Warsaw: Paving New Ways for Participation of Mothers, Fathers, and Children in Local Public and Social Life—The MaMa Foundation

Abstract

MaMa Foundation is a non-profit organization established in June 2006 in Warsaw by young, highly educated mothers, who believed that mothers and fathers with small children should be able to increase their participation in the local public and social life through elimination of social, cultural and architectonic barriers. The issues MaMa works with include city mobility of parents with small children, economic reactivation and social inclusion of women as well as problems connected with modern parenting. The actions and projects include awareness campaigns, cultural initiatives, workshops and trainings, legal, psychological and civil advice, artistic and educational projects. MaMa Foundation is one of the best and innovative examples of possible impact of local civil society organization (CSO) on public administration as well as local welfare policies in Warsaw. Its activities are followed with interest by CSOs and institutions in other Polish cities as well as abroad. Moreover, the projects of MaMa Foundation trigger, intentionally or spontaneously, multiplication of local initiatives, which are often implemented by MaMa’s actions beneficiaries, strengthening potential of local communities to solve their own problems.