Open Society Foundations
An international philanthropic network founded by George Soros that funds civil-society, human-rights, democratic-governance, and public-interest initiatives.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Open Society Foundations (OSF) is an international grantmaking network established by George Soros in 1993 as the Open Society Institute. It developed from a group of foundations that Soros had created in Central and Eastern Europe during the late Cold War and the political transformations that followed the collapse of Soviet-style socialism. The network takes its name from the concept of the open society associated with philosopher Karl Popper, whose work influenced Soros's views about pluralism, fallibility, democratic accountability, and the need for institutions that can be challenged and improved. OSF does not sell conventional consumer products. Its principal activity is philanthropic funding: it provides grants, fellowships, research support, and institutional assistance to nongovernmental organizations, journalists, educators, legal advocates, public-health groups, and other civil-society actors. Its program areas have included human rights, criminal-justice reform, drug-policy reform, migration and refugee protection, education, public health, economic justice, freedom of expression, government transparency, and democratic participation. Some initiatives operate through regional foundations and country offices, while others are organized as global programs or partnerships. The foundations became particularly influential in post-communist Europe, where Soros-backed institutions supported independent education, public debate, legal reform, and civic organizations. Their work later expanded across Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and the United States. Among associated initiatives have been the Open Society Fellowship, the Global Drug Policy Program, support for higher education, the National Security and Human Rights Campaign, and the Lindesmith Center's research on drug policy. OSF has also supported organizations involved in immigration reform, racial justice, access to information, and conflict prevention. The network has attracted both praise and sustained criticism. Supporters describe it as an important source of independent funding for organizations working where public institutions are weak, repressive, or unwilling to support minority rights and accountability. Critics argue that a privately financed foundation network can exert disproportionate influence over public policy, promote a liberal or progressive agenda without electoral accountability, or fund organizations whose political positions are controversial. Governments and political movements in several countries have portrayed OSF as an instrument of foreign political interference. Russia banned the foundation network in 2015, Pakistan ordered it to cease operations in 2017, and OSF moved its Budapest office to Berlin in 2018 after escalating pressure from the Hungarian government. It also closed its offices in Turkey in 2018 after what it described as false accusations and political pressure. Leadership has changed several times since the organization's creation. Aryeh Neier served as its first president, followed by Christopher Stone, Patrick Gaspard, and Mark Malloch-Brown. Binaifer Nowrojee became president in June 2024. In 2023, George Soros transferred leadership of the foundation to his son Alexander Soros, and the organization announced substantial staffing reductions and changes to its operating model. OSF remains a major international philanthropic institution, although its priorities, geographic footprint, and grantmaking structure have continued to evolve.
History
The institutional roots of Open Society Foundations reach back to George Soros's support for independent intellectual and civic activity in communist Eastern Europe. On May 28, 1984, Soros signed an agreement between the Soros Foundation/New York City and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. That agreement established the Soros Foundation/Budapest and became a model for additional foundations in countries undergoing political and economic transition. These organizations supported education, independent cultural activity, research, public debate, and organizations working outside official state structures. In 1991, the network merged with the Fondation pour une Entraide Intellectuelle Européenne, an organization associated with the Congress for Cultural Freedom. The merger broadened the intellectual and institutional resources available to Soros's European philanthropic activities. In the early 1990s, as communist governments fell and new political systems emerged, the foundations concentrated on helping build pluralistic institutions, independent media, legal capacity, and civil society. The Open Society Institute was created in the United States in 1993. Its purpose was to support and coordinate the Soros foundations then operating in Central and Eastern Europe and Russia. The name drew on Karl Popper's account of the open society, a political ideal centered on criticism, individual rights, institutional fallibility, and resistance to authoritarian closure. During the 1990s and 2000s, the organization expanded its grantmaking beyond Europe into Africa, Asia, the Americas, and other regions. Its work covered democratic governance, human rights, social justice, public health, education, criminal justice, drug-policy reform, and freedom of expression. OSF's activities have included direct grants to civil-society groups, fellowships for researchers and public-interest practitioners, support for universities and archives, and funding for policy research. Associated programs included the Library of Congress Soros Foundation Visiting Fellows Program, established in 1990, the Higher Education Support Program, the Lindesmith Center, and initiatives addressing national security and human rights. In the United States, OSF has supported civil-rights and social-justice organizations, immigration reform, racial justice, and community organizing. Internationally, it has funded organizations working on refugee protection, government transparency, minority rights, public-health access, and conflict prevention. In April 2022, it announced a grant to the International Crisis Group. The network's influence has produced extensive debate. Academic critics have argued that large private foundations can shape social-science agendas and public policy in ways that reinforce elite or neoliberal assumptions. Other critics, including some governments and advocacy organizations, have accused OSF-funded groups of promoting foreign political interests, weakening national sovereignty, or supporting positions opposed to their governments. OSF's work related to Israel and Palestine has drawn criticism from pro-Israel organizations, while its efforts concerning prostitution and human-rights awareness in the African Great Lakes region encountered opposition from Ugandan authorities. These disputes reflect the broader tension between transnational philanthropy and domestic political control. Government pressure intensified in several countries during the 2010s. Russia banned OSF in 2015. India's Ministry of Home Affairs placed the organization on a watchlist in 2016, restricting the extension of financial assistance without prior permission. Pakistan ordered the foundation to stop operating in 2017. In Hungary, officials and political leaders increasingly attacked Soros-funded organizations, and OSF moved its Budapest operation to Berlin in 2018. The organization also closed its Turkish offices in 2018 after a campaign of accusations and pressure. Leadership changed from Aryeh Neier, who served as president from 1993 to 2012, to Christopher Stone, Patrick Gaspard, and Mark Malloch-Brown. Binaifer Nowrojee was announced as the next president in March 2024 and began the role on June 1. In 2023, George Soros handed leadership of the foundation to his son Alexander Soros. The transition was accompanied by a major restructuring, including international staff reductions and a revised operating model. OSF continues to operate as a global grantmaking network, but its geographic organization and program priorities remain subject to strategic change.
