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Explore milestones in the Stavros Niarchos Foundation’s (SNF) more than quarter century of grantmaking.

SNF’s mission is broad by design, and the grants we’ve made since 1996 reflect this breadth. Grant projects have taken place on six continents—and in the seas between. They have spanned young and old, remote villages to big cities, alpha to omega (literally, in Greek language tools). They have ranged in size from a few thousand euros to a billion-dollar-plus initiative, but we know that dollar value and human value are two different things entirely. The thousands of grants SNF has made reflect the diversity of the people they serve but are all united by a common goal: empowering humanity. Explore a sampling in the timeline below.

2014

November
Photo with many people in dresses and pirate costumes from the opera Andrea Chenier at the National Opera House

The curtain opens on a new era for Greek opera, Greece

SNF supports the Greek National Opera’s relocation to its new home to the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, still under construction in Athens.

November

A new chapter for the National Library of Greece, Greece

SNF supports the National Library of Greece in moving to its new home at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center, still being built in Athens.

October

Mobile Medical Units begin providing care in remote areas of Greece

Providing specialized medical care to residents of remote islands and mainland areas in Greece, the launch of Mobile Medical Units marked the beginning of work by Regeneration & Progress, a nonprofit affiliated with SNF to promote healthy, active lifestyles across the country.

October

Singing in the rain, United Kingdom 

To help students from Greece access the world-class vocational training offered at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, the SNF Scholarship covers full tuition and living costs.

October

Arts access in action, Greece

With SNF’s support, the Benaki Museum offers free admission one day a week across its four specialized locations.

October

So much more than just a job, Jordan

Aiming to open up economic opportunities for unemployed young people, SNF supports a job training and placement pilot program and upgrades to the Education for Employment curriculum.

July

Supporting kids’ goals—literally and figuratively, United States

SNF supports the creation of a rooftop soccer field at Madison Square Boys & Girls Club’s new flagship clubhouse in Harlem as well as educational programming serving young New Yorkers at the organization's existing clubhouses and school sites.

June

Third SNF Conference, Greece

The third SNF International Conference on Philanthropy in Athens reaches a broader audience than previous iterations, focusing the topics of youth unemployment, philanthropy and ethics, and the socioeconomic impact of the arts.

April

Byzantinists in erstwhile Byzantium, Turkey 

A five-year grant to Koç University established the SNF Center for Late Antique and Byzantine Studies in Istanbul, the first research center dedicated to the topic in the city that was for 11 centuries the capital of the Byzantine Empire.

March

Lifechanging orthopedic expertise, Ghana

SNF supports long-term partner Foundation of Orthopedics and Complex Spine (FOCOS) in its work providing comprehensive, affordable orthopedic and spine care to underserved communities in Ghana and throughout West Africa.

2013

November

Emergency assistance for typhoon victims, Philippines 

With a grant to Save the Children, SNF supports emergency relief for people in the Philippines affected by Typhoon Haiyan.

October

SNF commits €100 million to employment for young people, Greece 

The initiative seeks to help young Greeks create a hopeful future for themselves in an economy deeply shaken by the financial crisis.

October

A bridge between Germany and Greece, Germany

An SNF grant helps establish the Center for Modern Greece at the Freie Universität Berlin, which supports interdisciplinary collaboration between Germany and Greece in research and teaching.

October

Educational advancement for young mothers, Portugal 

SNF supports the Mobile School Project from Ajuda de Mae, which aims to help young mothers without formal schooling complete basic educational qualifications to improve prospects for themselves and their children.

October

Beaux-Arts masterpieces, United States

SNF supports the American Federation of Arts catalogue on Gods and Heroes: Masterpieces from the École des Beaux-Arts, Paris, a major traveling exhibition exploring the influence of classical art on the renowned Parisian fine art school.

June

Second SNF Conference, Greece

The second Annual SNF International Conference on Philanthropy, the precursor to SNF Nostos, focuses on reframing from thinking about “social welfare states” to “social welfare societies” and features speakers including Open Society Foundations founder George Soros.

2012

October

Going the distance for children, Monaco 

Heralding the beginning of a yearslong partnership, a grant supports No Finish Line in holding a four-day relay race to raise awareness about children’s rights and funding for international projects in that field in conjunction with races held in other countries.

October

Caring about palliative care, United States

SNF supports the launch of the Center to Advance Palliative Care’s membership model and its online education initiative to train health care professionals in providing quality palliative care, as well as its efforts to raise public awareness about palliative care and to ensure access to such services for people across the US. 

