Skip to main content
Explore milestones in the Stavros Niarchos Foundation’s (SNF) more than quarter century of grantmaking.

SNF’s mission is broad by design, and the grants we’ve made since 1996 reflect this breadth. Grant projects have taken place on six continents—and in the seas between. They have spanned young and old, remote villages to big cities, alpha to omega (literally, in Greek language tools). They have ranged in size from a few thousand euros to a billion-dollar-plus initiative, but we know that dollar value and human value are two different things entirely. The thousands of grants SNF has made reflect the diversity of the people they serve but are all united by a common goal: empowering humanity. Explore a sampling in the timeline below.

2009

December

Making sure that Patmos’s cultural heritage is not gone with the wind, Greece

Through a grant to Holy Royal Patriarchal Stavropegic and Coenobiac Monastery of Saint John the Theologian and Evangelist, SNF supports the Patmos Windmills Restoration Program, which aims to restore a traditional windmill to its original functioning state to be turned into an operational museum. The project also involves the restoration of two additional mills.

November

Providing vital non-medical therapies to women with cancer, France

Standing with women with cancer through socio-aesthetic services, nutritional education, relaxation therapy, reflexology, massage, psychological support, and group discussion is a major part of Défi de Femmes, and with SNF’s support covering the operating expenses, the organization can stay focused on its mission. 

October

Preserving Greek Orthodox heritage, Egypt

A grant to the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa supports the construction of a Patriarchal Sacristy in the basement of the Patriarchal Palace, which contains a large cistern dating back to the Ptolemaic era. 

July

Digitizing manuscripts from Greek antiquity, Switzerland

With a grant to the Université de Fribourg, SNF supports the Greek Sources in Swiss Libraries project, which aims to digitize 40 manuscripts related to Greek antiquity from Swiss libraries, including manuscripts of texts from Greek antiquity, medieval translations of significant ancient Greek works, and medieval commentaries on key works of Greek antiquity, to make them available to scholars.

July

Ancient Greek with an Italian accent, Italy 

In collaboration with Universita degli studi di Genova, SNF supports the creation of a German version of A Lexicon of Ancient Greek, a multilingual project which aims to make an Ancient Greek dictionary available in printed and electronic editions on CD-ROM in Italian, Modern Greek, English, and Spanish in addition to German.

July

Prescribing smiles, United Kingdom

SNF supports the Theodora Children's Charity in recruiting and training additional "clown doctors” to bring joy to children in the hospital.

February

Seeing to eye health, Vietnam 

Ophthalmic training and technical assistance, project management, and procurement of medical equipment and supplies, as well as advocacy for eye care awareness in North Vietnam are covered by a grant which supports ORBIS in working with the Vietnam National Institute of Ophthalmology.

February

Battling food poverty, United States

A grant, SNF’s first food-relief related grant of many in New York, supports the Food Bank of New York City’s to end food poverty and increase both short- and long-term access to affordable, nutritious food among low-income New Yorkers.

2008

October

Mobile breast cancer screening, Serbia

To provide breast cancer screening for women throughout Serbia, particularly in remote areas, SNF supports Lifeline’s mobile mammography unit, which includes a digital mammography system. 

October

Greek studies in US Schools, United States

The Examined Life: Greek Studies in Schools program, administered by Newton Public Schools in Massachusetts, invites teachers to participate in a series of seminars on literature, mythology, philosophy, art, archeology, and social issues. SNF supports the program for a dozen years starting in 2001, including with a 2008 grant.

October

A home for people in need, Peru 

With a special emphasis on single mothers with young children, SNF supports Foyer de Charité in building fifty tiny homes for people in need in Lima to provide them with adequate shelter and improve their quality of life. 

April

Making ancient Greek manuscripts accessible, United Kingdom 

SNF supports the British Library’s Greek Manuscripts Digitization Project for Greek manuscripts from the third century BCE to 1600 CE in order to make them freely accessible online to researchers and the public.

