The Stefan Batory Foundation () is an independent Polish non-government organization established by American financier and philanthropist, George Soros, along with a group of Polish opposition leaders of 1980s, and registered in Poland since May 1988. It is named after Stephen Báthory, the 16th-century Polish king. The foundation's mission is to support the development of an open, democratic society in Poland along with other Central and East European countries. Foundation's activity is financed from income on endowment and grants from foreign institutions, from gifts of individual donors and 1% personal income tax designations. History and beginnings The Batory Foundation was founded in 1988 when the communist system in Central Europe was disintegrating. It was established by an American philanthropist of Hungarian extraction, George Soros, and Polish democratic opposition leaders of the 1980s. The mission of the foundation was to contribute to the preparation of Polish society in the transition from communism to democracy, civil society and a market economy. Early on, the Batory Foundation invested in the preparation of cadres for the market economy and democratic system taking roots in Poland by funding hundreds of scholarships and travel grants for economists, bankers, physicians, teachers, and local government activists. It also made a significant contribution to the various reforms being implemented in the country after the collapse of communism, supporting the reform of local government, public administration, and social welfare policy. These reform-related initiatives eventually gave rise to the Institute of Public Affairs, a major think-tank in Warsaw, which the foundation helped to establish in 1995. The foundation disbursed hundreds of micro-grants to a variety of local civic initiatives, contributing to the establishment of numerous local organizations. Until 2007, the Stefan Batory Foundation has spent US$95.9 million on all its programs, US$71 million of which were assigned for grantmaking. Throughout 2007, the foundation provided 513 grants to institutions and organizations, 47 travel grants to cover costs of 169 participants attending events and projects abroad, as well as 5 awards; overall expenditure for grantmaking and operational activities in 2007 totaled EUR 4,9 million. Priorities of the Foundation In 2016, the foundation ran three grantmaking, and five operational programs. Grantmaking programs Citizens for Democracy – the aim of the Programme, planned for 2013-2016 is to strengthen civil society development and enhance the contribution of non-governmental organizations. The programme has a budget of EUR 37 million, financed from the Financial Mechanism of European Economic