Center for Civil Society International ([email protected])
Sat, 5 Oct 1996 06:13:10 -0700 (PDT)
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 4 Oct 1996 15:22:43 -0400
>From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Subject: Excerpts from ASI Bulletin No. 38
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Following are excerpts from the weekly Bulletin of the Agency for Social
Information in Moscow, translated by Tom Sorenson.
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I
Saint Petersburg
THE OPENING OF THE SOCIAL DEPARTMENT "JURISPRUDENCE" OF THE HERZEN RUSSIAN
STATE PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY TOOK PLACE ON SEPTEMBER 18.
The students consisted of 30 people with limited physical abilities who
had passed a preparatory course at the St. Petersburg university in the
program "Lyceum," developed by the charitable movement "Golden Pelican"
for "pupils with disabilities."
This is the first department of its kind in the country. The course of
study lasts 5 years. According to the general director of "Golden
Pelican" Aleksander Slyko "the creation of similar departments in other
institutions of higher education will not only help the social
rehabilitation of people with disabilities but will give the government
qualified specialists in areas requiring mental rather than physical
abilities."
The address of the Herzen Russian State Pedagogical University is: St.
Petersburg, Moika, D. 46. The contact telephone is (812) 113-3267 (Andrei
Borodkin, charitable movement "Golden Pelican").
II
WHAT DO ECOLOGICAL ORGANIZATIONS IN RUSSIA LIVE ON?
This question troubles everyone: various governmental organizations,
foreign sponsors, journalists, and simply the curious.
In the course of the Russo-Dutch project "Volga" a survey was conducted of
ecological groups from Cherepovets, Yaroslavl, Nizhnii Novgorod, and
Volgograd. The aim of the survey was to inform foreign sponsors who
assist in the survival ofRussian ecological organizations of possible
sources of funding in Russia and to evaluate prospects. The results of
this unique survey have just been produced.
As a result of the survey we have reached the following conclusions:
The results showed that common sources of financing exist for all groups.
These are regional, city, and oblast funds. The most favorable situation
arose in Nizhnii Novgorod and the worst in Volgograd. During the "Volga"
project, in which several organizations of the Volga region took part, the
coordinating group from Nizhinii Novgorod received 40 million rubles from
the Russian Federal Ecological Fund. Volunteer labor by members of the
organizations uslally predominated. Although there was very little
assistance from ecological funds, help from various other organizations
and firms was even less significant.
As a result of the financial situation of contributors, voluntary payments
by private persons took on a rather symbolic character. The new class of
the "Russian rich" does not provide financial assistance to ecological
NGOs.
The basic source of support is grants from foreign organizations and
funds. They particularly help carry out the more important projects that
benefit people and their surroundings and that promote the professional
growth and authority of the organization.
III
SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS OF EKATERINBURG CONDUCT WORK ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF
SOCIAL PARTNERSHIPS
Annually in Sverdlovsk oblast around 100 children become ill with cancer
of the blood. At the present time all of them are for practical purposes
doomed because of insufficient finances. The oblast Children's Oncology
Center finds itself on the brink of catastrophy. Until now the basic
charitable support for the Center has come from the firms Pfizer
International, Rosh, Upjohn, Gideon Richter, and several others. The
government of the oblast has tried to attract the attention of bankers and
business people to the cause of saving the children of the Urals, but only
one half of those invited came to a meeting with government representative
Vladimir Krysovyi. At the meeting they limited themselves to promises,
which which as everyone knows it is impossible tp buy medicine and
equipment. There are no social organizations left in the country that are
not losing hope of finding sponsors to pay for the treatmentof the
children. The Association "Hope," the Society of Orthodox Physicians, and
Chernobyl Hospital have become participants in a charitable action led by
the initiative of German Professor Fritz Lampert.
As part of this action German colleagues gave the oncology center modern
diagnostic equipment and provided free consultations for the little
patients.
The bicycle race "Tour Piper" to the Euro-Asian border held a matinee for
the ill children. All of these actions should draw the attention of
society to this most difficult situation and change the relationship to it
of business circles.
Contact telephone: (3432) 28-5809
IV
THE LEGAL INFORMATION AGENCY OF THE INTERNATIONAL CHARITABLE FUND
"INTERLEGAL" GIVES FREE CONSULTATIONS.
"Interlegal" provides legal assistance to nonprofit organizations on
questions of taxation, customs, lease of premises, concluding labor
agreements, partnership agreements, protection of intellectual property,
and conducting matters in the "arbitrazh" and general courts.
Consultations are available Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 2:00 to
5:00 p.m. by previous appointment. Call: 138-4308.
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