Slovakia has recently moved from a position of simply being a recipient of foreign aid to an emerging donor helping less-developed countries. This shift came as a direct consequence of membership in the EU (2004) and OECD (2003), but is still not fully understood by domestic actors, including political parties, the business sector, media, academic institutions and civil society.
Global education teaches us that the world is not confined to our town or our country. Slovak NGOs, in a similar manner as their Czech or Polish counterparts, are the front-runners in the process of promoting a culture of global solidarity in Slovakia with those who are very poor, live in regions of conflict, or remain oppressed by their own regimes (as this part of Europe was before 1989). As a founding member of the national Platform of Slovak NGOs active in international development and relief, we are partner to the Slovak government program of official development assistance (Slovak Aid), and part of European NGO networks.
The Pontis Foundation believes that raising awareness about the new international responsibility of our country for global development and wider EU neighborhood will also strengthen our own civic traditions. To reach our goals, we have:
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organized public events about our target countries, such as Fields of Shame project, including visits of our local partners to Slovakia
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increased media coverage and promotes public dialogue
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educated the new generation of experts and professionals in the field of international relations (see our projects)
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strengthened academic capacity: focuses on the Western Balkans, including university seminars and the best M.A. thesis contest.
In the autumn 2008 we have started with the Education on Development Assistance project for the students of 5 Slovak universities.
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