Mission

The U.S. - Baltic Foundation (USBF) is a not-for-profit organization that seeks to develop and strengthen ties between the people of the United States and the Baltic Nations -- Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Located in Washington, D.C., the Foundation draws upon the generosity of American institutions and individuals to address Baltic cultural, educational and political development needs through programs that emphasize the trans-Atlantic movement of people, ideas and resources.

About the U.S.-Baltic Foundation

Since its inception in 1990, when the Baltic nations stood on the brink of independence from the Soviet Union, the foundation has served as a catalyst for constructive change and critical development. It has been a key educational resource for U.S. and Baltic policy-makers. It has introduced new American audiences to the Baltics through a series of public affairs programs. It has helped nurture and strengthen the growth of democracy and free-markets in the Baltics in their difficult transitions from illegally annexed states (a.k.a. “Soviet republics”) to free nations.

As citizens of the world’s oldest modern democracy, Americans have over two hundred years of hands-on experience in advancing and protecting the integrity of cherished public institutions.  The first and greatest modern nation founded on common visions and principles, not bloodlines, it continues to inspire activists the world over who wish to apply fundamental American concepts of rule of law and free market economics.   The myriad of private and public institutions and processes developed on this continent and which embody those principles provides a palate of global proportions for those who would draw from it.  While old forms of corruption persist and new ones arise, American national, state and local governments and the citizens they serve have, over the centuries, devised many successful models that may be of interest and use to the Baltic States. 
       
Over the years more than 4,000 American supporters have helped USBF raise more than nine million dollars for programs to build key national institutions in the Baltics, including municipal governments, independent media, schools of public administration, and civil society organizations.  They have contributed substantially to the rapid ascent of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania into the family of democratic Western nations, nations that now belong to the European Union as well as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).  The USBF has won grants from the Pew Charitable Trust, Bradley Foundation, Knight Foundation, National Endowment for Democracy, U.S. Information Agency and the U.S. Agency for International Development. Thousands of current and future Baltic leaders have benefited from these programs.

Leading professionals and experienced policy-makers, including five former U.S. Ambassadors to the Baltics, direct the activities of the Foundation.  USBF maintains a professional office in Washington, DC.