural-industrial heritage, regulation policies for the revitalisation process within the industrial zones of the cities, temporary interventions, activism and art as revitalisation tactics and strategies, revitalisation projects’ sustainability, – the experience of the Moldovan revitalisation team was also analysed, specifically from the point of view of the cities participating at the forum – Drochia, Edinet and Cimislia.

In the first day of the event, during the Revitalisation bottom-up initiatives panel, Marina Vorbanet, the responsible person for the Urban Revitalisation in Edinet Municipality, and Anastasia Stefanita, program coordinator at Solidarity Fund PL in Moldova, presented the community involvement instruments for the revitalisation projects. The experience of the Moldovan cities was thoroughly discussed, mainly from the point of view of the creation and activity of the Consultation Committee, the involvement of the community in the discussion process while establishing the necessities of the chosen zone, as well as the goals of the revitalisation, the process of writing an urban revitalisation program, the importance of the visits within the cities and community participation in the process of implementation of the mini-projects, that aimed to enhance the social, economic and visual identity of the city.

The second day of the forum held an entire discussion & presentation panel on the topic of revitalisation in the Republic of Moldova – the implementation steps and the acquired successes. Igor Malai, chief of the Directorate for Regional Development within the Ministry of Agriculture, Regional Development and Environment of the Republic of Moldova, presented more information regarding the development policies of the urban areas, about the roles and functions the involved stakeholders have in the process of the revitalisation, methodologies and regulations etc. Andrzej Brzozowy presented the activities carried on in those two years of Polish-Moldovan collaboration regarding the revitalisation aspect. The guests found out more on the Drochia, Edinet and Cimislia experience, and also went through all the stages of the elaboration of an urban revitalisation program, as well as the stages of the urban revitalisation projects implementation. The discussions and the presentations raised a lot of questions, suggestions and debates, that led to the same conclusion – the creation of a beautiful city, with great living conditions and leisure places, attractive for entrepreneurs and tourists, so that the economic side of the urban areas flourishes, is a challenging, yet very important process, and community involvement is mandatory for every working stage.

The event was organised by the Kharkiv School of Architecture, Ukraine, in collaboration with the IZOLYATSIA. Platform for Cultural Initiatives and Solidarity Fund PL in Moldova, with the support of the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, Poland, and Ukrainian Cultural Foundation.