• About the Foundation
• Foundation in 2006
• Our Donors
• The Foundation Council, Board, Program Committees and Staff
• The Batory Foundation Debates
• Civil Society Program
• Third Sector Program
• Equal Opportunities Program
• Program for Tolerance
• Legal Education Program
• Anti-Corruption Program
• International Cooperation Program
• Citizens in Action Program
• Community Initiatives Partnership Program
• East-East Program
• Regional Alcohol and Drug Program
• Grants
• Financial Report 2006

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Annual Report 2006

About the Foundation

The Stefan Batory Foundation, established by George Soros, an American financier and philanthropist, and a group of Polish opposition leaders of 1980's, is an independent, non-profit organization of a public benefit status registered by the District Court of Warsaw (Praga) on May 7, 1988. The mission of the Batory Foundation 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.

Areas of activity

• support to civic initiatives

  We help independent non-governmental organizations which take up projects in areas where the role or the capacity of the state are limited, we make grants not only for individual projects but also for long term programs, capacity building 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 support activities designed to provide all citizens with access to information and justice, we assist legal and civic education programs, disseminate legal expertise and methods of exercising scrutiny over public institutions, we advocate systems to control corruption and protect individuals rights against government abuse.

• international assistance and co-operation

  We assist our neighbors in the East in the democratization process, facilitate experience sharing in the areas of political and social transformation, we implement projects aimed at building strong neighborly relations with the East and the West, contribute to the dialogue on the future of common Europe and advocate a greater role of civic initiatives in international relations and in the advancement of democratic principles and respect for human rights.

Our methods

The basic method of our operation involves making grants for projects and institutional support to the non-governmental organizations. We also initiate and carry out - alone or in partnership with other organizations – various undertakings: we host public debates on political, social and international problems, produce publications, conduct research and social campaigns, organize conferences, seminars and training workshops.

In our activity we observe principles of transparency, openness and accountability. Up-to-date information on our activities and grant-seeking opportunities is posted on our website www.batory.org.pl and on NGO portals. The decisions on grants distribution are made by the Foundation’s Board with the help of committees of experts who assess grant applications and recommend projects for funding. Our finances are audited by external experts and the financial statements are published in the Annual Report together with the list of grants awarded and projects implemented during the year.

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