Why Western entrepreneurs are investing millions in Russian science and business is hard to say. Perhaps someone really counts on the discovery of a cancer vaccine and its international use. Some, apparently, really dream of popularizing their native language. And someone atones for the sins of stormy youth. There are those who do not want to share with the tax authorities and, in extreme cases, prefer to patronize.
Among the most famous sponsors are American billionaires George Soros, Henry Ford and Andrew Carnegie, Senator MacArthur, King Albert of Belgium, the Queen of Great Britain and the Prince of Wales.
George Soros, creating the Central European branch of the Open Society Foundation in 1990, said: "I want to teach the Russian government to take care of its own people. For 1990 I allocated $ 12 million. In the second and third years I will invest half and a quarter of this amount respectively, but only if the rest of the money is contributed by the Russian side.”
Whether or not the Russian government complied with this condition is unknown. Another thing is important: to date, the Soros Foundation has allocated more than $ 100 million for the needs of Russian science. According to the employees of the International Science Foundation in Russia (another charitable organization created by Soros), Mr. Soros managed to stop the wave of emigration of Russian geneticists. Perhaps that is the way it is.
According to the estimates of the Russian representative office of the International Science Foundation, the largest number of charitable donations in Russia come from American foundations (more than 80), followed by English (about 55 institutions) and German (30).
They arose in different ways.
One such charitable organization - "United Way" - appeared after a giant fire in Delaware. Different religious leaders applied 5-6 times for material assistance to the same moneybags. After several oddities, they decided to unite in the fund. And, having received the support of local millionaires, they rebuilt the city. Today, United Way chapters operate around the world, helping the hungry, the homeless, and refugees. Only in Russia the cost of the Fund's programs is 62 million ECU (about $79.1 million).
A few years ago, the German government established a fund to help Russian officers who served in the Western Group of Forces. With his participation, the military was trained in civilian professions even before the withdrawal of troops.
Even our Russian LUKoil also has its own charitable foundation, which solves social problems in the locations of enterprises. In particular, in one of the oil towns near Tyumen there were queues for dental offices. The Fund purchased the necessary equipment, equipped additional classrooms, and the problem was removed.
In principle, any large enterprise can sponsor a solution to the pressing problems of a district or city. Or a single family.

Who is required?
American charitable programs - the Carnegie Moscow Center, the Lindbergh Foundation, the Erhard Foundation - are intended, as a rule, to support the most promising research in the fields of exact science. As grants, Russian child prodigies are offered mainly foreign internships. Invited are mainly Russian mathematicians, doctors, physicists, biologists, psychologists who already have any academic degrees.
The National Center for Scientific Research of France invites Russian doctors of technical sciences for an internship.
Undergraduate and graduate students, with the assistance of American funds, have the opportunity to complete their education at US universities, and then get a prestigious job in foreign companies in Russia.
German foundations value humanitarians - teachers of the German language, art critics, historians. Among the most popular are the programs of the German Research Society and the German Economic Exchange Service.
The scope of interests of English foundations is quite diverse - from specialists in tropical medicine and anthropologists to businessmen.

Ms Simon Lis, Business and Industry Officer at the British Council:
— This year we are supporting Russian entrepreneurs who offer ideas for food processing and cooking. These are the so-called fast food technologies. Your food processing equipment is outdated. We are ready to help you get rid of food imports.
Employee of the English Know How Fund:
- The inventor of some environmental program can count on the most generous grants. For example, someone who came up with a new way to purify water or dispose of waste.

