Suncokret - Centre for Community Development is a Croatian non-governmental, non-profit organization founded as a response to the psychosocial needs of community in the after war period. Suncokret undertakes community development work in Sisak County. It aims to address negative psychological, social and cultural consequences of the social upheavals in the region, to improve the quality of life for all, but especially for deprived members of the society, to promote community rebuilding, and support development of a sustainable democratic civil society.
Suncokret implements a broad range of programs and initiatives in the local community, a resettlement area, primarily for the youth and children, but also for adults. Suncokret has been grounding its work with individuals, families, groups and communities on the principles of active participation and empowerment, supporting positive initiatives, initiating co-operation, mutual respect and appreciation of differences. Suncokret is committed to the implementation of democracy building, citizen participation and empowerment, community development, voluntarism and altruism, shared responsibility, equal opportunities and involvement for all regardless of gender, religious or national differences.
Gvozd Municipality is an extremely socially deprived municipality with very high unemployment rates. It was destroyed during the war (in physical, cultural and social terms) and is currently subject to the process of return of the population as well as resettling of refugees. Gvozd Municipality is separated and isolated from the wider community due to poor infrastructure. The lack of adequate interaction among individuals or various national/ethnic, religious, cultural and other groups was recognized.  In addition to physical devastations, the community has been disintegrated, resulting in the separation of and tensions among young people. A need for the promotion of concepts of multiculturalism and tolerance was therefore acknowledged. Thus the program called "Social revitalization and reintegration of the Municipality of Gvozd" was implemented. Reintegration and the improvement of life is essential in this area that suffered war and displacement and now faces returning individuals as well as settling of refugees.
Suncokret has worked in Gvozd since 1998, implementing the program "Social Revitalization and Reintegration of Gvozd Municipality", as part of the big national - Center for Grassroots Relief Work. At the end of 2003 and beginning of 2004, that national organization went through an organizational transformation based on the results from the strategic planning process and organizational capacity assessment.

The changes also included transformation of particular projects/programs into independent new local grassroots organizations. This change was primarily based on the fact that "Suncokret"- Centre for Grassroots Relief Work was implementing numerous projects/ programs all over Croatia, and therefore it was extremely hard to find financial resources for all those projects/programs within only one organization. One of the results of this transformation is the formation of the NGO "Suncokret" - Centre for Community Development. This new grassroots NGO was founded in September of 2004 and is based and operates in Gvozd. The president of Suncokret-Centre for Community Development is Mr. Predrag Mraović who was the program manager of the "Social Revitalization and Reintegration of Gvozd Municipality" from 2002-2004. (Other grassroots NGOs that, before part of the national Suncokret, were founded were: Suncokret - OLJIN -  Education for Love and Non-Violence, Zagreb, Feb. 2004. and Suncokret - Pula, May 2004). This organizational transformation will contribute to significantly higher levels of effectiveness in serving the needs and interests of our beneficiaries and of the communities in which we work and hope that the donor community will support our efforts as well.