Central/Eastern Europe and Russia

Goal

To foster societies in Central/Eastern Europe (CEE) and Russia in which people and communities respect each other’s rights and engage effectively in decisionmaking to influence policies and processes that shape their lives at the local, national, and/or international levels.

Objectives

European Union (EU) New Member States: To promote processes that strengthen public participation in the development of communities and societies, and that ensure an adequate and responsive flow of resources to support these activities.

Western Balkans: 1) To promote processes that strengthen public participation in the development of communities and societies, and that ensure an adequate and responsive flow of resources to support these activities; and 2) to promote processes and initiatives to build stable and strong inter-communal relations and reduce the likelihood of violent ethnic conflict.

Western Former Soviet Union: 1) To promote processes that strengthen public participation in the development of communities and societies, and that ensure an adequate and responsive flow of resources to support these activities; and 2) to strengthen institutions and mechanisms that ensure people’s rights are respected, and that laws and policies to protect these rights are promulgated and implemented.

CEE/Russia Regional: 1) To assist nonprofits from both accession and non-accession countries in maximizing the positive and mitigating the negative impacts of EU enlargement; and 2) to build the capacity of CEE/Russia nonprofits through international peer-to-peer learning and information exchange around issues relevant to the overall CEE/Russia program area goal. Funding proriorites for European Union (EU) Accession Countries.

Funding Priorities for European Union (EU) New Member States

We work in four countries that joined the European Union (EU) in 2004 -- the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia -- and also in Bulgaria and Romania, which joined in early 2007.

Given the mixed track records of these governments in involving people in decisionmaking processes, there is an increased demand on nonprofit organizations to enable a broad range of communities and people, especially those who have lost socioeconomic status during the changes, to participate in decisionmaking. Nonprofits need the capacity to respond quickly and professionally with innovative solutions as new challenges and opportunities unfold. They also need to be able to access adequate resources, which will need to come increasingly from within their countries.

Specifically, we support:

Indigenous grantmakers to increase the effectiveness of their work through building their organizational capacity and raising the quantity and quality of financial support provided for citizen activity.
Networking activities of indigenous grantmakers to share best practices as well as to influence the use of in-country financial resources.
Select nonprofit organizations, especially those serving other nonprofits, to improve the quality of their own work and services, and facilitate their constituencies in shaping public policy at all levels.
Initiatives to develop local, regional and national platforms through which people and nonprofits can engage in meaningful dialogue and joint action with other key players and influence public policy.
Initiatives to mobilize human and financial resources in areas where philanthropy is still developing.

In the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, we work primarily with current grantees. In Bulgaria and Romania, we remain open to new initiatives that mobilize human and financial resources for citizen activity. In all six countries, we prioritize support for indigenous organizations.

Click here to view the 10 most recent grants for this program area.

Due to limited resources, we do not respond to proposals coming from other EU new member states or accession countries .

Funding Priorities for Western Balkans

Our primary geographic focus in this region is Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, and Serbia. We also explore programming that addresses cross-cutting issues in this region.

The region is confronted by the challenge of making democracy work for all people. At the same time, it is deeply influenced by its past -- legacies of communism, authoritarian regimes and violent conflict. In this context, we believe that it is critical to strengthen the democracies of the region from the grassroots, to build on the positive developments in recent years, and to support civic leadership locally and nationally. This means helping people to reconnect to their communities and societies and to participate effectively and constructively in decisions and changes affecting their lives. Additionally, we seek to support constructive approaches to dealing with the recent past, particularly focusing on truth-telling, justice and accountability.

Specifically, we support:

Nonprofits that facilitate people’s participation in self-help initiatives and local decisionmaking processes, disseminate good practices, influence local and national public policy development, and develop mechanisms to leverage funding for the benefit of local communities.
Indigenous grantmakers in developing their capacity to strengthen local community development and public participation.
Networks and coalitions of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that share common interests and are working to influence decisionmaking and policy development on important issues by involving people and drawing on local experiences.
Nonprofits and institutions that encourage an inclusive and constructive process of coming to terms with the past in order to strengthen democratic participation and improve interethnic community relations in the future.
Informed dialogue among nonprofits, community groups and policymakers about good practices -- from within the region and abroad -- for confronting and dealing with the past.
Nonprofits and networks that work to improve cross-border and interethnic community cooperation in the region.

