21/05/2019 – The port city of Rijeka in Croatia becomes the world’s first City of Heroes. Rijeka’s Heroes are guardians of their city and come from a variety of backgrounds, like martial arts and self-defense clubs, rescue divers, emergency responders, medical personnel, security, police, firefighters, open-hearted individuals and more.

Rijeka is the third-largest city in Croatia, after the capital, Zagreb, and Split and is the primary seaport. It is located on Kvarner Bay on the Adriatic Sea in Northern Croatia and has a population of almost 130,000 inhabitants. The concept of Heroes Nearby was born and brought to life in Rijeka.

Co-founder Sinisa Necko says “We are so pleased to bring this project live in Rijeka, my home city, and announce the first city of Heroes. It is the culmination of many months of work by the Heroes Nearby team.”

The Heroes Nearby initiative, just launched, offers cities, towns and communities a community-powered network of help and safety via a smartphone application. The project engages both citizens and officials to provide a safety net in their area for anyone needing help and aims for integration into the smart cities of the future.

The project has been actively endorsed and supported by the Mayor of Rijeka, the city council, provincial government, local firefighters, the University of Rijeka, and Institute of Public Health – Department for Prevention of Violence, and many of the citizens of Rijeka.

 “We believe that this project can effectively help people in distress and also restore faith in the goodness of people and the power of community,” says Necko.  “Our mission is to build a global community of Heroes Nearby and promote universal human values. We are looking to collaborate with local government, public and private emergency response providers, martial arts clubs and any other private or government organizations.”

Heroes Nearby is a global initiative. There are currently pilot projects to recruit heroes in Zagreb, Croatia; Johannesburg, South Africa; Cape Town, South Africa; and Larisa, Greece – Who will be the next City of Heroes?

If you would like further information about the Heroes Nearby App or would like to schedule an interview, please contact us at info@heroes-nearby.net