If you know a company that supports NGOs or involves in social activities in a unique way, it’s the high time to appreciate it! The enrollment is on from January 2 to January 31, 2025. Let’s demonstrate that kindness and social responsibility are fashionable and everybody can offer help, regardless of the company size.
About the competition
The objective of the competition is to award companies whose activities have positive impact on local communities and which cooperate with NGOs.
The competition for the “Benefactor of the Year” title was established at the time of early democratic transformation of Poland in order to promote prosocial activities of businesses. It is the biggest and lasting for the longest period of time competition of that kind in Poland. Invariably and continuously since 1997 its organizer, Academy for the Development of Philanthropy in Poland, has been awarding socially responsible companies. The funder of the competition is Polish-American Freedom Foundation.
Categories
Categories in which companies can be nominated by NGOs:
1. Culture and Education
Projects submitted in that category shall help to enhance and develop education of children, young people and adults, including securing high quality education, equal opportunities, popularizing new technologies, competences needed in the future, and the idea of life-long learning. In this category, the activities supporting institutions of culture, cultural events and creators can also be put in. However, applications related to projects of a sponsoring nature cannot be submitted to the competition.
2. Local Partnerships
In that category, applications related to company activities in partnership with an NGO for the benefit of local community can be put in.
That cooperation can relate to activities in response to the problems or needs of the local community in various areas, such as public space development and revitalization, supporting the residents’ initiatives or making the space available for social activities. Social projects shall relate to cooperation of a company with an organization or organizations in the rural commune or a municipality of up to 50,000 residents. They can also include activities matching remaining categories. The cooperation between the company and the NGO doesn’t have to be in the form of a formal partnership.
3. Natural Environment and Climate Protection
Applications in that category may relate to: promotion of pro-ecological attitudes and education, activities related to responsible consumption, waste management, clean air and water management, renewable energy sources, protection of endangered species, as well as forests protection and restoration. They can also include activities aimed at sustainable use of natural resources or counteracting the climate change and its effects.
4. Openness to diversity
That category is for projects aimed at building the culture of openness to all social groups and supporting their activities. Diversity may relate to such aspects as gender, age, race, nationality, ethnicity, religion, disabilities, health condition, psychosexual orientation or gender identity, as well as material status.
5. Voluntary and Charity Aid
This category is for projects of activities supporting the poorest, sick and disadvantaged people and the disabled. They can also aim at meeting the essential needs of those people and enabling them to live in decent conditions, as well as improving access to information and public space, architecture, transport and products for people with special needs. They may aim at reduction of poverty, hunger and unemployment, levelling social inequalities and overcoming or preventing difficult life situation, among other issues.
6. Healthy Lifestyle
Projects in this category may include activities aimed at sports and physical activity promotion, in particular: improving one’s health condition, also with regard to mental health, counteracting civilizational diseases, promotion of active lifestyle, developing physical activity, supporting amateur sports. Projects may also relate to activities aimed at preventive healthcare, support in treatment and rehabilitation, promotion of healthy lifestyle, and improving access to health care. However, applications related to projects of sponsoring and financing sports clubs will not be accepted to the competition.
7. Support for Refugees and Ukraine
Projects put in that category shall include activities for refugees and Ukraine such as supporting local communities that take in refugees or facilitating integration and adaptation of people coming from Ukraine such as legal, educational, and psychological assistance, organization of their stay in Poland, coordination of humanitarian aid at the border and sending it into Ukraine, running contact, information and coordination points, buying equipment necessary for those staying in Poland, such as clothes, cleaning products, home accessories, crowdfunding campaigns, etc.
8. Support for the Flood Victims
Projects in that category may include activities supporting broadly conceived aid recipients (individual people, organizations, and businesses) at the area flooded in the autumn 2024. The initiatives may include activities such as legal, educational or psychological assistance, delivering and buying food, equipment, protective clothing, supporting those who most suffered during the flood (seniors, people who lost their jobs or other sources of income, like businesses, etc.), preparing food for those in need, organization of collections, recreation for children, securing accommodation, providing financial support and all other actions aimed at helping the residents of flooded areas overcome their difficult situation.
9. Business and NGOs Good Cooperation
The objective of that category is to collect model examples of good cooperation of businesses and NGOs. We invite organizations that have built strong partnerships with businesses and want to present good practices of their cooperation and nominate the company they cooperate with to the Benefactor of the Year title to send their applications. The key factor in assessment of the submission is the quality of that cooperation and the partnership of the business and the organization. The Competition Committee will award the business that best follows the rules of the Good Cooperation between a Business and an NGO Charter.
The category to which companies may apply directly: Employee Volunteering
To that category, the businesses and their employees may submit good practices and programs of employee volunteering. The employee volunteering may have various forms of organization and actions. It can be an organized program included in the strategy of social engagement and responsibility of the company and joined by employees willing to implement it, or the support system of the company using various tools and implemented by the employees at their own initiative. It can also cover competence volunteering or cooperation with the external partners, e.g. NGOs. The volunteering can be organized by the company, employees or an external entity such as an NGO.
The Organizer, the Founder, the Partner and the Patrons
The “Benefactor of the Year” competition is organized by the Academy for the Development of Philanthropy in Poland, and the Founder of the competition is the Polish-American Freedom Foundation. The procedures are monitored by E&Y.
Partners: Business Centre Club, Donors Forum, Responsible Business Forum, The Lewiatan Confederation, Employers of Poland, UN Global Compact Network Poland.
Media Patrons: “Integracja”, marketingprzykawie.pl, niepełnosprawni.pl, ngo.pl, odpowiedzialnybiznes.pl, oesg.pl, “Raport ESG”, RaportCSR.pl, witrynawiejska.pl
