Since 1964, action medeor has served as the world’s emergency pharmacy and worked for better, sustainable healthcare, particularly in poorer regions of the world. From its headquarters in the German town of Tönisvorst, North Rhine-Westphalia, it supplies health facilities in around 70 countries with medical aid every year. We invite visitors to take an interactive journey through 60 years of action medeor. As well as an information exhibit, there are a range of games for all ages exploring the issue of medical care. See what various different items of medical equipment feel like, take part in a themed quiz with great prizes, and much more – there’s sure to be something for everyone.

action medeor e.V.

Since 1998, Africa Positive e.V. has been working to promote a more differentiated view of the diverse continent of Africa and the integration of Africans and new citizens in Germany. The association publishes a magazine with the same name, is active in the spheres of education, youth and women’s work, provides free homework support and German tuition and organises the famous Afro Ruhr Festival in Dortmund, uniting artists from all over the world. With the question: “What pictures of Africa are we familiar with?”, Africa Positive e.V. will test how much visitors to the citizens’ festival know about the continent with an Africa puzzle, a quiz and the “Weltfairteilungsspiel”, a game about the fair distribution of world resources. Participants will be in for some surprises.

Africa Positive

The African-German Youth Office (AGYO) supports people to work together for sustainable development. It brings together youth groups from Germany and African countries, and enables young skilled workers to take part in job shadowing in Germany or in Africa. Visitors to the stand can talk to AGYO participants and try their hand at the Africa puzzle to help them “grasp”, in the truest sense of the word, the diversity of the African continent. The AGYO is run by Engagement Global on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. For the programme Team works!, the AGYO is supported by the Senior Expert Service (SES).

www.deutsch-afrikanisches-jugendwerk.de

Afro Project is a non-profit association that organises the International Africa Festival. The festival is now 35 years old, and offers not just music but a full accompanying programme to showcase the diversity of African music and culture. The association has also developed the Africa Online Museum. The stand at the citizens’ festival takes visitors on a virtual journey to Africa. Afro Project’s other work includes supporting the German-African association Mama Afrika, which campaigns against female genital mutilation, through its foundation Africa Festival Würzburg. Visitors to the Afro Project stand can have their hair braided and learn more about the association’s work.

www.africafestival.org

The initiative AIDA Cruise & Help aims to improve educational opportunities in the poorest regions of the world. Five years ago it marked the opening of a first school in Cebu City in the Philippines, funded entirely by donations. Since then, many more schools have opened in a total of 12 countries thanks to AIDA Cruise & Help, and the initiative recently celebrated a major milestone with the financing of its sixtieth project. All 60 of these schools, offering places for around 7000 pupils in total, are already being set up, and 40 have begun teaching. Visitors to the initiative’s stand can learn more about the schools, solve a quiz or test their coordination in an interactive game.

www.aida.de

The media are full of reports of hackers threatening our security and peace. The Allianz SANS Cyber Talent Academy is a community project that is good news for society and bad news for hackers. The massive shortage of skilled workers in the sphere of cybersecurity offers talented refugees in Germany and marginalised women in Africa the opportunity to learn new skills in this field to enable them to work together to protect communities and enterprises against attacks. This is a partner-based project run by Allianz, the SANS Institute and Siemens. In our tent, children, young people and adults can put their abilities to the test with fun tasks focusing on cybersecurity.

www.sans.org

The bank Berliner Sparkasse doesn’t just support young artists and athletes – it also works to boost up-and-coming entrepreneurs and researchers. It is actively involved in networking platforms and start-up competitions and cooperates closely with higher education institutions in Berlin. These efforts help potential founders on their path towards setting up a business. A wide range of ideas for new companies have already become a reality. Berliner Sparkasse is joined at the festival by two successful start-ups. Guests can learn how a good idea becomes a business with a successful product – one they might even be lucky enough to take home with them.

www.berliner-sparkasse.de

The Liz Mohn Stiftung and the Bertelsmann Stiftung work towards enabling everyone to participate in society – politically, economically and culturally. To this end, they harness knowledge, skills and solutions to get people involved. Our shared stand invites visitors to start a conversation with us about the various different forms that participation can take. Explore democracy interactively, test your knowledge of important current issues related to democracy and Europe, talk to our experts about challenges facing today’s society, and take a photo to stand up for a vibrant democracy!

Bertelsmann Stiftung and Liz Mohn Stiftung

The BAK FSJ brings together the civil-society associations responsible for managing the voluntary social year (FSJ) programme in Germany as well as the organisations behind them. Every year, a total of 100,000 people take part in the various forms of official voluntary service in Germany to work for the common good. The voluntary social year is this year marking its sixtieth anniversary. Germany’s voluntary services bring benefits for cohesion in our society as well as for the volunteers and the organisations where they work. These services build solidarity and are an engine of democracy. The BAK FSJ invites guests to learn more about the voluntary services and offers a range of activities that show how their work actively promotes democracy.

www.bak-fsj.de

The Bundeswehr offers military service volunteers the chance to engage actively for the Federal Republic of Germany and to make a special contribution to security through their work. Young German nationals can work in various fields and perform a variety of specialist activities. At the citizens’ festival, you are warmly invited to chat to current military service volunteers to hear more about what they do – and especially to learn why they chose this form of voluntary engagement. Representatives of the recruitment staff will also be on hand to explain how they get young people interested in this valuable activity and how they advise anyone who might want to join.

