Environmental protests, environmental impact assessments and political lobbying are significantly more important for NGOs in Albania, Bulgaria, Latvia and Macedonia, while environmental protesting was found to be less important in the Czech Republic and Hungary. Education and training are considered less important strategies in Bulgaria and Hungary. Collecting and distributing environmental information is a more important activity in Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Latvia, Macedonia and Poland than it is in Hungary and Slovenia.
Closer analysis reveals that in certain countries, a significant deviance from the CEE average does exist. NGOs in Croatia and Hungary labeled their performance as fully successful more often, and NGOs in Bulgaria stated they are partially successful more often than in any other country. NGOs in the Czech Republic and Estonia are represented most often in the intermediately successful category, and Latvia is over-represented in the group of fully unsuccessful NGOs.
The general characteristics of successful organizations are significantly different than the characteristics of unsuccessful ones. Successful organizations are typically larger, having more than 500 active members, while partially successful NGOs tend to have between 51 and 500 members. Unsuccessful NGOs typically have less than 10 members. There is also a correlation between the age of the organization and its level of success. NGOs registered between 1946 and 1969 perceive themselves as more successful than the average NGO, lending credence to the theory that maintaining the organization over time is an indirect indicator of success. NGOs that developed between 1970 and 1989 characteristically perceived their performance as intermediate. Unsuccessful NGOs typically do not have a permanent head office or any paid staff, and their access to technical equipment (such as personal computers, e-mail accounts and fax machines) tends to be very limited. There is also a significant correlation between the location of NGOs and their self-defined level of success: totally successful NGOs tend to be located in capital cities, while their unsuccessful counterparts are often located in smaller towns. It seems obvious that registered NGOs that operate on the national and international levels are often in better financial shape and more often define themselves as successful.
A comparison of the main activities of CEE NGOs to their level of success indicates which fields are more (or less) favorable to their organizational efficacy. Six areas deviated from the CEE average. NGOs indicating that protest actions are an important part of their work characterized themselves as unsuccessful less often. On the other hand, NGOs that view environmental research and technology design as important strategies more often indicated that they are fully successful. NGOs ranking education and training as important are characteristically more successful. Collecting and disseminating information is an activity characteristic of NGOs in the successful category, and networking is most often associated with fully successful NGOs.
There is also a correlation between success and cooperation. NGOs that stated they cooperate closely or at least occasionally with government agencies are represented more often in the category of successful NGOs. Unsuccessful NGOs have confrontational relationships with governments more often.
