Sekyra Foundation

Sekyra Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation established in 2018 by Czech entrepreneur Luděk Sekyra. Its work is centered on moral universalism, liberal democratic values, civil society, philosophical inquiry, academic exchange, human rights, environmental responsibility, and cultural and religious pluralism. Rather than operating as a consumer-facing commercial brand, the foundation functions as an institutional platform for grants, partnerships, lectures, conferences, scholarships, publications, and cultural initiatives. A major part of its identity is its long-term relationship with the University of Oxford and other international academic institutions. The foundation has supported the development of philosophical and ethical thought, including work connected with John Rawls, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Isaiah Berlin, Leszek Kołakowski, Jan Patočka, and Karl Popper. Its international partnerships have included Oxford, Harvard's Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics, the University of Notre Dame, Europaeum, the University of Vienna's Vienna Circle Institute, and the Centre for Political Philosophy, Ethics and Religion at Charles University in Prague. The foundation's Oxford relationship has both academic and physical dimensions. Sekyra House at Harris Manchester College, a renovated building containing student accommodation and study halls, was opened in 2014. The building includes a lecture hall named after Tomáš Halík. Luděk Sekyra has served as a member of the Harris Manchester College board and as one of its Foundation Fellows. The foundation has also supported Oxford's White's Professorship of Moral Philosophy, an historic chair established in 1621. After approximately four centuries, the professorship received the name Sekyra and White's Professorship of Moral Philosophy in recognition of the support. Educational exchange is another recurring element of the foundation's activities. It offers month-long stays at Oxford for students from Charles University in Prague and reciprocal opportunities for English students in Prague. Through this model, the foundation links Central European intellectual life with universities and scholarly networks in the United Kingdom and elsewhere. Its program portfolio extends beyond formal academic institutions. The foundation has supported conferences and discussions on political action, phenomenology, the arts, civil society, Wittgenstein's philosophy, Rawls's political thought, European identity, trust, journalism, and the legacy of Václav Havel. It has worked with organizations including the Václav Havel Library, the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, the Czech Centre of PEN International, Kultura Liberalna, the Central European Forum, the Broumov Monastery, the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna, and the International Crisis Group. The foundation also supports publishing, minority emancipation, journalism, public debate, cultural heritage, and environmental and sustainable-development objectives. Examples include support for a three-volume memoir project by Emil Ščuka, a prominent figure in the emancipation of the Roma minority in the Czech Republic, and involvement in discussions concerning a new Czech National Library. In 2021 it supported an international Ludwig Wittgenstein symposium organized with the Vienna Circle Society and the Vienna Circle Institute at the University of Vienna. In Czech public life, the foundation has supported commemorative and civic initiatives connected with the Velvet Revolution, including the Festival of Freedom and Concert for the Future. Its overall positioning is that of a values-led philanthropic institution combining academic patronage with support for democratic culture, independent civil society, freedom, human rights, and intellectual exchange across Central Europe and the wider international community.

Sekyra Foundation was created in 2018 by Czech entrepreneur Luděk Sekyra as a private philanthropic institution focused on intellectual, civic, and cultural life. Its stated orientation combines moral universalism with liberal values and a commitment to civil society. The foundation's program is not limited to conventional charitable giving: it supports academic institutions, educational mobility, public lectures, publishing, philosophical research, democratic culture, human rights, cultural and religious diversity, environmental protection, and sustainable development. The foundation's institutional character developed from Luděk Sekyra's long-standing engagement with Oxford and European intellectual networks. A significant earlier project was the renovation of Sekyra House at Harris Manchester College, University of Oxford. The building opened on November 6, 2014, in connection with the anniversary of the Velvet Revolution. It contains student housing and three study halls, together with a lecture hall named for Tomáš Halík. Sekyra has been associated with Harris Manchester College as a board member and Foundation Fellow, and with Oxford's Vice-Chancellor's Circle and the Aristotelian Society in London. Oxford has remained a central partner. The foundation supports exchanges that allow Charles University students in Prague to undertake month-long stays at Oxford, with reciprocal stays for English students in Prague. It has also supported Oxford's historic White's Professorship of Moral Philosophy. The chair was established in 1621 by Thomas White and is recognized as one of the oldest statutory professorships in philosophy. Following new support, it became known as the Sekyra and White's Professorship of Moral Philosophy, linking the foundation's name with one of Oxford's leading posts in moral philosophy. The foundation's intellectual agenda draws on major twentieth-century thinkers, including John Rawls, Ludwig Wittgenstein, Isaiah Berlin, Leszek Kołakowski, Jan Patočka, and Karl Popper. Its support has enabled conferences, seminars, and scholarly conversations exploring the relationship between ethics, politics, art, religion, public action, and democratic institutions. In 2019, supported projects included a conference on Jan Patočka and the grounds for political action, a Queen's College Oxford conference on culture and value after Wittgenstein, and a Harvard event examining inequality, religion, society, and the legacy of John Rawls. The foundation also supported a Warsaw conference on Europe's future, the Central European Forum in Bratislava, and a Broumov Monastery discussion on trust and understanding. Its support for public discourse extends to journalism and publishing. In Vienna, it sponsored the Annual International Editors' Roundtable at the Institute for Human Sciences, bringing together editors and authors from periodicals representing different political perspectives. It also supported the 57th International Congress of European Journalists in Prague and helped arrange a discussion at the Václav Havel Library with Mark Thompson, then chief executive of The New York Times Company, and Czech media representatives. In Czech cultural and civic life, the foundation has supported the Václav Havel Library, the Václav Havel Human Rights Prize, the Czech Centre of PEN International, the Liberal Institute, the Czechoslovak Documentation Centre, Kultura Liberalna, the Central European Forum, the Czech Christian Academy, and other organizations. It contributed to publication of the memoirs of Emil Ščuka, an important figure in Roma emancipation in the Czech Republic. It has also supported the idea of a new Czech National Library, including discussions involving the Czech Centre of PEN International and the Jan and Meda Mládek Foundation. The foundation's connection with the Sekyra Group's planned redevelopment of the former Žižkov freight railway station was relevant to discussion of a possible library location, although the foundation and the development company are distinct institutional subjects. The foundation has additionally sponsored civic commemorations of the Velvet Revolution, including the Festival of Freedom and Concert for the Future. In 2021 it supported an international symposium on Ludwig Wittgenstein organized with the Vienna Circle Society and Vienna Circle Institute at the University of Vienna. Across these activities, the foundation presents itself as a bridge between academic institutions, public intellectuals, cultural organizations, journalists, and civil-society groups. Its historical development reflects a consistent effort to connect Czech and Central European public life with international debates about freedom, ethics, pluralism, political responsibility, and the future of democratic society.

