LITHUANIA – Open Lithuania Foundation (OLF)
Open Lithuania Foundation launched its activities in October 1990 as an independent, non-governmental, non-profit organisation, whose main objective was to support the development of an open and democratic civil society in Lithuania in the period of transition from an authoritarian system of governance to democracy. During the first 17 years of its existence OLF’s support for different projects amounted to over 60 million USD; it ran over 40 programmes of varying sizes and published over 350 books. OLF periodically reviews and defines the strategy of its activities, taking into account the pulse of society’s political and social change. It renewed its activities in 2017 with a fresh structure and format, and its projects today are aimed at promoting the formation of an open, mature, responsible, active, tolerant civil society in Lithuania, actively engaging in activities in the spheres of civic engagement, education, research, culture, law, social media, independent media, public health, social areas and the promotion of a knowledge-based society. OLF works to strengthen the protection of fundamental rights in Lithuania and Europe, fight against discrimination and promote tolerance, support communities, non-governmental organisations and vulnerable groups in society.
Democracy in the world today faces new challenges. Some of them, such as populism and a lack of democratic procedure, can be traced back to the collapse of the socialist world before 1989 and the subsequent transition out of communism. From April 26-28, 2021, the international conference “Rethinking the Democratic Future: Lessons from the 20th […]
