Kuba Wygnanski

Kuba Wygnański is a sociologist by training. He started his public activity as a Solidarity activist. He participated in historical Round Table talks. After 1989, he became deeply involved in numerous initiatives to support civil society in Poland and other countries. He has established several NGOs, including the KLON/JAWOR Association (a research and information centre for Polish non-profit organisations) and the Forum of Non-Governmental Initiatives (FIP) which plays key role as a representative of the Polish Third Sector. FIP initiated a series of sector wide debates and meetings, including six national forums involving hundreds of organisations. Kuba was one of the authors and a main advocate of the Law on Public Benefit and Voluntarism in Poland (introduced in 2002). Currently he is a member of the Public Benefit Council and Chairman of the Programme Board of the Polish Public Television.

For almost 20 years Kuba has been deeply involved in the field of research on the non-profit sector in Poland (including international efforts in Poland, i.e. Johns Hopkins University, USAID and Civicus). Kuba was an initiator and coordinator of the multi-year systemic project Polish Model of Social Economy. In 2003 he was a Yale University World Fellow.

For several years, Kuba was a Board Member of the Stefan Batory Foundation, a Member of International Committee of US Council on Foundations, a Board Member of Civicus (Global Alliance for Citizens Participation) and currently is a Board Member of the TechSoup Foundation.

Kuba is also involved in numerous activities outside of Poland including work in Romania, Sarajevo, Kosovo and Kazakhstan. He has also worked for a number of international organisations and institutions including OECD, USAID, World Bank, ICNL, UNDP, CEE Trust for Civil Society and many others.