October, 1 Europe annually celebrates the professional holiday of founders, employees, volunteers, and donors of charitable foundations. In 2015, the celebration has taken place for the third time. Traditionally charities draw attention to this day by organizing media and social networks campaigns, and public events.
European Day of Foundations and Donors in Ukraine in 2015 was celebrated both on-line and off-line. We have changed avatars and cover pages in social networks to the logo of the European Day of Foundations and Donors. By words and pictures accompanied with #деньблагодійнихфондів and #October1Europe we have told in Facebook and Twitter stories on philanthropy.
October 1, 2015 the Ukrainian Philanthropists Forum gathered at St.Michael’s Square in Kyiv to celebrate European Day of Foundations and Donors by conducting a festive photo session and spectacular launch of balloons with foundations’ attributes and wishes.
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‘The last two years have given a new impetus to the development of civil activism and volunteerism, and demonstrated great potential of Ukrainian philanthropy sector.
Now non-governmental organizations are moving to a new level. More and more foundations are choosing a professional approach to philanthropy by organizing their business on social entrepreneurship principles, investing resources, seeking innovative and systematic approaches to social changes.
The Ukrainian Philanthropists Forum aimed at supporting the foundations in their quest to develop effective strategies, enter the international level and act systematically. We believe that we can turn charity to a mover of social transformation and foundation of sustainable development of the society’, Yevhen Poltenko, Chairman of the Ukrainian Philanthropists Forum, Executive Director of ‘Open Hearts of Ukraine’ Foundation, says.
On European Day of Foundations and Donors the Ukrainian Philanthropists Forum announced about starting new seasons of traditional projects such as Annual photo contest ‘Charity through the prism of lens’ and National rating of benefactors.
European philanthropy in figures
On the eve of the holiday the Donors and Foundations Networks in Europe (DAFNE), where the Ukrainian Philanthropists Forum has membership, publicized a recent survey on institutional philanthropy.
22 countries
23 national foundation and donor associations
141, 069 public benefit foundations in Europe
7,502 charities Association unites DAFNE
€ 55 billion is combined annual budget of European charitable foundations’ target programs.
Ukrainian philanthropy: figures and chronicles
There are about 12 thousand foundations and donors in Ukraine. Twenty-nine of them are members of the professional association ‘Ukrainian Forum of Philanthropists. They are united by the desire to work on the best international standards of charity such as honesty, partnership, innovative approaches application, global vision share and social trust.
In previous years, the Ukrainian Forum of Philanthropists initiated celebration of European Day of Foundations and Donors by opening an open-air photo exhibition ‘Charity through the prism of lens’ and organizing ‘Kyiv charity’ tour in Kyiv.