A mosaic of regional change
The Ústí nad Labem Region is associated with a number of structural problems and faces many long-term challenges. At the same time, however, it is also a place where inspiring initiatives and stories of people who are changing the region for the better are emerging. It is precisely these “agents of change” that are presented in the project Mosaic of Agents of Change in the Ústí Region, which is being implemented by the Faculty of Social and Economic Studies at the University of Jan Evangelista Purkyně (UJEP) and our Faculty of Science at UJEP.
The Mosaic of Change in the Region maps the stories of these agents and, through a new website, presents the economic, social, and environmental initiatives that are changing our region for the better.
Ing. Natálie Čermáková, a doctoral student at the Faculty of Social and Economic Studies at UJEP, is playing a key role in the creation of the Mosaic, in collaboration with Mgr. Jan Píša, Ph.D., from the Department of Geography at the Faculty of Science at UJEP. The expert guarantor of the project is doc. Ing. Lenka Slavíková, Ph.D. from the Faculty of Social and Economic Studies at UJEP.
“We know that there are many people in the Ústí nad Labem Region who are doing great things to change our region for the better. These people often do not know each other, so we want to give them a space to share their experiences, because we believe that they all face similar problems, but not all of them are able to overcome them. At the same time, we want to symbolically recognize their work with the mosaic so that they know that at least we academics are aware of them and consider their initiatives to be very important for the development of our region,” explains Dr. Píša.
The project also includes a catalog of change makers, available in the form of clear tiles and an interactive map, which allows you to discover inspiring initiatives across the entire Ústí nad Labem Region. Mozaika remains an open project and will continue to be supplemented with more stories of positive change. If you notice other initiatives and actors contributing to positive change in your area that should be included in Mozaika, let the authors know via the form or contacts on the Mozaika website.
On March 25, 2026, a meeting of change agents will take place at J. E. Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem. The event will offer a unique opportunity to meet inspiring personalities who are involved in positive change in the Ústí nad Labem Region, share experiences, and establish new collaborations. The program will also include a symbolic award for the most interesting stories of change.