On May 19, 2026, the event HUMAN FORUM region – Stronger civil society across Slovakia was held in Zvolen at the Ľudovít Štúr Regional Library. It consisted of several discussion formats, the purpose of which was to identify development potentials for civil activism in the city and district of Zvolen. 

The event was co-organized by the Institute for Democracy at the Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica, the International Discussion Forum on Democracy and Human Rights HUMAN FORUM Banská Bystrica and the Center for Community Organizing Banská Bystrica. Representatives of local civic initiatives and non-governmental organizations from Zvolen participated in the event. The debate with civil society representatives was led by Csilla Droppová (HUMAN FORUM) and Zuzana Janíčková (Institute for Democracy at Matej Bel University). 

The debate on the state of the civil sector in Zvolen was attended by IVO president Grigorij Mesežnikov, who after the end of this part of the event took part in a public discussion with the citizens of Zvolen in the evening about the state of democracy, the rule of law and civil society in Slovakia. Together with him, the panel discussion was attended by Zuzana Janíčková and Jaroslav Stehlík, a member of the Zvolen City Council. Discussion was moderated by Csilla Droppová.