The mission and goals of Polish Institutes

Established by decision of the minister of foreign affairs, the Polish Institutes are an important vehicle for Poland’s foreign policy. The network of the Institutes fulfils the mission of Polish public diplomacy: protecting Poland’s good name and image, in particular through ensuring Polish presence in international projects and establishing and maintaining contacts with foreign partners in the area of culture, education, science, and social life.

The role of the Polish Institutes is to promote today’s Poland—a modern, internationally active state, a successful model of peaceful political and economic transformations. They also seek to challenge untrue stereotypes and unfair, one-sided opinions about our country’s recent history.

The Polish Institutes take consistent action to reach the relevant public. In the receiving states, they collaborate with local institutions of culture, Polish diaspora organisations, research and development facilities, and local media.

The multifaceted activities of the Polish Institutes concern broadly understood public diplomacy and building Poland’s positive image abroad in such fields as information policy, the economy, history, culture, education and language, science, sport, tourism or even the culinary art.

The Polish Institutes also aspire to build a group of future allies for the task of promoting Poland’s achievements—staff and students of Polish, Slavic and Central European studies—and work to facilitate the involvement of Polish scientific and research staff in the process of educating the youth abroad.

The Polish Institutes are financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Institutes actively support measures to promote Polish culture abroad taken by other institutions such as the Adam Mickiewicz Institute, the Polish Film Institute, the Book Institute, the Theatre Institute, and the Fryderyk Chopin Institute.