About Us
“It is not just the nature around us, but also the soul within us
which is affected by the destruction of the environment. I’ve committed
myself to this foundation - a spark of light in the darkness – because
I want to retain my happiness, my hope and my joy of life and not give in
to despair.”
Robert Jungk
"It requires a great deal to change and improve the way we deal with
nature and to see ourselves as part of nature: knowledge and determination,
laws and behaviour, incentives and sanctions, individual and joint action".
Udo E. Simonis
Hope through Action
For the sake of our children
For a healthy and intact environment
“Hope through Action” is the motto of the Deutsche Umweltstiftung
which was founded in 1982 in Mainz and has its headquarters in Germersheim.
It is state-approved and recognised as a non-profit organisation and is politically
and economically independent. The foundation members’ work is purely
voluntary.
It is only through reassessing the way we think, becoming environmentally
aware and acting upon this that we will be able to protect and preserve the
natural basis of life of humans, animals and plants, and to give our children
and grandchildren hope for the future.
Our goals are:
- Environmental education, training, instruction and information
- Consumer information and consumer protection
- Acknowledgement and support of outstanding commitment in the area of nature conservation and environmental protection by offering cash prizes, such as the book award “Reading for the Environment”, the journalist award and the hope award
- Promotion of activities in the area of nature conservation and environmental protection by individuals and associations, societies, institutes, companies, civic action groups and research organisations who/which support the improvement of environmental conditions and environmental law through scientific, journalistic, literary, artistic or other practical activities as well as analyses and studies, and who/which support the safeguarding, maintaining and protecting the basis of life of nature and countryside, ecological resources and biotopes (§2 of the foundation statutes)
- Purchase and tending of property to strengthen the protection of nature and countryside
- Participation in environmental discussions, licence procedures and law initiatives
The Deutsche Umweltstiftung has always endeavoured to act in this spirit to give hope; the foundation has helped promote many suggestions, ideas, incentives and initiatives since it was launched in 1982.
Please support the Deutsche Umweltstiftung by your donation or endowment!
Our key activities:
The Deutsche Umweltstiftung commits itself to ecologically oriented education and information. It supports
- the dialogue between scientists and other professionals who are involved in preventative environmental research and the dissemination of holistic thinking
- local and regional environmental initiatives founded on great personal commitment
- objective environmental information in the media
- the development of an environmental orientation on the book market by awarding the annual book prize “Reading for the Environment” and by means of the “Büchermarkt” link (books on nature and the environment) on its homepage
- initiatives for establishing national parks in federal states which do not yet have any (Rhineland-Palatinate and Baden-Württemberg)
- the promotion of publications aimed at disseminating environmental information and conducting public relations work
Who is in the Deutsche Umweltstiftung?
At present, the Board of Trustees, the Managing Board and the Advisory Board have the following members:
Board of Trustees
- Rainer Beeretz, lawyer, deputy chairman of the board of trustees
- Melanie Bilz, engineer for landscape planning
- Markus Duscha, engineer; political and organisational adviser on environmental protection
- Joana Emetz, singer-songwriter/composer
- Alice Gempfer, social educationalist
- Dr. Rainer Grießhammer, chemist, deputy executive manager of the Öko-Institute (Institute for Applied Ecology), Freiburg
- Prof. Wolf-Dieter Hasenclever, principal
- Mark vom Hofe, journalist, chairman of the board of trustees
- Dr. Hans-Jochen Luhmann, Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy
- Dr. Ing. agr. Peter Markus, tutor and coordinator of the Evangelical Academy of Iserlohn, Institute for Church and Society
- Dr. Reinhard Piechocki, biologist
- Prof. Dr. Inge Schmitz-Feuerhake, physicist (rtd.)
- Dr. Bernd Siebenhüner, professor, ecological economics, political sciences and macro-economics
- Prof. em. Dr. Dr. h.c. Udo E. Simonis, economist
Managing Board
- Andrea Fritz, translator
- Barbara Wegener, businesswoman; public relations; designer
- Hans Günter Schumacher, civil servant (rtd.), acting spokesman for the managing board
Scientific Advisory Board
- Antje Bultmann, science journalist, degree in art and social education
- Jan R. Egel, journalist, editor-in-chief of “eve”, a magazine on nutrition and vitality
- Dr. Josef Heringer, landscape ecologist and horticulturalist
- Dr. Ulrich Höpfner, chemist, executive manager of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, Heidelberg
- Dr. Franz Kohout, professor for political sciences at the University of Würzburg
- Dr. Uwe Lahl, head of department at the Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety
- Prof. Dr. Peter Cornelius Mayer-Tasch, political scientist and president of the Munich University of Politics
- Prof. Dr. Konrad Ott, professor for environmental ethics
- Prof. Dr. Hansjörg Seybold, educationalist; head of a work group on research into environmental education at the Pedagogical Universities of Baden-Württemberg
- Dr. Ulrich Teusch, free-lance journalist and political scientist
What can each of you do?
You can help by
- giving a one-off or regular donation
- making an endowment to increase the foundation’s assets
- leaving a sum in your will, or by bequest or testamentary contract
- recruiting more donors
- giving a donation to the Deutsche Umweltstiftung instead of giving company presents for anniversaries, Christmas, New Year etc.
- subscribing to the annual foundation’s circular by a one-off contribution of €15.00 for all circulars from 2005
How is our work financed?
The Deutsche Umweltstiftung finances its work by
- income from the foundation’s assets
- one-off and regular donations
- endowments
- occasional income from redistribution of regulatory fines
The larger the number of people who, through their donations and contributions, support the Deutsche Umweltstiftung in its work, the better the results will be. No contribution is too large and all contributions, however small, are important and welcome. Those who wish to receive any additional information during the year and invitations to public events and conferences are kindly requested to transfer a one-off contribution or donation of at least €50.00 (individuals) or €150.00 (legal entities) to the Deutsche Umweltstiftung. Please note that, following amendments to the tax regulations, payments made to foundations are subject to special tax privileges. Donations are tax-deductible. Donation receipts for your tax return are sent within a few weeks of payment.
Please support our foundation for the benefit of the general public and to make our environment worth living in.
What can we do for our environment?
We do not always have to call the state to account to do something for nature and the environment! If a well-functioning democracy is to thrive, private and voluntary action and official political activity need to complement each other. This does not, of course, mean that voluntary work releases politics from its responsibility. On the contrary! Politicians are expected to act as role models to motivate people to take part in honorary commitment. This is one of the reasons why the Deutsche Umweltstiftung was founded. The basic assets were contributed by more than 450 donors - people who are committed to ecological beliefs and action and who wanted to lay the foundations for politically and economically independent environmental work.
Much has been talked about environmental protection in the last few decades; however, more animals and plants are being wiped out now than ever before and the exploitation of our natural resources remains undiminished. It is a challenge for every one of us to counteract this development. Protecting the environment and life must become a guiding principle in all areas - in politics, research, nursery schools, schools and churches, both at home and at work. Supporting and strengthening this learning process is a task which is vital to our survival, which is why the Deutsche Umweltstiftung was founded. We are committed to achieving this aim.
There is more “about us” on the Internet (see the link “Aktuelles” and “Personalien”); here, you can find more information on and pictures of the members of our foundation’s committees.
Deutsche Umweltstiftung
Deutsche Umweltstiftung, Postfach 1355, 76713 Germersheim
Tel.: +49(0)7274 / 4767; Fax +49(0)7274 / 77302
Internet: www.deutscheumweltstiftung.de
Donations account number: 20 024 444, Sparkasse Germersheim, BLZ (bank code):
548 514 40