- 2024
Binaifer Nowrojee becomes president
[3]Binaifer Nowrojee began serving as president of Open Society Foundations on June 1.
- 2023
Alexander Soros assumes foundation leadership
[1]Leadership passed to Alexander Soros, followed by a substantial restructuring of international operations.
- 2018
Budapest office relocated
[1]OSF announced that its Budapest office would move to Berlin amid political pressure in Hungary.
- 2017
Leadership and funding transition
[1]George Soros transferred a major portion of his assets to the foundation, according to contemporary reporting.
- 2015
Russia bans the organization
[1]Russia designated the foundation network and an affiliated assistance foundation as undesirable organizations.
- 2010
Network adopts Open Society Foundations name
[1]The organization began using Open Society Foundations as its public name.
- 1993
Open Society Institute founded
[1]The United States-based Open Society Institute was created to support and coordinate Soros foundations in Europe and Russia.
- 1991
European intellectual foundation merger
[1]The Soros foundation network merged with the Fondation pour une Entraide Intellectuelle Européenne.
- 1990
Visiting fellows program initiated
[1]The Library of Congress Soros Foundation Visiting Fellows Program was established.
- 1984
Hungarian foundation established
[1]George Soros signed the founding agreement for the Soros Foundation/Budapest with the Hungarian Academy of Sciences.
Products and positioning
A high-impact philanthropic network focused on pluralism, human rights, democratic governance, public accountability, and systemic social change.
Fellowship program
Open Society Fellowship
A fellowship program supporting individuals whose work addresses major social, political, or human-rights challenges. Fellows develop projects intended to broaden public debate and contribute to more open and accountable societies.
Policy and grantmaking program
Global Drug Policy Program
A program focused on drug-policy reform, public health, harm reduction, and the human-rights consequences of criminalization. Its work has included research, advocacy support, and grants to organizations seeking alternatives to punitive drug policies.
Education philanthropy
Higher Education Support Program
A philanthropic program supporting higher education, academic institutions, and educational access, particularly in societies undergoing political or economic transition.
Research and policy initiative
Lindesmith Center
A drug-policy research initiative associated with OSF that examined reform, public health, and the social effects of drug prohibition. It contributed research and analysis to debates over alternatives to criminal-justice-centered drug policy.
Human-rights advocacy initiative
National Security and Human Rights Campaign
An initiative addressing the relationship between national-security policies and human rights, including accountability, legal safeguards, and protections against abuses carried out in the name of security.
Controversies
2025
Reported United States investigation
Federal prosecutors were reportedly instructed to investigate allegations concerning OSF funding and groups linked by accusers to terrorism or extremist violence. OSF denied funding terrorism and characterized the inquiry as politically motivated.
2016
Reported cybersecurity breach
Documents reportedly associated with OSF were published online after a breach. Reporting compared the incident with Russian-linked cyberattacks against other institutions, though attribution was not established in the supplied material.
2016
Criticism over Israel and Palestine grants
OSF faced criticism from pro-Israel publications and advocacy groups over grants to organizations working on Israel, Palestine, and related boycott and human-rights issues. The criticism focused on the political effects of the foundation's funding portfolio.
Marketing campaigns
- 2022International Crisis Group support
Global
OSF announced a grant to the International Crisis Group to support conflict prevention and policy work addressing international crises.
Outcome. Grant announced; longer-term outcome not specified in the reference material.
- 2010Global drug-policy reform
Global
Through its drug-policy programs and grantees, OSF supported research, harm reduction, public-health approaches, and reform of criminalization-focused drug policies.
Outcome. Contributed to international policy debate; a single campaign outcome is not specified.
- 2010United States immigration reform support
United States
OSF supported organizations advocating immigration reform, including a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.
Outcome. Supported continuing public and legislative advocacy; no definitive policy outcome is specified.
- 2008Human-rights awareness in the African Great Lakes
Uganda · African Great Lakes region
An OSF effort sought to promote human-rights awareness among sex workers and other affected communities in Uganda and neighboring areas.
Outcome. Ugandan authorities rejected the effort, viewing it as an attempt to legitimize prostitution.
Brand decisions
2023
Restructure international operationsStrategyBackground
After Alexander Soros assumed leadership, OSF reviewed its geographic and organizational model.
Action taken
The foundation announced significant operating-model changes and reductions affecting at least 40 percent of its international staff.
Aftermath
The restructuring marked a major shift in OSF's international organization and grantmaking approach.
2018
Relocate the Budapest office to BerlinStrategyBackground
The Hungarian government had increased pressure on civil-society organizations associated with George Soros and criticized their activities.
Action taken
OSF announced the relocation of its Budapest office to Berlin.
Aftermath
The move reduced OSF's direct institutional presence in Hungary while maintaining its broader European operations.
2018
Close Turkish officesStrategyBackground
The foundation faced accusations and political pressure in Turkey, including scrutiny surrounding liberal intellectuals and academics associated with its work.
Action taken
OSF announced that it would cease operations in Turkey and close its Istanbul and Ankara offices.
Aftermath
The foundation ended its direct office-based operations in Turkey.
2010
Adopt the Open Society Foundations nameStrategyBackground
The network had expanded beyond the earlier Open Society Institute structure and operated through multiple regional and thematic foundations.
Action taken
The organization began using Open Society Foundations as its public name.
Aftermath
The new name emphasized the networked structure of its international grantmaking activities.
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