About the forum

“We are a platform for grantmakers who support positive societal change in wider Europe. We provide opportunity for networking, collaboration and learning within the grantmaking sector to sustain dynamic communities.”

The Grantmakers East Forum is an annual conference held by and for grantmakers working in countries in Central and Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union.

The Grantmakers East Group (GEG), the Forum’s predecessor, was created in 1992 by a group of European Foundation Centre (EFC) members which were active in the region. The group first met in an event in the margins of the EFC Annual General Assembly (AGA) and Conference. As interest in the group grew, in step with developments in the region’s countries after the fall of communism, the GEG developed into an independent programme, concluding each year with its Annual Meeting (AM) which takes place in a different country each time.

The first AM was in Paris in 1996. Since then, we’ve held 15 AMs, which today gather together a large number of representatives from grantmaking organisations across the region. These meetings are attended by private and public grantmakers, including representatives of foundations (EFC members and non-members), bilateral donors, multilateral organisations, and corporate funders.

The region and the philanthropic sector in various countries have developed rapidly over the decade following the first GEG AM. Discussions have continued on how to develop these meetings so they respond better to participants’ needs, engage plenty of players, attract more interest in philanthropy in the East, and continue key discussions on the issues which resonate throughout the region. These discussions brought about a profound change in the GEG AM’s format. In October 2007 we held the first meeting under a new format and name: ‘Grantmakers East Forum’ (GEF) in the Estonian capital of Tallinn.  The Steering Committee is working hard to match the success of the previous GEF’s, held in Tallinn, Dubrovnik, Berlin and Tbilisi. With over 180 participants eager to share their views at last year’s Forum, let’s hope that this year’s event is bigger and better than ever!