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Annual Report 2006
Foundation in 2006In 2006, just like in previous years, we focused primarily on strengthening the role and activity of non-governmental organizations which we treat as an important element of a strong and vibrant civil society indispensable for the proper functioning of democracy. We put particular emphasis on developing the potential and increasing the efficiency of the organizations, especially those that represent public interests and propose systemic changes. Much in this respect was achieved thanks to the Third Sector Program, financed by the Trust for Civil Society in Central and Eastern Europe, we ran in 2002-2006. In the framework of this program we have been supporting activities aimed at creating friendly conditions for the growth of the non-profit sector, development of cooperation of organizations with the public and private sectors, and laying down fundaments for financial stability of the civic society institutions. The program enabled the introduction of regular research of civil society and established mechanisms of monitoring legal regulations affecting nonprofit sector. It contributed to the promotion of good practices in the field of cooperation between local governments and non-governmental organizations and facilitated creation of 15 regional and sectoral representations of the third sector that take action for the benefit of member organizations and their clients. It also enabled the development of two models of financing local initiatives: community foundations and local partnership groups (coalitions of business, public and community institutions). Over the period of three years, the network of 20 community foundations and 17 partnership groups raised nearly PLN 42 million for local activities. Thanks to the grants for institutional support and establishment of capital endowments offered as a part of the program 18 institutions of key importance for the non-profit sector in Poland embarked on the way to financial sustainability. The special concern of the Foundation in 2006 was the further withdrawal of citizens from public life, the popular distrust in the democratic institutions reflected in the lowest ever turnout in Polish parliamentary and presidential elections in fall 2005 and the widespread conviction that an ordinary citizen cannot influence the decisions of the ruling elites. We tried to address these issues in several of our projects designed to increase civic participation in public life, involve civic society actors in shaping the governmental policies and make the authorities accountable before the citizens. This was the goal of our local election campaign Your vote, your choice, through which, together with 339 organizations from 224 townships, we tried to engage voters in the issues affecting their communities and encourage them to make an informed choice of their representatives to local government positions. The same goal was served by the projects that monitored election promises and the local election campaign finances and by the grants we offered watchdog organizations to implement projects of monitoring and disseminating information on the planning, spending and accounting for public money. In another monitoring project launched in connection with local government elections, we tested independence and impartiality of public television's newscasts to make sure the materials do not favor any of the candidates. After the completion of the term of six judges of the Constitutional Tribunal, we launched a project of public scrutiny of candidates for judges to the Constitutional Tribunal, together with the Polish section of the International Commission of Jurists and the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights. We continued the support for organizations that engage in activities aimed to increase citizens access to law and justice, both in terms of the provision of free-of-charge services for citizens (grants to Citizens' Advice Bureaus) and educational efforts targeting secondary schools students (Youth Civic Rights Academy). Another problem that we addressed last year, of particular importance on the eve of the expected influx of immigrants of many races and religions after Poland joined the EU, concerned prevention of intolerance and resentment towards immigrants. As part of the newly created three-year Program for Tolerance financed by the Ford Foundation, we offered grants to civic organizations and local communities for initiatives that shaped the attitudes of openness toward racial, ethnic and religious differences and sought to challenge prejudices and stereotypes. Thanks to the generosity of individual donors, including 1680 individuals who donated us 1% of their income tax for 2005, as well as commercial donors from Poland and abroad, we continued to help local organizations that run scholarship programs for children and youth from small towns and rural areas and implement integration projects for handicapped children. Additionally, in 2006, these organizations were offered grants for institutional development and capacity building. In the area of international cooperation we engaged in initiatives aimed at strengthening pro-democratic tendencies in the countries of our eastern neighbors and on advocating for a common EU policy toward those countries based on the concept of a friendly border and good neighborhood. Such were the aims of the projects of experience sharing with Ukrainian centers of European information and representatives of Ukrainian public administration, a series of conferences, discussions and meetings in several capitals of Europe during which we presented recommendations and propositions for a common EU policy toward Belarus. We supported Belarusian and Ukrainian organizations that run small-grant competitions for grass-root initiatives, organize information and legal counseling for citizens, engage in protection and execution of individual rights, provide civic education of young people, set up local civic activity centers, undertake efforts to secure access to information, increase transparency of the government administration, contribute to the growth of philanthropy. We also continued the initiatives aimed at liberalization of the European Union visa policy toward citizens of Eastern Europe. We organized monitoring the European visa policies of selected EU countries and advocated for the changes of EU members' procedures and visa practices at conferences, meetings and seminars devoted to the presentations of the monitoring's results. Our efforts to strengthen democracy and the growth of civil society were supplemented by organization of recruitment of independent observers and the monitoring of elections in Belarus, Ukraine and Tajikistan. As part of the effort to support trans-border cooperation, we made grants to Polish organizations that implement cooperation projects with partners from Eastern European countries and organizations that carry out trilateral projects with Germany, Ukraine, Belarus and the Kaliningrad District in Russia. Concerned with the state of official relations between Poland and Russia and a significant drop in informal contacts and cooperation between the societies of both countries, we decided to initiate projects that might contribute to the enlivenment of interest in Russia in wider circles of Polish society helping to revert the threat of the return of previous-era bias and prejudice. To achieve this goal, we organized two international conferences: on modern Russia, with the participation of outstanding Russian and Western experts on Russian affairs, and on Russian-Ukrainian relations and their influence on the policy of Ukraine toward the EU, with the participation of politicians and experts from Russia, Poland and Ukraine. We organized also study visit for Russian non-governmental organizations interested in developing cooperation with Polish partners. In 2006, as part of our grant-making activity, we made 325 grants for institutions and organizations, 42 individual and group travel grants for 154 people participating in projects abroad, and gave 6 awards — all totaling PLN 12,1 million. We spent PLN 3,7 million on our operational programs: for projects implemented by us alone or in cooperation with our partners. Moreover, in 2006, the following long-term projects were carried out by other organizations from grants we had made in the previous years:
The summary of our activities together with the full list of grants made in 2006 is included in the further sections of this publication. Copyright © Fundacja Batorego
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