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Kinstellar Sofia is the proud supporter of BEST Foundation (Bulgarian English Speech and Debate Tournaments)
Our Sofia office has recently expanded its community investment program with a new organisation that focuses on education and developing brilliant young talents. We are happy to announce that we will be supporting the BEST Foundation (“Bulgarian English Speech and Debate Tournaments”) in their debate programme “Law and Justice” aiming to engage the student community in a context of active citizenship and democratic values. BEST is a non-profit organisation founded in 2013 and dedicated to providing Bulgarian students an inclusive and supportive space to practice critical thinking, public speaking and creative expression. We, at Kinstellar and our partner BEST, believe that students’ potential should be developed
Kinstellar drafts the country reports on the enforcement of the OECD's anti-bribery convention for Transparency International
Community Investment has been an integral part of Kinstellar’s firm culture since our start eight years ago. We are currently working on 21 pro bono matters for diverse organisations involved in a range of socially-engaged activities—from street-work outreach, educating future leaders and helping artists, refugees, and the disabled to preparing anti-corruption reports for Transparency International and advising the Kazakh Geographic Society on agreements concerning a genetic analysis of the “Golden Man” at the archaeological site Issyk Kurgan. This year, we made our CI programme more visible by posting short articles on TrustLaw, the global pro bono programme of the Thomson Reuters Foundation. The programme connects
Kinstellar supports the Inspirational Leaders Charity Auction organised by Teach for Bulgaria and the Bulgarian Business Leaders Forum
How engaged is the Bulgarian business community with charity? The fifth Inspirational Leaders Charity Auction organised by our community investment partner Teach for Bulgaria (TFB) and the Bulgarian Business Leaders Forum (BFBL) gave a clear answer. Representatives from over 40 companies gathered on 17th November to support the cause of TFB and raised over EUR 50,000, bidding for the talent and skills of 19 showmen, inspirational leaders and famous sportsmen. Kinstellar Sofia is proud to have given our contribution to this event for the second year in a row, this time as a platinum sponsor. We firmly believe that one of the smartest investments a company can do is that in education, ultimately changing children’s lives
‘Running Seventeen’
Our Bucharest office has always had a strong team running in support of United Way Romania. But on 15 May, the office shattered all records, boasting the biggest team ever with 17 colleagues participating in the Bucharest International Half-Marathon. They wanted to be part of the fight against malnutrition, which is a serious issue in Romania, with almost 30% of children being either overweight or malnourished. The funds raised will support an offering of sports and nutrition programmes, so these children can be on their way to leading a healthy life. United Way Romania, a Romanian foundation affiliated with United Way Worldwide, has been our community investment partner in Romania since 2005. Over the years, we have raise
Helping beyond our borders
Kinstellar Sofia Office initiated and co-organised a fundraising event for our community investment partner Teach for Bulgaria which was held on 10 May in London. The fact that London falls outside of Kinstellar’s regional coverage was no obstacle to helping Teach for Bulgaria reach out to the Bulgarian diaspora living there, reconnect to old collaborators, win new supporters and raise some funds. The event gathered professionals from international law firms, banks, financial institutions and other corporations in the London City. They were all impressed by the inspirational presentation from Teach for Bulgaria’s CEO Evgenia Peeva, who talked about the challenges and opportunities for education in Bulgaria and how important
Kinstellar Sofia is proud sponsor of charity auction in support of Teach for Bulgaria
Kinstellar Sofia Office sponsored the Inspirational Leaders Charity Auction, which was held on 25th November 2015 by our community investment partner Teach for Bulgaria and the Bulgarian Business Leaders Forum. The guests had the opportunity to bid for and secure the talent and skills of showmen, inspirational leaders and famous sportsmen for a corporate event. The auction was well attended and it was truly inspiring to see how many of the key business leaders in Bulgaria have embraced Teach for Bulgaria’s cause for improving education. The auction raised over EUR 76,000, which surpassed all expectations. At Kinstellar Sofia we are proud to have taken part in this event, which raised such a good amount for such a meaningful
Hands and brains unite for the community
A team from Kinstellar’s Bratislava office recently used their hands to help Brana do zivota (Gateway to Life) make their garden a bit tidier. They spent their Friday afternoon differently than usual, together with more than 6,000 other corporate volunteers, working on more than 500 projects in 14 towns across Slovakia as part of the Nase Mesto (Our Town) campaign, the largest corporate volunteering event in Slovakia. This year, corporate volunteers also offered, for the first time in the history of this event, their skills, know-how and knowledge to non-profits in what was known as the ‘Pro Bono Marathon’. Specialists in marketing, advertising, finance and law lavished invaluable advice on those working for non-profits
Teach for Bulgaria
This month, Kinstellar’s Sofia Office started its partnership with Teach for Bulgaria (TfB), part of the Teach For All network which operates in 36 countries. TfB works to improve the currently inadequate educational system in Bulgaria, which is recognised by statistics and reliable studies as a major cause of poverty, crime and other social problems. TfB is a highly professional and knowledgeable NGO, run by a Harvard graduate who recently launched a nationwide debate on education together with leading local business players. In only five years of existence, TfB has already had a significant impact, extending its reach to more than 10,000 children at risk. Named “NGO for 2014” at the Forbes Business Awards in Sofia
Bringing colour and a sense of community to the urban jungle
For the past four years, Kinstellar’s Budapest office has been giving pro bono legal advice to the Urban Gardens Association (UGA), which develops community gardens in Hungary. The aim of these gardens is to bring people in the urban environment closer together and to help them realise what a community can achieve by working together, not to mention the general improvement the gardens bring in their quality of life. In 2014 the association managed to create four gardens (it now has seven in total). According to UGA’s president, these gardens are working in an excellent manner, not least because of the quality of the sample agreements we prepared and the pro bono advice we continue to provide. We are very proud of our lawyers
Run, give, feel good
A team of lawyers from Kinstellar’s Almaty office took part in the IV International Almaty Charitable Marathon on 26 April, which hosted 15,000 runners. Every year, the money raised by participants is donated to support charitable projects. This year, Yerlan Akhmetov, Joel Benjamin and Yerbol Konarbayev responded to a call for participation from Ruslan Murzashev, the Almaty office’s marathon star. The four runners put in a good performance, making their colleagues very proud. But more importantly, the funds they raised will be donated to an orphanage for children with severe speech disorders. For more information about Kinstellar’s Community Investment Programme, contact Juraj Bobula, Regional Community Investment Coordinator
CSR rankings in Prague
Kinstellar has once again nominated its community investment programme for the Czech Republic’s Top Responsible Company Award. This year, we are very pleased to be ranked 13th in the Social Beneficial Project category, and 25th in the Top Responsible Corporation category (links in Czech only). The latter ranking is two spots better than our ranking last year, and we fared better than major companies with CI budgets beyond our reach and imagination, such as Procter & Gamble, Metrostav and Johnson & Johnson. For more information about Kinstellar’s Community Investment Programme, contact Juraj Bobula, Regional Community Investment Coordinator, ator +421 2 5929 1135.
Praise for Kinstellar's pro bono work
A representative of the European Council for Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) recently expressed the organisation’s ‘considerable gratitude’ for Kinstellar’s contribution to the Information Note on Syrian Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Europe, which provides an overview of practices in selected countries towards people who have fled the Syrian conflict and claimed asylum in Europe. The information we contributed – on national legislation, jurisprudence and practices in Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Romania – was, in ECRE’s words, ‘instrumental’ in putting the report together. For more information about Kinstellar’s Community Investment Programme, contact Juraj Bobula, Regional Community Investment