About the Foundation

The Stefan Batory Foundation is an independent, non-profit organization of a public benefit status registered by the District Court of Warsaw (Praga) on May 7th 1988. George Soros, an American financier and philanthropist, is the organization’s Founder and chief donor. The Stefan Batory Foundation’s mission is to build an open, democratic society – a society of people aware of their rights and responsibilities, who take an active role in public life and are responsible for themselves and for their community.

The Foundation’s activity focuses on three priority areas:

support to civic initiatives in Poland
Civic involvement is an indispensable ingredient of every democratic process. The Foundation has provided support to a number of various types of community involvement initiatives that facilitate local problem solving. We help independent non-governmental organisations which take up projects in areas where the role or the capacity of the state are limited. We are the only grant-maker in Poland to support not only individual projects but also long term programmes and institutional strengthening: strategic planning, management enhancement, financial sustainability. We support community initiatives which increase public participation and create equal opportunities for the most vulnerable or disadvantaged social groups.
access to justice and social scrutiny
We are convinced that democracy cannot function well without the knowledge of and respect for law among all citizens and without social scrutiny of the government. Therefore, we support measures that are designed to provide all citizens with access to information and justice. We assist legal and civil education programmes. We disseminate legal expertise and methods of exercising scrutiny over public confidence institutions. We advocate systems to control corruption and protect inviduals rights against government abuse.
international assistance and co-operation
Poland’s democracy is young. We still remember its tough beginnings – therefore we help our neighbours in the East to advance democracy, particularly in Belarus and Ukraine. We facilitate experience sharing in the areas of political and social transition. We implement projects aimed at building strong neighbourly relations with the East and the West. We contribute to the dialogue on the future of common Europe and advocate a greater role of community initiative in international relations and in the advancement of democratic principles and respect for human rights.

The basic method of our operation involves making grants to the non-governmental organisations. Throughout 2004, we provided 363 grants to institutions and organizations, 49 travel grants to cover costs of 231 participants attending events and projects abroad, as well as 11 awards; overall expenditure to that purpose totalled PLN 14,5 million (EUR 3,35 million).

Alone or in partnership with other organisations, we also initiate and implement projects that are important for the social and political development of Poland. We host public debates on political, social and international relations issues, produce publications, conduct research and social campaigns, organise conferences, seminars and training workshops; overall expenditure to that purpose totalled in 2004 PLN 4 million (EUR 925,000).

In 2004 apart from the 11 programs operated by the Foundation, we funded also 10 spun-off programs carried out by our partner organizations. These included:

ProBonus Fund – a program to support organisations involved in assistance to the third sector, co-funded by the Ford and C.S. Mott Foundations and managed by the Civil Society Development Foundation (funds allocated for the years 2004-2006)
Polish NGO Office in Brussels – a program supporting Polish organisations in their preparation for active participation in the European integration process, managed by Forum of Non-Governmental Initiatives Association (funds allocated for the years 2004-2005)
Fund for Women – a program of grant support for women’s initiatives, co-funded by the Ford Foundation, and handed over to the OSKa National Women's Information Center www.oska.org.pl (funds allocated for the years 2003-2006)
Local Culture – a program to support culture in rural areas and small towns, co-funded and managed by the Rural Development Foundation (funds allocated for the years 2003-2004)
Local History – a history competition for secondary school students managed by the Karta Centre Foundation (funds allocated for the years 2003-2006)
Journals Showcase – a cultural magazine support program, handed over to the Open Source Culture Foundation (funds allocated for the years 2003-2005)
Art for Social Change – a program promoting artistic activity as a way of helping young people to overcome social and cultural disorientation, co-funded by the European Cultural Foundation and the Evens Foundation, managed by the Theatre in Education Association Wybrzeżak (funds allocated for the years 2003-2004)
Big Brother, Big Sister – a support program for neglected children, handed over to the Big Brother, Big Sister Foundation - Poland (funds allocated for the years 2003-2005)
First Step – a program that helps Roma children to undertake early education, managed by Educational Society of Małopolska funds allocated for the years 2003-2005)
Eastern Scholarships – a scholarship program for Central and East European scientists, co-funded by the Foundation for Polish Science, and managed by the Józef Mianowski Fund - the Foundation for the Promotion of Science (funds allocated for the years 2003-2004)

In our activity we observe principles of transparency, openness and accountability. The applications for grants are assessed with the help of special expert committees which review and recommend applications for funding. Final decisions of grant awards are made by the Foundation’s Board. We announce up-to-date information about our activities and grant-seeking possibilities on our Website www.batory.org.pl. Our finances are professionally audited and publicized in the Annual Report together with the list of grants awarded and projects implemented during the year.