Charity has always been in the tradition of our people.  It is important to do good deeds, since doing good deeds is one of the most desirable social values.

During The National Day of Giving, established on the initiative of the Serbian Philanthropy Forum, funds were raised to purchase state of the art spectrometer for Petnica Science Centre (the Petnica Research Station). Starting this year, the patron is Ana Brnabić, the Serbian Prime Minister and the chair of the Philanthropy Development Council.

The National Day of Giving is marked on the 9th of October, the birthday of the great Serbian innovator and philanthropist, Mihajlo Pupin. Founded in 2010, Serbian Philanthropy Forum is a platform that inspires strategic approach in investing in society and promotes philanthropy as one of the most desirable social values.

The fundraising within 2018 National Day of Giving was to support the development of innovations and education, by collecting funds for the Petnica Science Centre (the Petnica Research Station), which will be used for the purchase of an innovative spectrometer.

Petnica is a place that moves the boundaries.  It was founded in 1982 on the initiative of young researchers, teachers, and students in order to improve education and educate young scientists. During three and a half decades of its development and operation, the Petnica Science Centre has become famous and reputable both in the country and abroad. Young and talented science lovers, primary and secondary school students, learn through research and work on small-scale scientific projects.  The spectrometer will be certainly very useful in their work. This is a multifunctional mobile device, which easily and quickly identifies chemical substances and compounds in samples. It can be used countless times in analyses without damaging the material being tested.  It is used in biomedicine, geology, ecology, chemistry, archeology, and the arts – for testing colours and pigments on artworks and cultural monuments.

Within the National Giving two million dinars were raised. The check was handed over to the director of the Petnica Science Centre, Vigor Majić, at the opening of the Philanthropy Festival on 24th October, in the premises of UniCredit bank in Belgrade. The festival opening was attended by Ana Brnabić, the Serbian Prime Minister, Kyle Scott, the U.S.  Ambassador to Serbia, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the members of the Coalition for Giving.

The Philanthropy Festival is a part of the campaign that aims at demonstrating the power of giving by fundraising in order to support education, young people, and innovations. It is a part of the USAID-funded Framework for Giving project, and it is implemented by the Coalition for Giving led by Ana and Vlade Divac Foundation. Other Coalition members are Trag Foundation, Catalyst Balkans, Smart Kolektiv, the Serbian Philanthropy Forum, the Responsible Business Forum and the Serbian Chamber of Commerce.

At the festival opening, the Prime Minister Ana Brnabić and Ambassador Kyle Scott gave certificates of appreciation to all the companies and organisations that supported the National Day of Giving by their donations.

In addition to Alma Quattro, the following companies and foundations participated in the fundraising: GDI Solutions, Erste Bank, Delta Foundation, Bosis, Unicredit Bank, Vetroelektrane Balkana, Coca Cola Hellenic, Hemofarm Foundation, Belgrade Marathon, Vip Mobile, Telenor, Telekom Srbija, Infostud 3,  “Humane Heart from Šabac” Foundation,  and LaFarge.

“Charity is the only treasure that increases when it is divided”, said Cesare Cantù.
We invite you to do good for others, because good deeds come back to us.