Who We Are
The Polish Children’s Fund is one of the oldest Polish NGOs that helps gifted young people to develop their talents. We are an association of scholars, science communicators, artists, researchers, and university students, all of whom share the common belief that developing young people’s talents and passions is important for society as a whole.
We have been operating since 1983, organising free workshops, interdisciplinary camps, research internships, concerts, and exhibitions for the most gifted students from all over Poland who are keen to develop their passions and interests. We support them so that they can change the world for the better. All our educators are volunteers, ranging from university students to the most eminent scholars and artists. We form a community of people eager to gain and share knowledge – a space in which passion, curiosity, perseverance, and courage may flourish.
We know how to foster talent: almost 40 years of experience have allowed us to develop a unique approach based on a close rapport with each student that is very different from the one usually adopted by regular educational institutions. We enable our scholarship holders to become more independent, we fuel their inquisitiveness, and we help them to improve their experimentation, improvisation, and critical thinking skills. We emphasise the importance of teamwork and try to discourage rivalry. Kindling the curiosity and intellectual bravery of young people as well as promoting their openness to different disciplines is crucial to our work. It is thanks to this approach that Polish Children’s Fund graduates enter the adult world as responsible and open-minded individuals who are willing to further expand their horizons.
Our Mission
Our goal is to kindle the curiosity of young people and to provide them with the means to satisfy it. The GIFTED Programme offers a wide scope of diverse and carefully prepared activities: science camps, painting trips, music workshops, seminars, tutorials, and research internships. Aiming to make the programme available to people from all backgrounds, we do not charge any participation fees; most importantly, we cover the costs of accommodation, travel, and meals. Therefore, teenagers from small population centres and disadvantaged backgrounds also have a chance to experience cutting-edge science and high-end culture. We allow them to acquaint themselves with the latest research; we enable them to work in the most innovative laboratories, and we open for them the doors of prestigious concert halls and art galleries. But, above all, we also introduce our scholarship holders to great people – eminent scientists and artists about whom young people may have read in press and textbooks or whom they may recognise from photographs and recordings.
We endeavour to make each year’s suite of activities fit together in such a way that our scholarship holders can not only explore the ins and outs of their preferred disciplines but also learn to appreciate significant works of culture and art. Those participating in the GIFTED Programme are offered the opportunity to undertake independent research projects, give concerts, and exhibit their artwork. We also create a space where they can meet – and exchange ideas – with their peers, older students, and distinguished authorities in various fields. Polish Children’s Fund scholarship holders are encouraged to cooperate with and willingly help others on the basis of our shared principle that knowledge multiplies when shared.
We are aware that the Polish Children’s Fund cannot possibly take all gifted young people under its wing. For this reason, we have launched the INSPIRATORIUM programme, which enables teachers from all over Poland to acquaint themselves with our methods and know-how. Additionally, each year we invite young inventors, researchers, and engineers to take part in DISCOVERIES – a Polish edition of the prestigious European Union Contest for Young Scientists (EUCYS), whose national stage has been organised by our Fund since 1995.
Our Values
The Polish Children’s Fund is a community: our mission would be impossible but for collaboration with numerous universities, research centres, and cultural institutions, along with the involvement of the artists, scientists, and social activists who volunteer to work with gifted youth. They eagerly share their skills and expertise because they know how valuable it is for the young to be exposed to aspects of the world that they themselves find so fascinating.
In our work, we are guided by an appreciation for diversity. We stress the importance of interdisciplinarity; we try to point out the links between science and art; above all, we connect people from all walks of life. We act to ensure that every young person – regardless of their financial situation, place of residence, and family background – is given the opportunity to develop their talents to the fullest extent and to later become an excellent artist, researcher, physician, or engineer, as well as a responsible citizen. We aim to overcome the divisions stemming from differences in age and interests by facilitating cooperation between mathematicians and lovers of humanities, between rural and urban students, or between teenagers and experts with considerable experience.
We strongly believe that even the biggest changes can be brought about by the smallest of triggers. For our scholarship holders, we open the door to a world full of opportunities to develop their talents so they are unhindered in the pursuit of their passions and their efforts to change their surroundings – as well as society as a whole – for the better. But none of this would be possible without donor support and the involvement of our employees, the volunteers who teach classes, and the graduates of our Programme, who number more than 9,000. All these people form the constantly growing Polish Children’s Fund community and actively participate in cultural, social, and scientific aspects of public life in Poland in the spirit of self-improvement and readily sharing their experience of co-creating the Fund.
Our Partners
