The Civilitas Foundation believes that development and democracy are parallel paths, and one is essential for the other. The Civilitas Democracy and Development Initiative consists of programs, which leverage domestic, international and Diaspora resources to affect meaningful change in Armenia. Civilitas encourages and promotes participatory efforts, maximizes work already underway towards genuine democratization and just and sustainable development. In promoting uniform development, Civilitas concentrates on rural development and environmental awareness and protection. Civilitas believes that libraries are ideally situated to nurture democratic practices. Civilitas continues to focus on transforming libraries and turning them into centers of civil society, with improved facilities, collections and access to the Internet.