"Renaissance" International Foundation

International Renaissance Foundation (IRF) is the national entity that has been working since 1990. IRF is also a part of the Open Society Institute network, founded by George Soros. It is the member of both European Foundation Center and Ukrainian Philanthropists Forum.

The mission of the Foundation is to provide financial and efficient assistance to the development of the open, democratic society in Ukraine by supporting key civil initiatives in this area.

Every year the International Renaissance Foundation allocated from 6 to 10 million US dollars to projects promoting European integration, strengthening the impact of the civil society and its control over the government, advocacy system and securing the principle of the rule of law in Ukraine, implementation of the judicial and penitentiary reforms, fostering the freedom of speech and information, promoting the civil activism of ethnic minorities and tolerance in the ethnic relations, educational and public health reforms, publication of the translation of important academic works. The special Anti-Crisis Humanitarian Program, launched in 2009, supports various social strata and socio—cultural institutions hit by financial economic crisis. IRF traditionally supported public initiatives during election: those included a national exit poll, monitoring and independent coverage of the election campaign in mass media.

Throughout the period of its activity, the Foundation has offered grants to various Ukrainian non-governmental organizations, scientific research, analytical centers, educational institutions, publishing houses and other charitable structures totaling over USD 110 million.