PUBLIC – The Association for Research, Communications and Development focuses on developing strong, positive societal changes and strong civil society. Public was founded in 2002 as the Center for Media Activities (CMA). In 2012, the organization started publication of the street paper Face to Face , one of the pioneering social enterprises in the country. In January 2015, the organization rebranded into Public – Association for Research, Communications and Development. The organization recognized the need for a bottom up approach in defining and developing public policies in the field of social inclusion.
Our continuous communication with vulnerable people allowed us to identify their real needs. In addition, the organization has a strong partnership with the public, civil and business sector, which give us the possibility of proposing definitions and recommendations for public policies, which are developed in a participatory process and with full involvement of all stakeholders.
Macedonian society was full of challenges and issues that were not appropriately targeted and to which we are actively devoted, such as:
- how to prevent and tackle social exclusion of various groups of people;
- how does social entrepreneurship fit into a profit focused, non-inclusive labour market and what is their role in creating a more efficient and more inclusive labour market?
- how to measure the societal impact of social enterprises, of civil society and of traditional businesses?
- how to encourage social inclusion of categories of people excluded from the labour market?
- how to define homelessness in Macedonia in accordance with the local context and with European standards?
Today, Public has become a respected research organization in Macedonia focusing on public policies, targeting social integration of vulnerable people and the social economy. It offers research based facts in order to impact the policy makers and to inform the public.
The research projects of Public are mostly regional. The organization cooperates with partner organizations from more than 15 countries from the Balkans and from Europe.
The most visible brand of Public is the street paper for sustainable development, Face to face, which became a tool for advocacy and for communication when it comes to raising awareness for important social issues such as inclusion, education, human rights, social innovations, integration, housing. The magazine also publishes information that supports the work of other civil society organizations that function in the fields which lack public awareness.