During the past year, the Foundation was consolidating its resources, expanding its partner relations, and testing its most promising project activity models. The country’s social development dynamics, the evolution of the social programs market in Russia have proven the adequacy of the Foundation’s strategic choice and its focus on large-scale comprehensive territorial development programs. The social technologies offered by the Foundation have found great demand in a variety of spheres ranging from regulation of migration flows to revival of vocational education, and from development of small businesses around large city-forming enterprises to facilitation of housing and utility service reforms. Over the past year, the Foundation executed almost twenty cooperation agreements with Russian regions and large municipalities. These agreements form a solid foundation for long-term cooperation. 

Not less important was the transition to the project-based form of organization of our operations. Earlier, the Foundation operated within rigidly delineated program areas (public administration, education and youth, private entrepreneurship, etc.). By the end of 2006, we began to gear our activities towards most pressing social problems by forming mobile groups consisting of Foundation’s employees, external experts, and representatives of partner organizations. This, certainly, required rather serious alterations within the Foundation’s structure, as well as within our decision-making system. The arrival of a number of new program officers and administrative employees was a very important moment for all of us. We hope that the Foundation will benefit from its refurbished cadre of specialists.

Improvements within the Foundation’s management system are worth mentioning too. The large-scale rotation of Directors within the Foundation’s Board – the first in the history of our organization – was implemented throughout last year and we certainly lay our greatest hopes on the energy and professional experience of our new Directors. The Finance and Nomination Committees were created within the Foundation’s Board of Directors last year. We registered an updated Charter of the Foundation that reflects the most recent changes within the Russian legislation that regulates operations of nonprofit organizations. 

Although rather difficult for all of us, the past year was interesting and productive. We are optimistic about the future because we know that the Foundation’s projects – even more so than ever before – are relied upon in various corners of our country and in different spheres of its social life. Russia needs our work. 

Andrey V. Kortunov