Ukrainian municipalities learn to measure the impact of climate and energy communication

Energy managers and communication officers from Ukrainian municipalities learned how to measure whether residents understand and act on their messages about energy and climate. The Covenant of Mayors – East (CoM East) initiative held its annual communication training in Lviv on 27-28 August 2026 for municipalities that have signed the Covenant of Mayors.

Municipalities that sign the Covenant pledge to cut CO2 emissions and adapt to climate change. In Ukraine, they represent 23.4 million people, or 61.6 per cent of the population. Oksana Kysil, CoM East National Expert for Ukraine, said communicators had to explain what local plans change for people.

“Behind words like ‘decarbonisation’, ‘energy efficiency’, ‘climate adaptation’ or ‘energy poverty’ are everyday questions: heat in homes, affordable energy, safe water supply and green spaces,” Oksana Kysil said. “Strategic documents and energy plans must turn into decisions and actions that people understand.”

Diana Ishchenko, creative director at Internews, showed how to measure that understanding. She asked participants to start each campaign with its goal: what should change, for whom, and how to check it. She said reach, views, likes and comments did not always show real impact. Participants looked at the indicators for each stage, from reach and attention to behaviour and wider social change.

Oksana Polishchuk, head of communications at Vinnytsiaoblvodokanal, the regional water utility, showed how humour helped the company in a difficult situation. Instead of a formal explanation, her team told a story about a tadpole named Edik. People picked up the story on social media and continued the plot themselves.

Before the training, the CoM East team reviewed presentations by municipalities and found that many could improve their slide design. On the second day, presentation designer Viktoriia Serhiienko showed how to cut text on slides. Participants also discussed where artificial intelligence can help, from finding ideas to structuring slides.