What are they enough for?
Now about the grants themselves. Until 1990, they were allocated to scientists and inventors and were a kind of awards for development. Travel abroad was not widely practiced.
Now Western philanthropists accept laureates to work or study abroad. Grants can be either just cash bonuses or targeted foreign internships (from 3-4 months to 2-3 years). In addition, there are travel grants that compensate the travel expenses of Russian scientists participating in international scientific symposiums.
The size of a standard short-term grant for graduate students does not exceed $ 2.2 thousand. As a rule, this money is barely enough to pay for food stamps and a bed in a hostel. No more than $ 100 per month remains for pocket expenses.
Characteristically, American funds usually cover all transportation costs. The Germans are not so generous. Grant holders have to travel to local universities at their own expense. However, the terms of each grant are negotiated separately.
Prestigious scholarships - $ 2 thousand per month (for example, FullBright, Erhard grants - are designed for a more dignified life: you can rent a small studio, eat well, move freely around the country and, finally, indulge in the daily joys of life.
Long-term grants are especially popular among pundits. According to their track record, the amount of grants increases to $ 16,000 for dermatologists, up to $ 30,000 for specialists investigating the disposal of radioactive waste, and even up to $ 48,000 for doctors investigating the problem of diabetes. With this money, the researcher can buy the necessary equipment, experimental animals and some consumables.
Vladimir Gogvadze, Senior Researcher at the Institute for Theoretical and Experimental Biophysics:
— Grants really help Russian scientists to stay afloat and continue their research work.
Three times - in 1991, 1993 and 1994 - I was the winner of a grant from the European Science Foundation. In all three cases, I and my foreign colleague Professor Christoph Richter from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology applied for a grant directly to the foundation's headquarters in Strasbourg. And they participated in an open competition on general terms.
My first internship was in Sweden, the other two were in Switzerland. In 1991 and 1993 I received two-month grants, and in 1994 one year.
Christoph Richter and I produced four major papers in the field of biophysics (in particular, "The role of mitochondria in cell death") and many scientific abstracts for conferences. I personally participated in one of them. In Menaggio, a city in northern Italy.
The amount of short-term grants was $ 1,500 per month, of which I myself had to pay for housing and food. True, the round trip was free for me. The trip to Italy did not require any additional expenses from me (everything was paid for by the inviting party), except for the Italian visa. I got it in Switzerland for 40 Swiss francs (about $30). But the equipment, reagents, scientific materials and everything that was necessary for my research, I could use for free in unlimited quantities.
Unfortunately, there was only enough money for me alone. For some reason, I did not receive additional funding for my family members, provided for by the terms of the grant. Due to the fact that Switzerland is an expensive country, the authorities denied the family a visa.
Despite everything, my impressions are the most rosy.

Strictly speaking, grants should be awarded exclusively on a competitive basis. However, sometimes the money is distributed without any competition. Some American foundations and even the US embassy "sin" with this. They independently determine the winners for monetary nominations. Among the lucky ones, as a rule, are scientists leading developments in the field of cancer. According to the clerk of the press service of the US Embassy, ​​"America is interested in Russian heads ..."

How to enter the competition
An application for participation in the competition must be submitted 3-4 months before the start of the semester or internship. To do this, you need to contact the Russian representative office of the fund or the embassy of the country that announced the competition. As a last resort, call abroad - to the central office of the fund.
The necessary addresses and phone numbers can be found in the Library of Foreign Literature, where, by the way, there are also representative offices of some funds - in particular, the "British Council" and the "French Cultural Center".
You will be given application forms, which must be completed in the original language and sent to the address of one of the foundations. You will indicate the standard facts of your biography (born, married, education, children, work experience).
Particularly inquisitive patrons may require the recommendation of well-known scientists who already have publications in your specialty. Entrepreneurs (also in writing) will have to convince the fund specialists that your business is promising.
Next, you will write a short essay (again in a foreign language) on the topic of your future work. Be sure to indicate why you need an internship abroad and what benefits you will bring to Russia after returning to your homeland.
"Take it seriously and loftily. We are not joking by setting such conditions," advised Ms. Sasha Edblad (Sasha Edblad), consultant of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.
By the way, until recently, funds required proof that you have no real opportunity to go abroad with your own money. Now, fortunately, these "revelations" have been removed from the agenda.
After some time, you will be invited to a language exam. The requirements for knowledge of the language are quite strict: you must be fluent in at least colloquial vocabulary.
This will be followed by an interview with a fund specialist in the field of your developments. And... tedious waiting for the results of the competition.
As a result, either your ideas are really recognized as brilliant, or you will receive an unmotivated refusal in a grant. Apparently, there will be a lot of disappointments. According to an employee of the British Council, an average of 9-10 grants are allocated for 200 applicants.

Expatriates are asked not to worry
To weed out the wave of random hunters for grants, without exception, the funds put forward a strict condition - persons who have ever applied for permanent residence in another country are not allowed to participate in the competition. "We are not investing money to help emigrants," Mr. Soros once remarked.
Some foundations have additional sine qua non conditions for receiving a grant. In particular, winners of American sponsors should not participate in other programs within 2 years after returning to their homeland. The Norwegian Research Council increased this period to 5 years, the German funds are slightly less - up to 3 years.
Some foundations, for example, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, the National Center for Scientific Research of France, the German Economic Exchange Service, the Central European University and others require the applicant to have a foreign partner with whom joint research will be carried out. Moreover, this partner must pay 25%-30% of the grant, thus confirming the real feasibility of the idea.