October

Protecting architectural heritage, Greece

SNF inaugurates a longstanding partnership by making its first grant to Monumenta, whose activities include documenting the 19th and 20th history buildings of Athens and intervening to protect monuments, historic buildings, and the landscape.

June

Convening peers to help address an urgent need, Greece

SNF’s first conference, organized in collaboration with the European Foundation Centre, is convened to help answer a very specific question: what role could foundations play to help mitigate the effects of Europe’s ongoing socioeconomic crisis, which had cut particularly deep in Greece? 

April

Collaboration: the secret weapon against malnutrition, West Africa

SNF supports ALIMA in a project that aims to curb malnutrition and related diseases in Niger, Mali, Chad, Nigeria, and Burkina Faso by developing the capacity of local actors to intervene and creating a platform for local NGOs working on malnutrition to collaborate, share staff, exchange medical data, and disseminate best practices.

April

A safety net for people with addiction, Greece

A grant supports KETHEA in establishing and operating a network to provide care for people experiencing homelessness and facing addiction in Athens and Thessaloniki.

March

SNF Co-President made Grand Commander of the Order of the Phoenix, Greece

SNF Co-President Andreas Dracopoulos is awarded the Hellenic Republic’s Grand Commander of the Order of the Phoenix for dedicating himself, personally and professionally, to supporting arts, education, and science initiatives, as well as Greece and Greek-related causes worldwide.

January

SNF commits €100 million in relief for Greek socioeconomic crisis, Greece

To help ease the pervasive effects of the deepening socioeconomic crisis in Greece, SNF helps local nonprofits sustain their critical support.

2011

October

The sole surviving tea clipper, United Kingdom 

SNF supports a project to implement educational programming on the deck of the Cutty Sark, the world’s only tea clipper.

October
Two kids reading books

Looking into the future of libraries, Greece

SNF supports the first phase of Future Library’s Public Libraries Project as part of a broader effort to encourage greater engagement with public libraries in Greece. The grant includes the renovation of nine libraries to create state-of-the-art facilities designed to fuel kids' creativity, the organization of an international conference, and the creation of a national digital resource space for Greek public libraries. 

October

Basic school supplies every student needs, Laos 

SNF supports World Education’s efforts to provide children at Luang Prabang Orphanage School with basic supplies, including food, clothing, medicine, books, and learning materials.

October

Representing Greece in the Biennale of Sydney, Australia 

SNF supports the participation of Zoe Keramea, a Greek artist, in the 2012 contemporary visual arts exhibition at the Biennale of Sydney.

April

Seeing art differently, France

With a grant to ARTESENS, SNF supports a traveling art exhibition that brings together multisensory creations by visual and sound artists, designed to offer both sighted people and people with visual impairments of all ages access to arts.

2010

October

Alexander the Great in Paris, France

The exhibition In the Kingdom of Alexander the Great – Ancient Macedonia, which brings together 500 works that trace its history, travels to the Louvre Museum through a grant from SNF.

October

Scientists seven and under, China

SNF supports research to evaluate the impact of Sesame Workshop’s new co-production in China, Big Bird Looks at the World, which aims to introduce children ages three to seven to science and nature.

October

Hellenic studies 7,000 km from Greece, Canada

The SNF Centre for Hellenic Studies at Simon Fraser University is established, expanding research and teaching in the field, offering online Modern Greek language resources, and seeking to aid development of the field at Chinese academic institutions.

October

A major effort to prevent tinnitus, Belgium 

A two-year research project by University Hospital Antwerp supported by SNF aims to identify which adolescents and young adults are vulnerable to developing tinnitus and assess methods of prevention and treatment.

October

Climate change and archaeological monuments, Greece

SNF supports Heritage Management Organization in conducting a three-year project to study climate change and its effects on archaeological monuments and their conservation, including a traveling exhibition and two summer field school programs in Greece.

October

Addressing emerging challenges, United States

SNF supports the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in creating an endowment to further develop the Hamilton Lecture series, which features renowned, high-visibility speakers on current and emerging challenges confronting the United States and the world.

April

Earthquake relief with a focus on children, Chile 

SNF supports the United States Fund for UNICEF’s efforts to improve access to water, sanitation, and hygiene among children affected by the earthquake in Chile, as well as work to improve their safety, nutrition, and education.