The agreement, signed by PAFF President Jerzy Koźmiński and Copernicus Science Center Director Robert Firmhofer, results from several years’ partner cooperation between both institutions aimed at providing young people with access to modern education and equalizing their educational opportunities and, in particular, at developing the idea of the Young Explorer Clubs, which was first launched as part of the PAFF’s “Equal Opportunities” Program. The Parties declared that they would continue their cooperation in that scope.

The purpose of the Young Explorer Clubs is to make children and youth interested in science. At Clubs, they can learn from their own experience by carrying out experiments. The network of more than one hundred Young Explorer Clubs provides numerous opportunities not only for children but also for their teachers. They get access to database of lesson scenarios stimulating curiosity, interests and pupils’ passion for science. Learners, in turn, discuss things, discover the world on the basis of their own experiences, establish contacts with the participants in other clubs and then implement joint scientific projects. As part of the initiative training courses, conferences and competitions are also organized. The kmo.org.pl portal serves as the forum for exchanging experiences.

The Young Explorer Clubs project was launched in 2002 as part of the PAFF’s “Equal Opportunities” Program, which is managed by the Polish Children and Youth Foundation. The project resulted in the emergence of several dozen clubs operating all over Poland. Since 2009 the undertaking has been carried out by the Copernicus Science Center. The mission of the Copernicus Science Center is to support autonomous learning and exploration of the world as well as encouraging social dialogue on science. The Polish-American Freedom Foundation is the Partner of the initiative.

The Young Explorer Clubs’ website: www.kmo.org.pl