What we do
Our aim is to
- connect those who want to give their financial resources with those who need help,
- develop and enlarge both intellectual and physical space for people working actively for public benefit.
We advise donors – companies or individuals who want to give their financial means, time, energy or abilities to help people in need, the best way of giving. We provide them information on the field they want to support and suggest the most effective way of help. If an interesting project is on your mind we offer you the possibility to join the grant programs we run in co-operation with our partners. Information on current grant calls can be found in part NEWS.
Besides financial support to non-governmental organizations and activists or municipalities we also offer to the above mentioned as well as to public and business sectors, professionals, students and politicians interesting information, views and topics for thinking about questions of civil involvement and philanthropy.
By means of GRANT PROGRAMS of our partners we focus on development of the following areas:
I. Development and support of education
- Change of teaching methods at elementary schools – program supports active elementary school teachers showing initiative and willing to change their approach to pupils in the teaching process, teachers who want to apply interesting, creative, and innovative teaching methods.
- Development of skills of secondary school students – program supports secondary school students in creating their own projects focusing on various topics by means of which they develop their soft skills. The program focuses on topics related to environment protection, volunteering, support of school media or implementation of student ideas in the teaching process.
- Supporting the education of university students – program helps students overcome the limits imposed by their school and education system and participate independently in shaping of their education and specializing in their field. We offer a chance to get a grant for realization of their own research or other practical projects enabling them to deepen their knowledge and increase their readiness for practice.
- Scholarship program for university students – program supports internships and study stays of university students abroad. Within the program we have launched the activities of the Hlavička club the members of which participated in weekend outdoor training or project management course and they also had a chance to get a grant for their university.
- Supporting faculties focusing on economy and management – program helps increase the quality of teaching of a concrete subject, topic or field of education.
- Supporting postgraduate students of economy – program offers scholarship for internal doctorands of Slovak faculties focusing on economy and management.
II. Development and protection of cultural values and free time activities
- Supporting free time activities based on the “young to the young” principle – supporting cultural events, sporting events, informal education of young people and volunteering activities for the benefit of the community.
- Supporting national cultural heritage – renovation of national cultural monuments all over Slovakia.
- Supporting building of multi-purpose playgrounds – building of playgrounds complying with EU standards all over Slovakia.
III. Supporting disadvantaged groups
- Scholarships for disadvantaged secondary school and university students with physical disability – program supports students with physical disability to enable them to study at a secondary school or university of their choice. Scholarship helps them remove barriers they encounter every day.
- Free time activity program for the disabled – program creates various possibilities for the disabled for spending their free time.
- Program aimed at increasing the quality of life of the socially disadvantaged – program supports model, innovative and progressive approaches aiming at increasing the quality of life of the disabled, victims of domestic violence or other groups of the socially disadvantaged.
- Bringing majority and minorities together and bringing individual minorities together – program supports self helping activities.
- Improving the position of women in society – program supports organizations and individuals focusing on solving the problems of women and changing their position within society.
IV. Development and support to regions
- Development of regions – program supports active citizens coming up with projects aiming at increasing the quality of life of people living in the regions of Slovakia.
- Grant program Tu sa nám páči tu chceme žiť (We like it here, we want to live here) – the basis of the program is the idea that people who care and who want to change the world they live in have a chance to get involved and get financial support for changing their neighborhood. The program counts on the involvement of people who live or work in the given neighborhood, on their willingness to help to change public areas, on their voluntary work, material support, ideas, suggestions.... We believe that people can change things if they really want to change them.
- Activities for the community, community philanthropy – program supports people who are active in their communities and who participate in the development of community giving.
V. Charity and philanthropy related activities
- We help people who find themselves in difficult situations via individuals whose eyes and hearts are open to those in need and who are willing to help where necessary. We help lonely elderly people, ill and disabled individuals, children in hospitals, children in children’s homes, families with financial problems, people who lost their dear ones or the homeless.
- Employee grant programs – these programs are aimed for employees of our corporate partners. They focus on supporting employees active in their communities who besides their work devote their lives also to volunteering and activities for the benefit of the community.
- Supporting public money collections – support is based on the matching principle, i.e. we help finance a project by contributing the same amount of money as collected via public collection.
- Helping people in need – program for the financially and socially disadvantaged.
- Helping people struggling with the consequences of natural disasters.
VI. Environment protection
- Supporting education in environment management for local self-governments and environment protection activists
We also try to attract young people. Since 2006 we award the Prize for the Best Diploma Paper or Yearly Paper on Philanthropy – by means of this prize we want to make also young people familiar with the term “philanthropy” and encourage them to think about giving and its contribution to the lives of individuals as well as to the society. The competition is aimed for university students who are interested in philanthropy and who decided to examine this value in more detail on either theoretical or practical level. Selection of papers from the first year of the competition was published in the Collection.
In 2008 we participated in the “Effective Private Giving” project the aim of which was to support the dialog between private donors and non-profit organizations thus contributing to better understanding of what is called effective giving. Final studies point out good practice and experience in this area and identify new approaches to mobilizing domestic private sources for civil societyin countries taking part in the project – Bohemia, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria. Within our research we try to fill in the mosaic of information on philanthropy and civil society that are still missing in Slovakia.
We process selected materials and data on organized philanthropy in Slovakia. For example, since 2004 we prepare an overview of TOP 50 foundations in Slovakia in collaboration with the TREND weekly. Our website offers an Overview of corporate foundations which is an overview of all foundations founded by business entities.
In 2004 we reacted to the needs and questions of non-governmental organizations and we asked Attorney office DEDÁK & Partner for elaboration of a legal analysis of the Income Tax Act No. 595/2003 Coll. which answers the questions regarding the use of a share from paid tax for specific purposes.
In 2006 we prepared a project called “Mobilization of domestic sources for civil society” and we took part in the 2% from Tax Campaign – “People to People”. The aim of our involvement in the 2% campaign was to react to the draft act submitted in the National Council of the Slovak Republic which considerably limited the possibilities of legal and natural persons to give 2% from tax to charity. The aim of the campaign was to preserve the original mechanism and start a nationwide discussion on supporting charity work in Slovakia. Similarly, in 2007 and 2008 we participated in discussions regarding draft “spolkového act”.
In relation to community foundations the mission of the Centre for Philanthropy has changed after foundation of the Community Foundation Association which creates quality standards and mechanisms for compliance with these standards. CpF sees its role in further search for and mediation of financial resources for institutional development of community foundations. We also participate in the exchange of experience between Slovakia and other countries. In 2003 and 2004 we shared our experience with activists from Croatia.
In 2006 we organized a study trip for people from Macedonia to Slovakia in cooperation with the World Learning organization from Skopje and Macedonia. The purpose of the trip was to share our experience with them.In 2007 we shared our experience with people from Romania and Macedonia. CpF is a member of the Community Philanthropy Initiative in Brussels which associates organizations supporting community foundations in Europe. CpF is a member of the global network WINGS-CF which associates organizations supporting community foundations all over the world. Boris Strečanský is a member of Advisory Council of WINGS-CF for Central and Eastern Europe and Russia.
last update 21.6.2011