On November 17 and 18, the conference “Signs of Solidarity and Solutions” was held in Sarajevo, which hosted philanthropists from all over the region.
According to Vesna Bajšanski Agić, executive director of the Mozaik Foundation, one of the organizers of this conference, when the SIGN network started operating in 2008, the word philanthropy was almost unknown, a foreign word, which referred exclusively to humanitarian donations, while today, in 2021, we notice a trend of strategic giving to the economic sector, which makes a strategic and planned contribution to the development of the communities in which we live and work.
“Philanthropic giving always grows in crisis situations, and unfortunately we live in times of crisis. In response to the new circumstances, it is important that each of us, both personally and professionally, understands that we can and should be philanthropists,” Bajšanski-Agić pointed out on behalf of the SIGN network.
The crowning achievement was the awarding of the first SIGN Regional Philanthropy Award in two categories: the SIGN Regional Award for Corporate Philanthropy and the SIGN Regional Award for Individual Philanthropy. The jury had a difficult task to make a decision because the nominations included the names of companies and individuals who, through their selfless charity, nurture solidarity and contribute to communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo, Northern Macedonia and Serbia.
“Education, information and inspiration of philanthropic activities are our strategic goals, the achievement of which we have further approached by awarding the first Regional Award for Philanthropy of the SIGN network for companies and individuals who delighted with their philanthropic activities in 2019 and 2020,” said representatives of the SIGN network. The true idea of philanthropy is lived by the winners of the first Regional Award for Philanthropy of the SIGN network.
“We are glad that the SIGN network has recognized our efforts to connect the local communities in which we operate throughout the region with charity, because philanthropy should be shown in action just when it is most difficult. That is why our company, just last year, which was marked by a pandemic, set aside one million euros for numerous socially responsible activities and support to the health system. Due to its regional character, this award has a special significance for us“, said Tamara Veselinović, Director of Corporate Communications and Marketing at MK Group from Serbia, a company that received the SIGN Regional Award for Corporate Philanthropy.
Hajriz Hačko Brčvak, winner of the SIGN Regional Award for Individual Philanthropy and founder of the Hemiias Foundation, said in his address: “The Hemiias Foundation is not one person and has long been recognized by people who have the same goal, which is to make others happy. We humans often do everything for happiness, which often lasts really short. If you want to find happiness that is long-lasting and does not fade, then you should make others happy, even when it seems to us that the other person does not deserve our help.”
The jury also awarded two special prizes: the Special Prize for Philanthropy of the SIGN Network for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises, which was awarded to Meka FOOD from Kosovo, and the Special Prize of the SIGN Network for Philanthropic Contribution to Science and Education, which was awarded to Aleksandar Kavčić, representative of the Alek Kavčić Foundation from Serbia.
The event was organized by the SIGN network, as the closing ceremony of a four-year project funded by the European Commission, the Balkan Democracy Fund, the Balkan Civil Society Development Network and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. The SIGN network consists of the Trag Foundation and Catalyst Balkans from Serbia, the Fund for Active Citizenship from Montenegro, the Mozaik Foundation from Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Forum of Civic Initiatives from Kosovo and Horus from Northern Macedonia.