• 2021

  Wittgenstein symposium supported in Vienna

  [1]Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The foundation supported an international Ludwig Wittgenstein symposium organized with the Vienna Circle Society and the Vienna Circle Institute at the University of Vienna.

• 2019

  Support expands across philosophy, journalism, and European dialogue

  [1]Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The foundation supported conferences on Patočka, Wittgenstein, Rawls, and Europe, as well as journalism and editorial forums in Prague, Vienna, Warsaw, Bratislava, and other locations.

• 2018

  Sekyra Foundation established

  [1]Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Luděk Sekyra established the private foundation to support philosophy, education, civil society, liberal values, human rights, and cultural and environmental initiatives.

• 2014

  Sekyra House opens at Harris Manchester College

  [1]Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  The renovated Sekyra House at Oxford's Harris Manchester College opened on November 6, 2014. It includes student accommodation, study halls, and a lecture hall named after Tomáš Halík.

A Czech private foundation positioned at the intersection of philosophy, liberal democratic thought, academic exchange, civil society, human rights, and cultural dialogue.

• Education and scholarships

  Academic exchange stays

  The foundation offers month-long stays at the University of Oxford for students from Charles University in Prague, alongside reciprocal opportunities for English students to study in Prague. The program supports cross-border academic experience and links Czech and British university communities.

• Academic philanthropy · 2018

  Philosophy and ethics support

  The foundation funds and partners with universities, research centers, conferences, lectures, and publications addressing moral philosophy, political philosophy, ethics, phenomenology, civil society, and the intellectual legacies of thinkers such as Rawls, Wittgenstein, Patočka, Berlin, Kołakowski, and Popper.

• Civic and cultural philanthropy · 2018

  Public dialogue and civil-society programs

  Through support for libraries, journalism organizations, cultural institutions, human-rights initiatives, public forums, and commemorative events, the foundation promotes discussion of democracy, political freedom, pluralism, European identity, and civic responsibility.

• 2019Support for the 57th International Congress of European Journalists

  Czech Republic · Europe

  The foundation supported the first Prague hosting of the 57th International Congress of European Journalists, organized by Lída Rakušanová.

  Outcome. The congress provided a platform for European journalism and media discussion in Prague.

  Source
• Velvet Revolution anniversary sponsorship

  Czech Republic

  The foundation sponsored civic and cultural events marking the anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, including the Festival of Freedom and Concert for the Future.

  Source

• 2021

  Support international Wittgenstein symposiumOther

  Background

  The foundation's program emphasizes the preservation and discussion of important philosophical traditions.

  Action taken

  It supported an international Ludwig Wittgenstein symposium organized with the Vienna Circle Society and the Vienna Circle Institute at the University of Vienna.

  Aftermath

  The event extended the foundation's support for international philosophical dialogue.

  Source

• Build a cross-border philosophy and civil-society networkStrategy

  Background

  The foundation's stated mission links moral and political philosophy with democratic culture, education, human rights, and civil society.

  Action taken

  It formed or maintained partnerships with universities, research institutes, media organizations, cultural institutions, and civic groups across Central Europe, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

  Aftermath

  The foundation's activities developed into a broad platform for academic exchange, public debate, publishing, and civic initiatives.

  Source

• 2021

  International Ludwig Wittgenstein symposium supported[1]Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The foundation supported an international symposium on Ludwig Wittgenstein organized with the Vienna Circle Society and the Vienna Circle Institute at the University of Vienna.

• 2019

  Foundation supports philosophical and political thought conferences[1]Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The foundation supported a range of conferences and public discussions addressing Jan Patočka, Ludwig Wittgenstein, John Rawls, European political identity, trust, and civil society.

• 2019

  Sekyra Foundation supports International Congress of European Journalists[1]Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The foundation supported the 57th International Congress of European Journalists, held in Prague and organized by former Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalist Lída Rakušanová.

• 2019

  Foundation contributes to Emil Ščuka memoir publication[1]Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  The foundation contributed to publication of a three-volume memoir project by Emil Ščuka, whose work was associated with the emancipation of the Roma national minority in the Czech Republic.

• 2018

  Sekyra Foundation established[1]Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org

  Other

  Czech entrepreneur Luděk Sekyra created the private foundation to support moral universalism, liberal values, civil society, philosophy, education, human rights, and related cultural and environmental objectives.

1. 1Sekyra Foundationen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Sekyra Foundation official websitesekyrafoundation.com