Praesterno Foundation is a non-profit organization with the central office in Warsaw and local centres in eight Polish cities.
Its main activities are related to broadly defined youth-adressed prevention, which includes conducting social programs, as well as training and education for youth workers and decision- or policy makers.
Praesterno Foundation is strongly engaged in improving the prevention quality on national and regional level, through actions popularising knowledge and good practice among ngo and local authorities personnel.
Most recent closed program is Profnet – supporting non-government organisations working in the field of addiction prevention. The program consisted of local conferences for NGOs leaders and authorities, training for youth workers and decision makers, e-learn module on prevention theory, evaluation handbook for program leaders.
One of the leading projects of the Praesterno Foundation is Program for Counteracting Social Pathology in Adolescents, consistently conducted since 1994 in 8 local youth-centers operated by Foundation.
Every year over 800 adolescents take part in a 10-month program. Up to 50 support groups are set, in which participants become a part of supervised and assisted peer environment, and can together face and discuss their daily problems, personal values, identity issues, as well will practice necessary social skills. This program is described in details on the Exchange on Drug Demand Reduction Action (EDDRA) website.
Program is being run in Bielsko-Biała, Bydgoszcz, Gdańsk, Kraków, Lublin, Łódź, Puławy, and Wrocław, in cooperation with schools and parents.
In years 2004 – 2012 and again since 2016 Praesterno Foundation has been running counselling service www.narkomania.org.pl on behalf of the National Bureau for Drug Pwww.narkomania.org.plrevention. Service provides information and professional assistance for people meeting drug-related problems – the key activity is on-line guidance for drug users and their families or friends, which is provided through e-mail, chat or video-communicator.
Service is completely anonymous, and free of charge. Yearly around 2000 consultations are provided.
Foundation has also run various research programs, and different actions within the scope of education for adults, social assistance, psychological and physical health, promotion and support of education.
Praesterno Foundation is also the publisher of the quarterly Serwis Informacyjny UZALEŻNIENIA („News Bulletin on Addiction”), and many non-periodical publications.