Programs
Human rights and discriminationProtecting human rights is a long-term priority of all foundations in the Open Society Foundations network. In the Czech Republic, OSF has been involved in fighting all forms of discrimination and extremism. The foundation supports equal opportunities for men and women and works to improve the standing of immigrants and to protect their rights.
OSF supports initiatives and projects by young people and works to involve them in public life. The foundation provides scholarships for secondary school and university students and promotes the concept of inclusive education in the Czech educational system.
The Otakar Motejl Fund supports civic initiatives to oversee the government and to point out its errors, and those initiatives that involve citizens in a decision-making process and in a partnership with the government create a fairer enviroment in the Czech Republic (so called „watchdog organizations").
Developing and strengthening non-profit non-governmental organizations and informal citizens' activities has been a priority of OSF since its very beginnings and is one objective of all its programs. Currently, OSF also administers funding from the Hyundai Endowment Fund, which contributes to community projects in the Moravia-Silesia Region.
This program's objective is to help people in "crisis situations" – in particular those caused by economic downturns, but also situations resulting from serious social problems. OSF helps groups of people who have found themselves in an unfavorable social situation, provides funding in areas most at risk of budget cuts, and responds to the latest social problems.
East East Beyond Borders Program
The international "East East Beyond Borders Program" encourages cooperation, sharing of experiences, and constructive dialogue among the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, and central Asia. It supports projects that contribute to resolving shared or similar problems in the post-communist countries and that promote positive changes in these countries.
Journalism is of extreme importance for the functioning and growth of a democratic society. For this reason, in 2010 OSF launched the annual Journalism Award, which is presented to excellent journalism work published in the Czech Republic each calendar year.
