In the twenty-first century, leaders of organizations from the Visegrad countries can meet and cooperate without barriers. The cooperation of our countries is a long and dynamic history of events. The first convention of the Visegrad Group took place in November 1335. In Visegrad, Polish king – Kazimierz the Great, Czech king – John of Bohemia, and Hungarian king - Karol Robert, met to discuss the dynamics of the countries.

656 years later, Visegrad has become famous once again. On 15 February 1991, the presidents of Czechoslovakia and Poland, Vaclav Havel and Lech Walesa, and the prime minister of Hungary, Jozsef Antall, signed the Visegrad Declaration. Our countries sought regional cooperation to help with the integration into western structures, specifically the European Union and NATO. The Visegrad Group created a platform of cooperation which created solutions to Polish, Czech Republican, Slovakian, and Hungarian aspirations to integrate with western Europe. This cooperation has led to a positive understanding of the “Visegrad Group.” It is a term that is used positively by politicians, publicists, and leaders of non-governmental organizations throughout Europe. This can be contributed, in part, to the many interesting initiatives of the Visegrad Countries which build a strong base for civil societies.

Community foundations are one such initiative which contributes to the development of civil society. Community foundations have developed in the last several years throughout Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia. In Hungary, the preliminary stages to establish a community foundation have begun. The establishment of community foundations has been a challenge to Visegrad countries. However, a lack of border control (thanks to the Schengen Agreement) provides an avenue for Visegrad Countries to exchange best practices and cooperation, in a spirit of goodwill, openness and mutual confidence.

It is worthwhile to present a short history of community foundations in the Visegrad Countries. The NGO sector has been rebuilt (almost from scratch) in all countries of Eastern Europe within the last several years. This process would not be possible without outside support. While authorities within Eastern Europe have not easily supported these projects, western NGOs have been huge contributors to the start of community foundations in the Visegrad countries.

With the help of western NGOs, Visegrad leaders of new organizations have had the opportunity to exchange information and observe a civil society in which public and private sector develop parallel. The very idea of community foundations – as financially independent and self-supporting organizations – was especially exciting to the Visegrad countries.

The Academy for the Development of Philanthropy took on the role of an institution that coordinates the development of community foundations in Poland. Community foundations came into existence in Poland in 1999. Establishing of endowment was supported within the framework of program called “Penny to Penny.” This program created a system in which the Academy matched zloty for zloty as money was collected from various institutions. The Polish community foundations do not have concrete areas of activity; instead, their mission is to serve local communities, and changening local needs determine their scope of operation.

Now there are twenty community foundations in Poland. This strong presence resulted in 2008 with the establishment of the Federation of Community Foundations. In addition to community foundations, the Academy created a network in 2004 called the Local Grant Organization. Similar to community foundations (as community foundations remain the core of these organizations), the LGO network has 50 members who meet regularly. This exchange has resulted in the intention of 13 Local Grant Organizations to develop and become community foundations.

In Slovakia, the first community foundation was set up in Banska Bystrzyca. This community foundation was supported mainly by foreign institutions that provided financial aid, know-how, and expert advice. The activities of the community foundation have become extremely popular in Slovakia. Today, there are 10 community foundations in Slovakia that more-or-less unite in common causes.

The first Czech community foundation was founded in Usti nad Labem. The organization, which initially acted in the social favor area, transformed to a Community Foundation of Euroregion Labe. At the moment, this community foundation helps communities of the whole region (Euroregion Labe) and answers to local needs.

Hungary has worked to establish a community foundation several times, however, without full success. While there are organizations similar to community foundations (e.g. United Way), Hungary has not yet created an organization that parallels the western foundations. Difficulty remains in several various factors. For example, Hungary lacks an organization which helps develop community foundations. Despite obstacles, however, Hungarian experts contend that community foundations can come into existence, it is just a matter of time.

Therefore, the V4 Community Foundation Maturity Program is aimed at supporting all of the mentioned organizations.

Paweł Łukasiak,

President of the Board

Academy for the Development of Philanthropy in Poland