Energeia, o.p.s.

Marek has a new investment strategy. He invests gifts and sponsorship meant for charitable purposes into activities that will generate permanent income to fund the charitable organizations in the future. Then he engages with individual business donors that are willing to support his method. This strategy strengthens citizen organizations (COs) by making them independent and grants them freedom to develop without relying on the "noble beggary" approach. In response to the limiting way charitable activities are often funded, Marek established a public benefit company to create new ventures, such as the current construction of a dam, which will fund them over the long-term. Marek's strategy destroys the perception of citizen groups as money vacuums. This activity is based on a thorough understanding of present-day society: It creates a new form of ethical business that not only invests in renewable and environmentally sustainable energy production in a socially nonexploitative way, but also, above all, exists to support charitable causes. Each step of his activities currently generates more profit than investment, which, in turn, convinces other donors to participate. It is easily replicable not only across the Czech Republic, but also in other parts of Eastern and Central Europe. Unlike other organizations that have a short-term focus on creating a sustainable image of the citizen sector that will allow funding through individual and corporate sponsorship, Marek's enterprise is intended to be an active mainstream business that will fund charitable activities over the long-term and will inspire new ways to think about our interconnected world.