Franciszek Dąbrowa

Democratic Institutions Expert, Batory Foundation

Poland

Franciszek Dąbrowa is an expert on Democratic Institutions at the Batory Foundation, a nonprofit organization with the goal of strengthening the role of citizens and civic institutions in public life, and developing international cooperation and solidarity in the European Union and across Central and Eastern Europe. Previously, he served as the Secretary of the Department of International Cooperation and Human Rights at the Polish Ministry of Justice. He worked to rebuild public trust by seeking to ensure the legal system operates on the principle of solidarity, specifically reaching citizens who feel abandoned by institutions. Franciszek bridged high-level policy and human dignity by grounding policy reform in direct service, such as his work coordinating the abolition of legal incapacitation to restore rights to 100,000 citizens. Beyond systemic reform and the restructuring of the $100 million Justice Fund to address alleged misuse of public funds, he also led grassroots humanitarian actions, including securing shelter for 1,500 Ukrainian refugees and providing 3,500 meals and essential medicine to the homeless annually.