After Sofia took the presidency of B40 Balkan Cities Network in the beginning of 2025, Sevdalina Voynova with Sofia Development Association started chairing the Local Democracy and Migration working group on behalf of Sofia Municipality. After a couple of virtual meetings, the city representatives in the working groups came to Sofia for a face-to-face gathering to share experiences and best practices, to work on joint projects to address shared challenges.

Among the good practices shared by Sofia were te grantmaking program of Sofia Municipal Council entitled Europe, which was presented by Ekaterina Yordanova, deputy chairperson of the programme council, and the disaster management department with its training grounds and volunteer unit, presented by its director Krasimir Dimitrov.

Based on Sofia proposal, the B40 member cities decided to establish an annual award for member cities to recognise successful experiences and public policies on citizen participation, community engagement, democratic innovation, public deliberation, and open government. The first edition will be launched in July inviting good practices in 6 categories: Participation of marginalized and vulnerable groups; Urban management and public spaces; Digital citizenship; Civic education; Volunteering and co-creation; Climate adaptation and justice.

The initiative will raise awareness of the value of active citizenship in local democracy and advance access to resources and innovative practices, inspire and raise the profile of B40 cities. It will be a special Sofia legacy for the B40 network.