A «third place» will appear in Ust-Kut - a new space for urban communities

Ust-Kut will become one of the first small towns in the Russian Federation where there will be a modern «third place» (i.e., outside the home and outside of work) - a public creative space for active residents and communities.

The project was initiated by the «Russian Forest» Association and the Irkutsk Oil Company (INK) with the support of the local administration as part of the urban development program, and is operated by the CityBranding team.

Out of 794 small towns in Russia (with a population of up to 50 thousand inhabitants), only a few today have such creative spaces, the appearance of which promises to become a trend in the development of the Russian province in the coming years. The «third place» in Ust-Kut will be aimed primarily at maximizing internal urban projects using the «from bottom upwards» method and at the same time will seek to attract all possible regional and federal resources.

In the process of creating the «third place», local communities, active residents, as well as invited experts will jointly decide what the new space will be like - from its function, name and style to a specific design implementation and implementation of new ideas on its basis. A special feature is the absence of ready-made solutions and restrictions: the project is open for the participation of everyone and is aimed at revealing the internal capabilities of the urban environment, strengthening the initiative and competencies of activists from Ust-Kut of any age.

The opening is scheduled for late summer 2021, but now you can join the project by joining its group on the «VKontakte» social network!

«One of the tasks of the Russian Forest Association is to support and develop social projects. However, in order for the initiatives to truly meet the needs of residents, the request for them must be formed «from below», that is, by the people themselves. For this, it is necessary to develop the activity of citizens, their subjectivity. The goal of the program, initiated by us in partnership with INK, is to give an incentive to the residents of Ust-Kut to take the initiative in the development of their city. The creation of a «third place» and the improvement of the public area is an excellent start for nurturing such initiatives. We are confident that the result will be projects that are interesting and necessary for the city!» - comments Margarita Lee, vice president of the «Russian Forest» Association.