Director of the Russian office "Charity Aid Foundation" Ms. Lena Young:
- You need to look for a partner in advance. Chat, meet. The excitement that starts 2-3 months before the application is not getting results. When they call us and offer to be a partner in a diabetes organization, we answer: "This is not our profile."
"Well, please! .." They do not understand that a fictitious partnership is useless. We do not know any specialists, or methods, or anything else.
As a representative of the UK, I can suggest that those who would like to find a partner should contact the organization "Charity Know How", one of the departments of which deals exclusively with finding partners. Address in London: East West Link, 114/118 Southampton Row, London WC1B 5AA. Phone: 071 831-7798, Fax: 071 831-0134.
Write what you do and what type of organization you would like to partner with.

How much and for what program can Russians receive in Western charitable foundations

Olga KAZANSKAYA, Olga RACHKOVA

To help sick children, support sports organizations, as well as theaters and museums. This year, the fund spent about 13.75 billion rubles on the implementation of various projects. Funding sources are Usmanov's personal funds, as well as money allocated by companies controlled by him.

The Sistema Charitable Foundation was established in 2003 for the charitable activities of the corporation of the same name and its subsidiaries. The foundation's main areas of activity include science, culture and the arts, sports and social development. Every year, the fund spends about three billion rubles to support more than 50 projects. Funds for the fund come from commercial organizations, as well as from individuals.

The Russian Aid Fund (Rusfond) was established in 1996 by the Kommersant publishing house to support readers of the Kommersant newspaper in need of help. The founder and head of Rusfond is journalist Lev Ambinder. For the first half of this year, the fund managed to raise almost 607 million rubles, last year - more than 1.7 billion. Rusfond specializes in helping seriously ill children, promoting the development of civil society, and introducing high medical technologies. - Individuals and organizations.

The Volnoe Delo Foundation was founded by Russian businessman Oleg Deripaska in 1998. The Foundation is engaged in supporting projects in the field of science, education, culture, territorial development, healthcare and animal protection. In 2014, for fund projects. According to Expert magazine, the fund is financed from the personal funds of Oleg Deripaska and deductions from the Basic Element group of companies.

The Mikhail Prokhorov Charitable Foundation, which became the first charitable organization in Russia with a regional work strategy, was established by businessman Mikhail Prokhorov in 2004. — systemic support of culture in the Russian regions. For 10 years of work, the fund's budget has exceeded two billion rubles. There is no exact funding.

The Elena and Gennady Timchenko Charitable Foundation was established in 2010. The main activity of the foundation is the implementation of programs: "Older Generation", "Family and Children", "Sport", "Culture". For the first three years of operation, the fund's budget was $330.2 million. The main source of funding for the fund is the personal funds of the Timchenko Family

The Gift of Life Foundation was founded in 2006 by actresses Chulpan Khamatova and Dina Korzun. The scope of the fund is to help sick children. In 2015, the fund raised more than 326 million rubles. Funding sources are Russian, international and foreign organizations, individuals in Russia and abroad, as well as "stateless persons".

The Victoria Children's Charitable Foundation was founded in 2004 by Nikolai Tsvetkov, President of the Uralsib Corporation. The Foundation specializes in helping children left without parental care and who find themselves in a difficult life situation. Expenses for charitable programs in 2013 amounted to more than 184 million rubles. There are no more recent data. According to the data for 2013, the sources of financing are also personal funds of Nikolai Tsvetkov, income from endowment, fundraising, funds of Uralsib Bank.

About one and a half million charitable organizations and religious parishes are registered in the United States. Over 2% of this country's GDP is spent on donations. Moreover, 76% of this money is from individuals. And such a public fund sends a fairly significant part of charitable funds abroad.

The statistics of the Russian Federation are much more modest. The lion's share of official donations is made by legal entities, and at the same time from profits from financial and economic activities. There are no exact figures: estimates of annual payments range from 200 million to 1.5 billion US dollars. Many significant donations are also provided by banks.

What is a charitable organization?

According to the legislation, charitable organizations in Russia are non-profit organizations that have specific legal forms (public organizations, foundations and institutions). With regard to the taxation of charitable organizations, they are similar to other non-profit organizations (they are exempt from paying income tax on earmarked receipts and have a number of benefits that apply to both the beneficiary and the benefactor).

The birth of charity

The first charitable organizations in Russia are considered to be monasteries, which Prince Vladimir ordered to engage in "contempt for the needy." Such a decree was issued in 988, and Ivan the Terrible created the first almshouse, which is the prototype of the modern charitable foundation. Funds for their activities were allocated from the state treasury. In addition, the wealthy members of society had an obligation to give alms. Peter the Great considered charity one of the important areas of public life.