We support NGOs that work on the regional, national and/or multi-community levels. We seek to support indigenous organizations, but consider support to non-local organizations that demonstrate the ability to strengthen local capacity in the long term.

Click here to view the 10 most recent grants for this program area.

Due to limited resources, we are not likely to consider new grantmaking in Albania and Macedonia.

Funding Priorities for Western Former Soviet Union

We focus on those former Soviet Union (FSU) countries that will share a border with the enlarged EU -- Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova. As a rule, we do not respond to proposals coming from other FSU countries, but we remain open to cross-cutting initiatives that may have an impact beyond the four countries listed.

While much progress has been made in this region toward establishing pluralistic democracies with market economies, significant challenges remain. Rights violations are still significant and widespread. Citizens are disillusioned with formal political processes, and trust in state and other societal institutions is low. To varying degrees, all four countries are experiencing a tension between European integration and growing constraints on democratic governance.

In order for the four counties to complete the transition to democracy, we believe that it is critical to foster vibrant civil societies, where Russians, Ukrainians, Belarusians and Moldovans are free to associate and independently undertake civic activity; have an interest in, and sense of responsibility to, their community and society; engage in the public sphere for the common good; and value each individual with respect for his/her rights. We also believe that we can contribute most by promoting processes that strengthen public participation in the development of communities and societies; helping to ensure an adequate and responsive flow of resources for these activities; and strengthening institutions and mechanisms that ensure people’s rights are respected.

Specifically, we support:

Select organizations that provide people in local communities with the skills, know-how and self-confidence to organize themselves, assess their needs, establish priorities, design solutions, mobilize resources and address problems.
Efforts to increase local philanthropy through capacity-building efforts for indigenous grantmakers, promotion of individual giving, and the establishment and protection of a legal and fiscal framework that is conducive to the development of philanthropy and the nonprofit sector.
Policy development and advocacy organizations, networks, and coalitions that help people play a more effective role in holding elected representatives and government officials accountable, informing people about their rights, and providing assistance for them to exercise these rights.
Networking and mutual learning opportunities among organizations working in the above areas within a country, between western FSU countries, and more broadly within the CEE/Russia region as appropriate.

Click here to view the 10 most recent grants for this program area.

Due to operational and budgetary constraints, we work primarily with organizations that operate on a national or broad regional level, are well-established with track records of success, and link local level issues with broader policy input. In addition, at present our programming for Moldova focuses only on support for community schools development.

Funding Priorities for CEE/Russia Regional

This grantmaking targets programs that address cross-border and regional issues, as well as those that benefit the entire CEE/Russia region. We are most interested in regional programs that promote networking and information dissemination among groups addressing our core themes of the nonprofit sector and philanthropy; rights, responsibilities and participation; and race and ethnic relations.

We recognize the importance of sharing information and expertise among countries in CEE/Russia on common challenges and issues. This exchange promotes use of best practices and reconnects isolated societies, local communities and people across borders. Since EU enlargement is one of the most important developments currently shaping the CEE/Russia region, we place a special emphasis on supporting initiatives addressing the impact of EU enlargement.

This regional grantmaking builds upon in-country programming detailed above.

Specifically, we support:

Cross-border initiatives that promote learning and sharing among nonprofits. This includes exchange programs, study visits, analysis and dissemination of best practices, and other activities aimed at facilitating quality exchange among NGOs in the region.
Capacity-building opportunities for NGOs to engage more effectively with the EU enlargement process. This includes facilitating information dissemination regarding the EU and the enlargement process to nonprofits in accession and non-accession countries and encouraging the participation of NGOs from these countries in EU structures.

Click here to view the 10 most recent grants for this program area.

In assessing grant applications for regional work, we look for programs that are based upon genuine cooperation and that are designed with the full participation of beneficiaries.