“The PAFF Sector 3.0 Award was created to recognize organizations that are able to effectively use the opportunities created by the dynamic development of technology. In an era of rapidly developing artificial intelligence, efficient and safe navigation in the digital world has a significant impact on operational efficiency, which is why we are looking for good models that can serve as practical examples and inspiration, helping to set new, responsible standards in the third sector,” explains Radosław Jasiński, Program Director of Polish-American Freedom Foundation.

Formal conditions

The award is granted to organizations that use ICT tools in their activities to achieve socially useful goals. This year, due to the further development of artificial intelligence and its increasingly widespread use, the following criteria will guide the jury evaluating the applications:

• innovative and practical use of information and communication technologies in the organization’s current activities and the implementation of its statutory objectives, including in particular the ability to use tools for work automation and collaboration, and the application of artificial intelligence (AI) in everyday activities,
• the scale and effects of activities undertaken to promote the use of information and communication technologies (including artificial intelligence) in the third sector,
• experience and achievements in the creation, development, adoption, or research of ICT (including artificial intelligence) in the non-governmental organization environment.

Award Committee

The committee will select the organizations that, in their opinion, make the best use of technology and present them as positive examples on the Polish social organization market. The jury will be composed of: Urszula Krasnodębska-Maciuła (Klon/Jawor Association), Anna Kowalik-Mizgalska (Orange Foundation), Michał Jaworski, Jacek Królikowski (Information Society Development Foundation), and will be chaired by Radosław Jasiński, representing Polish-American Freedom Foundation.

Winners of previous rounds of the Award

For over a decade of the Award’s existence, organizations that have been recognized continue to successfully carry out their mission and actively support their communities, while remaining open to the ever-increasing possibilities of new technologies in their activities. The following organizations are the winners of previous rounds of the competition:

• 2013 Visible Foundation
• 2014 Itaka Foundation
• 2015 Katarynka – adapter.pl Foundation
• 2016 TUS – niepelnosprawnik.pl Foundation
• 2017 We Give the Children Strength Foundation
• 2018 Association of Possible Initiatives Rzeczjasna
• 2019 Watchdog Polska Civic Network
• 2020 Virtual Dream Foundation
• 2021 Demagog Association
• 2022 Homo Faber Association
• 2023 Little Brothers of the Poor Association
• 2024 Center for Citizenship Education Foundation
• 2025 Federation of Polish Food Banks

The winner of last year’s edition of the competition, the Federation of Polish Food Banks, was recognized for its consistent use of available professional IT tools, but also for investing in the creation of its own ICT solutions, fully dedicated to the specific nature of the Federation’s activities.

Apply for the PAFF Sector 3.0 Award – deadline for applications is on April 3, 2026

Applications for this year’s round of the competition, with a description of the technologies and artificial intelligence used in the organization attached, can be submitted via the application form by April 3, 2026.

The competition rules are available on the Sector 3.0 program website.

The winner of the Award will be announced on May 20, 2026 during the Sector 3.0 Festival in Warsaw.