After the revolution of 1917, Russian charitable organizations were abolished, and all their property was transferred to the people. In recent years, charity has been developing at an accelerated pace. Perhaps this is due to the fact that citizens have become more responsive to the problems of others.

Financing

A non-profit charitable organization is required to register with the authorities, submit activity reports, reflect the funds raised and spent, which are not subject to taxation. She must use donations only for charitable purposes.

Donation is the most popular way to help. In the Russian Federation, a public assistance fund can be financed from five sources:

• state aid;
• grants, donations from individuals;
• large business entities;
• funds of municipal authorities and entrepreneurs;
• family and private foundations are financed exclusively by private individuals.

Types of charitable organizations

In addition to the method of receiving funds, charitable organizations in Russia differ depending on the target audience:

• charitable children's funds created to help various categories of children. They help orphans, the disabled, children from children who suffer from various diseases. The foundations are also involved in issuing gifted children;
• funds to help the adult population, for example, people with various diseases, refugees, the disabled, and so on;
• charitable organizations to help the elderly, veterans, the disabled and the elderly, hospice patients.

Have you decided to entrust your money to a charitable foundation, but are not sure that they will go to those in need? A variety of organizations operate in Russia, which are founded by both Russians and foreign investors. There are also charitable social programs of commercial organizations. Below are the stable funds that carry out charitable activities. They have personal websites and regularly submit reports on the work done.

The main charitable organizations in Russia

SBOR (Union of Charitable Organizations of Russia) is 15 years of work, half a billion of funds raised, dozens of successful projects and thousands of needy who received assistance from the foundation. COLLECT is supported by famous actors, athletes, politicians.

Another large charitable organization is the National Charitable Foundation, which was founded in 1999 on the initiative of President V.V. Putin.

Initially, the fund was called the "National Military Fund" and provided all possible assistance to servicemen of various ministries and departments of Russia, their families, veterans and other persons. In 2002, the fund was categorized as an organization that provides one-time humanitarian assistance.

Multipurpose charities

• One of the largest charitable foundations, the Union of Charitable Organizations of Russia, unites more than two hundred different target areas, including volunteer and public programs. Provides assistance to a wide category of citizens.
• Also a large fund in the charity market is ROSSPAS. Helps people with serious illnesses. In the area of ​​his attention are migrants, the disabled, orphans, large families and
• There are funds that are carried out at once for several categories of those in need. For example, the national charitable organization "Dobro" provides assistance to families with many children, with various diseases, orphans and those who suffer from drug addiction and alcoholism.

Charities helping children

• There are exclusively children's charitable organizations, such as "Nastenka", "Children of Mary", "Children's Houses", "Happy Hearts" and many others. They help children who find themselves in a difficult life situation: the loss of parents, orphans, the disabled, patients with serious illnesses, those who suffer from a congenital ailment.
• The All-Russian Foundation "Charity - Russia" unites more than a million individual entrepreneurs. It raffles various grants and scholarships among youth and children, helps nursing homes, hospices and hospitals with public funds, and provides assistance to ordinary citizens who apply.

Other funds

• Serious charitable organization - "Life". Its target audience is children with cancer, blood diseases. Donations are used to buy medicines, consumables, pay for research and diagnostics, chemotherapy courses, surgeries, and it is provided to families.
• Charitable organizations in Russia, founded by well-known people in the country: politicians, show business stars, businessmen. This is an additional influx of investors and those who wish to make a donation. The most famous fund in this category is "Give Life", which was established by popular actresses D. Korzun and Ch. Khamatova. Its purpose is to help those suffering from cancer.
• Public charitable organizations that help the disabled, the elderly, veterans, people and patients of hospitals and hospices are the aid funds "Faith", "Old Age in Joy", "Collective of Caring People".
• Large charitable organizations of the world also work in Russia: the Soros Foundation, the International Women's Organization, the AIDS Foundation and others.

Help is not easy, but very simple! This slogan on the main website of the COLLECTION is the best way to express readiness to accept donations from any caring person. After all, the sooner the funds are credited to the account of the charitable foundation, the more likely it is to save someone's life.

Charitable foundations of the world, or rather the largest and most famous charitable organizations of our time, will be considered below. Naturally, among the founders of these funds and leaders, one can find well-known personalities. At the moment, the largest charitable foundations in the world donate huge amounts to support those in need, only the "big ten" in total makes donations of approximately 7-10 billion dollars. But even such donations from charitable foundations of the world are not enough to provide assistance to absolutely everyone who needs it.

