Alexandrina Dinga – fellow from Romania

Alexandrina Dinga is, at the present, project manager of “For the Better” Association, a non-governmental organization founded in 2009 to go a long way towards sustainable development of the local community, whose projects, through a holistic approach – environment, economy and social – encourage the consumption of seasonal and local products, develop practices of reduce and reuse, support disadvantaged groups, promoting a social and environmental responsible behavior.

The project which she coordinates in the ”For the Better” Association is ”Water without plastic” (with the support of  EEA Grants). The purpose of this project is to inform and sensitize the people on the importance of reducing the consumption of bottled water in PETs. Furthermore, between Sept 2013 – Sept 2014, in the ”Educational and participatory tools for sustainable development” project, started in June 2013 with financial support of the Swiss grant, Ms. Alexandrina coordinated the action ”Neighborhoods  for people”, where she organized consultative and informative meetings with citizens of 5 neighborhoods of Iași. The problems identified in these meetings with citizens, their lack of community involvement, a bad city management issues and an abusive decision of the Mayor to cut all the trees in the center of the city (without a public consultation), encouraged Alexandrina and other friends of her to start a new organization willing to act in the area of ​​active citizenship and good governance.

Currently, Alexandrina is the president of a newborn association – CIVICA Association – where she is doing voluntary work with her colleagues to build the association, to attract resources for developing a program of community organizing. She wants to dedicate her next years to develop CIVICA Association, enjoying an active community and a better managed city.

Alexandrina is also one of the co-founders of the Iaşi Community Foundation, founded in 2012, where she currently has an advisory role (after two years of being involved in its board) and as an activist she coordinates a group of civic initiative “Iaşi loves linden trees” to determine the mayor to replant the trees that were cut in the center of Iaşi.

Ms. Dinga had also worked in the private sector for almost 3 years, but NGOs drew her more, because she feels like there is more freedom and she can actually develop the projects that she believes in.

Alexandrina is licensed in Ecology and Environmental Protection, she has a Masters in Biodiversity and Ecosystem productivity and one in Communication, Creativity and Social Skills in Organizations. She is an accredited trainer and project manager with approximately 6 years experience in the non-governmental environment (3 years as a volunteer and 3 as an employee), project management, communication, strategy application, implementation of informational and awareness campaigns.

Alexandrina is a native Romanian speaker and B1 level English (speaking, understanding, writing and reading).

This is going to be her first visit to the US. With the help of this fellowship, she aims to identify best methods for mobilizing and involving citizens in solving community problems, by identifying the needed resources for them, to learn more about the community organizing, but also methods of public participation, advocacy campaigns, fundraising.

A short term target is to use this knowledge to assist the citizens from two marginal neighborhoods of Iaşi (Dacia and Frumoasa) to organize and solve local problems and a medium term target is to develop a program of community organizing in Iasi, at the CIVICA Association.

She is interested in learning more about community organizing, the development of advocacy, fundraising and community mobilization tactics.

Alexandrina’s pre-departure field work activity will take place in Dacia and Frumoasa neighborhoods and the target group consists of their citizens in general. She had already held one consultative meeting with the citizens from the two neighborhoods (15) and several informative meetings. She wants support/assist the formation of two civic initiative groups in these districts, their citizens being able to be involved in solving the problems they face.

Her hobbies are reading, traveling, sometimes hiking on the mountain and tea stories with her friends. Alexandrina will have her internship at Go Bronzville (Chicago)