January

Safety and warmth for elders, France

SNF supports Congrégation Petites Soeurs des Pauvres in a ground-up rebuild of Ma Maison, an eldercare home in La Tronche, Grenoble, that hosts more than eighty people in need.

2007

October

Restoring a significant archaeological site, Greece

Picturesquely situated on a hillside, Ancient Messini comprises a large theatre, a sizeable sanctuary of Asclepius, and one of the most impressive Ancient Greek stadiums. With SNF’s support, the Society of Messinian Archaeological Studies conducted design studies and restoration work at the ancient theater of Ancient Messene, which was inaugurated in 2013.

October

When art knows no borders, Mexico

SNF supports North American Art Projects and Research Corporation in running Music of the Stones, a multidisciplinary, yearlong arts project in Mexico involving collaborations between artists and scholars in Mexico, Paris, and the United States.

April

Remembering 9/11 victims, United States

To bear solemn witness to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, honor the thousands of victims, and recognize all those who survived and who showed compassion in the aftermath of the attacks, SNF becomes a founder of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum.

2006

October

Homer sweet Homer, Switzerland 

SNF supports the exhibition Homer: Work and Impact at the Antikenmuseum Basel and the Reiss-Engelhorn-Museum in Mannheim, Germany, exploring the work of the seminal—and perhaps illusory—Greek poet.

October

Sanitation in the Himalayas 

With a grant to Tibet Heritage Fund, SNF supports water and sanitation projects and vocational training for people in the disadvantaged mountain communities of the Himalayas.

April

Semi-autonomous living for people with disabilities, Greece

SNF supports the construction of "ARGO Association of Naval Parents of Children with Disabilities" new center in Kalyvia-Attica, which includes semi-autonomous living facilities and a day center for children and adults.

April

A cultural center open to all, Brazil 

A grant supports Casa Do Menor Sao Miguel Arcanjo in its effort to build a cultural center in Fortalezza to provide educational, athletic, and Brazilian cultural activities to underserved young people in the region. 

February

Greece and the revival of the Olympics, United States

SNF supports Greekworks Foundation in donating a set of three scholarly books on the role of Greece in the revival of the modern Olympic games to the libraries of four-year academic institutions.

February

Going deeper into the Greco-Roman world, United Kingdom 

SNF supports the University of Bristol in expanding program offerings at the Institute of Greece, Rome and the Classical Tradition, which promotes research in Greco-Roman history, archaeology, literature, art history, and philosophy.

2005

December

Public libraries and technology, United States 

A grant supports the New York Public Library in organizing an international conference on the relationship between public libraries and technology.

October

Ensuring Musée Masséna’s future, France

SNF supports renovation of the Empire-period Musée Masséna to ensure the preservation of and access to the museum’s collection of decorative artwork from the nineteenth century through the first quarter of the twentieth century.

October

Expedition in the South Pacific, Vanuatu

Through a grant to Pro-Natura International, SNF supports a scientific expedition to document the fauna and flora of the island of Espiritu Santo in Vanuatu with a biodiversity survey covering all the major environments of the island.

October

Small towns deserve cultural spaces too, Greece

The Cultural Center of Sidirokastro is renovated with SNF support to the Holy Metropolis of Sidirokastro, to be able to host events and other activities for the town’s residents.

October

 Enhancing Whitechapel Library’s Mission, United Kingdom

In memory of Mary A. Dracopoulos, our founder’s sister, SNF supports a project to enhance public access to the Whitechapel Gallery’s Library in its move to a new facility.

September

A new home for elderly, Greece

SNF supports the Holy Metropolitan Church of Monemvasia and Sparta in constructing a new home for elderly people in the prefecture of Laconia.

April

No child left on their own, Greece

SNF supports the construction of a house at the SOS Children’s Village in Thrace, which integrates social services into the provision of care for children who cannot live with their families.