Welcome on the website of Czech Association of Community Foundations

The Czech Association of Community Foundations (AKN) was established in October 2006. The mission of AKN is to support the development of community foundations and organizations striving to become community foundations, to support their cooperation and communication and to promote and disseminate the model of a community foundation in the Czech Republic.

Czech Association of Community Foundations

Mission

The mission of AKN is to support the development of community foundations and organizations striving to become community foundations, to support their cooperation and communication and to promote and disseminate the model of a community foundation in the Czech Republic.

Current burning priorities

Current burning priorities of the association include:

  • the expansion of geographic coverage of community foundations by identifying groups and/or individuals attracted by the community foundation concept;
  • building awareness about community foundations among prospective donors as well as the general public by publishing promotion materials and by organizing visibility campaigns in national media;
  • the association strives to coordinate action taken by Czech community foundations and by relevant service organization with regard to both national and international funding and other partners.

History of the CF Movement in the Czech Republic

Serious discussion about the community foundation concept began in the Czech Republic in 1996. Its main promoters were the VIA Foundation (in cooperation with Community Foundation Silicon Valley, California), C.S. Mott Foundation, Open Society Fund Prague (George Soros Foundation), and the Regional Fund Foundation, which in 1997 became the first established community foundation (later changed its name to Community Foundation of Euroregion Labe).  

Between 1998 and 2004 there were two multi-year programs in the Czech Republic focused on developing community-based organizations. Established under the auspices of a variety of international funders, these initiatives were quite successful except in their stated secondary goal of fostering the development of community foundations. 

At the end of 2005 a new program was launched to build community foundations in the Czech Republic. This effort was financed by the CEE Trust (Trust for Civil Society in Central and Eastern Europe) and administrated by the VIA Foundation. Four organizations have been participating: the existing community foundation in Ústí nad Labem, two local foundations which are in the process of transforming into community foundations and one civic association designed to establish a community foundation. 

In May 2006 this group created and published a document declaring basic parameters and requirements for a community foundation in the Czech Republic. Later that year, this group established the Czech Association of Community Foundations (AKN), which in October 2006 held its first conference. From this point on AKN began guaranteeing most activities related to the theme of community foundations in the Czech Republic.

Contact:

Spolek AKN - Czech Association of Community Foundations
Konevova 1697/18, Usti nad Labem 40001
Czech Republic

Tomas Krejci, Chair
phone: +420 602 94 27 28
email: tomas @ akncr.cz