The largest charitable foundations in the world:

1. Bill Gates is known not only for the fact that he became the developer of the most popular operating system, but also for the fact that in 2000 he founded the Bill and Melinda Gates charitable foundation, which today is the most significant and largest in the world. Naturally, the money of Bill Gates himself was spent on the development of the fund, only in the first year he donated $ 106 million for its development. The charitable organization provides assistance to seriously ill and poor people, and also helps to develop health care and education. Another businessman took part in the development of the fund - Warren Buffett, who donated a tidy sum to Bill Gates' organization. The Bill & Melinda Gates Charitable Foundation deserves the number one spot in the Charity Foundations of the World rankings.

2. In second place in the ranking of "Charitable Foundations of the World" is "Wellcome Trust" - the most popular British charitable foundation. The organization was founded back in 1936 in London, in honor of the pharmacist Henry Wellcome. The fund's program includes the development of healthcare and medicine, the protection of people and animals, and active funding of medical and scientific research. The Wellcome Trust is the largest foundation in the UK; in 2005, the foundation's account exceeded twenty-three billion dollars.

3. The third most important charitable foundation in the world at the moment is the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. The fund was founded in 1973 by Howard Hughes himself, but at the initial stage the fund did not have such funds as it does now. The fund reached its current size with the acquisition of Hughes Aircraft by General Motors. The charitable foundation supports research in molecular biology, immunology and genetics.

4. The fourth largest is the Lilly Endowment Charitable Foundation. However, this fund can be considered narrowly focused. Despite the fact that the foundation annually allocates significant funds for the development of health, science and education, the funds generally do not go beyond the state of Indiana. Founder Josian Lilly made a solid contribution to the development of his staff and the pharmaceutical industry in the United States as a whole.

5. In fifth place in the ranking of the largest charitable foundations in the world is the Ford Charitable Foundation. The founder of this fund is none other than Edsel Ford, the head of the Ford Motor Company. Huge funds were invested by Ford to fight poverty, in the development of science and medicine, improve the financial condition of the country and donated to various charitable projects. The Ford Charitable Foundation also works to protect human rights.

6. Johnson & Johnson is known for its first-class products for children, but not only for them. The son of the founder of the company opened his own charitable foundation, Robert Wood Johnson, which eventually took its place in the list of "Charitable foundations of the world." The Johnson Charitable Organization was founded in 1936, since then the foundation has been actively helping the poor and the underprivileged, as well as people suffering from chronic diseases. Every year, the foundation allocates approximately half a billion dollars to fight poverty in America.

7. Will Keith Kellogg believed that each person determines his own future, and, if desired, can change his life for the better. Will Keith Kellogg himself created the Kellogg Foundation in 1930 and actively helped those in need. The Kellogg Charitable Foundation is still working today, and one of the most significant donations is the funds allocated to help people and restore homes after the hurricane Picture.

8. The eighth largest charitable foundation in the world is the Robert Bosch Foundation, founded in 1964 by Robert Bosch himself. At the moment it is the largest German charitable organization. The fund's budget is 90% Bosch shares, and the entire budget is in the range of seven billion dollars. The Bosch Charitable Foundation donates funds to research, development of science, medicine and health care. He is also involved in humanitarian aid and education support, the foundation is the owner of some of the most promising medical research centers in Germany.

9. The last two funds could be combined to some extent, because we often had to see the names of the founders together. The ninth largest in the list of "Charitable Foundations of the World" is the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. The founder of the charitable organization was one of the chief directors of the famous company Hewlett-Packard. The charitable foundation became a family affair of the Hewletts, who invested in it not only a lot of money, but also pieces of their own souls. The Foundation is engaged in supporting healthcare, developing education, protecting the environment and providing assistance to HIV-infected people.

10. David and Lucille Packard Charitable Foundation. As you can see, Hewlett and Packard are interested in the same things in life, charity is no exception. Together with his family, David Packard founded one of the world's largest charitable foundations, which annually donates over $200 million to the development of health care and science, as well as improving the lives of children. The charity's budget is largely comprised of David Packard's personal funds.

The rating of charitable foundations of the world was compiled so that each person could be convinced that charity is really important for all people. Many famous personalities have tried to improve the life of society and help those in need. This is a good example for others, because without significant support, it is unlikely that modern charity has reached such proportions. Charitable foundations of the world provide incredible assistance to the disabled, sick children and adults. The goal of each such organization is to improve the quality of life of people around the world. It can be seen that the list, which displays the largest charitable foundations in the world, does not include domestic charitable organizations. To some extent, this speaks of the low level of development of domestic charity. Next, consider examples of several Russian charitable foundations.