Voluntary military service at the Bundeswehr

The “clinic clowns” belonging to the 19 member associations of the umbrella organisation Clowns in Medicine and Care, which is marking its twentieth anniversary this year, visit patients of all ages in children’s clinics and care homes. The clowns’ entertaining acts cheer patients up and help them stay upbeat and resilient for a better recovery process. Visitors to the stand can learn about the clinic clowns’ work with a health check and interactive challenges as well as art activities for children. The clowns will be mingling with the public in and around the tent and throughout the festival site to show off the lively acts that put a smile on patients’ faces in the hospitals and care homes they visit.

www.dachverband-clowns.de

In its 250^th anniversary year, the public health insurance provider DAK-Gesundheit is inviting people to join it in celebrating healthy coexistence within our society. Since 2020, it has been running the competition “Faces for a healthy coexistence” (Gesichter für ein gesundes Miteinander) to reward people who make efforts to strengthen societal cohesion. Visitors to the citizens’ festival have the chance to meet the 2023 winners in person and learn about their impressive projects. The stand also shows how employees can carry out voluntary work through their companies, with inspiring examples from among DAK’s staff. A photo booth, an airbrush tattoo station and a jumbo game of Connect Four offer the chance to get hands-on.

www.dak.de

The media outlet Deutsche Welle has a significant presence on the African continent. Its constructive journalism champions freedom, human rights and democracy – even in the face of heavy resistance. At the citizens’ festival, the young staff of the DW studio in Nairobi are on hand to answer questions from the public. They will expose myths about people’s lives in Africa and explain how it’s possible for journalism to be guided by values and dialogue even in an age of deepfakes, hate speech and online disinformation. There are also interactive screens displaying content from the youth magazine The 77 Percent and the environment magazine Eco Africa.

www.dw.com

Hello everyone – moin mitnanner! If you want to learn about the region of East Frisia and its local language of Plattdeutsch, the organisation East Frisian Landscape (Ostfriesische Landschaft, OL) and its Plattdüütsk department should be your first stop. Enjoy the chance to hear, speak and learn the language – the organisation’s stand presents resources including the app PlattinO, the dictionary at www.platt-wb.de and the memory game Mark di dat! You can also sample the local version of a fortune cookie. And there is a wealth of information available about the organisation, the historical period of “Frisian freedom” and how a typical East Frisian tea ceremony works, while younger guests can enjoy colouring in pictures of the organisation’s headquarters. We look forward to seeing you there – Wi freien uns up Hör Visiet!

www.ostfriesischelandschaft.de

Fairtrade Germany is a non-profit organisation under the umbrella of the famous FAIRTRADE Mark. It encourages consumers to choose ethical products and mobilises campaigns for greater justice in global commerce. Visitors to the citizens’ festival are invited to sample fairtrade chocolate while learning more about the idea behind it. The stand has pictures for children to colour in as well as an interactive world map to teach them where fairtrade products come from. Guests of all ages can try their hand at a giant Jenga game and take souvenir photos with banana mascots.

www.fairtrade-deutschland.de

The BAFzA office has joined forces with the City of Münster to raise awareness with an interactive project exploring our conscious and unconscious portrayal of our own attractiveness online. The project focuses on the pressure of expectation that is placed on users – and that they place on themselves. The volunteers at the BAFzA stand invite guests to explore their own personal experiences around the idea of “must-have attractiveness” through a range of activities. One of BAFzA’s responsibilities is to oversee the voluntary social year (FSJ) programme nationwide. This programme includes an educational component that aims, among other things, to promote volunteers’ personal development. The staff responsible for this educational component at the independent providers running the FSJ programme enjoy support from the dedicated BAFzA department Bundestutorat FSJ.

www.fsj-zentralstelle.de

Young people aged between 16 and 26 can choose to take part in a voluntary ecological service year in Germany, doing work that benefits nature and the environment. This means providing hands-on support anywhere from an organic farm to a forest kindergarten to an environmental institute, while learning what’s involved in advancing different environmental causes. The FÖF is the umbrella association representing more than 50 organisations that provide volunteer placements in Germany. It is also the coordinating office for the Federal Ecological Voluntary Service (ÖBFD), which offers flexible placements for volunteers of all ages. Guests at the citizens’ festival can test their balance on a slackline – and by forging boldly ahead, they’ll enjoy a new experience and reach their goal feeling all the stronger as a result.

www.foej.de

The Human Safety Net is the global foundation of Generali Group. It supports disadvantaged people to unlock their potential. Books – and especially reading aloud – are important elements of its programmes for disadvantaged families. At our stand, children are invited to join magician Jella on a trip to the magical world of books, to try out magic tricks in the School of Magic, to have their faces painted to look like the main characters from children’s books, and to prove themselves as team players with the ball-in-a-maze challenge. Children who like quieter activities can listen to stories or do some colouring-in. Singer-dancer TRONG will be performing pop and K-pop on the Stage in the Park.

www.generali.de/nachhaltigkeit/the-human-safety-net

Our mission is to promote volunteer work. We provide volunteers with concrete support in the form of numerous different opportunities for funding, networking, advice and training. Stop by our stand to have a chat – we look forward to meeting you! #TeamEhrenamt (#TeamVolunteer) – a team of around 29 million dedicated individuals in Germany. Let’s make your work visible together! Take part in our photo campaign #TeamEhrenamt and show Germany how vibrant, diverse, multifaceted and relevant civic engagement is.

www.deutsche-stiftung-engagement-und-ehrenamt.de

The DMSB, ADAC and the ADAC foundation are presenting their joint efforts to support volunteering in motor sport. The DMSB is an umbrella association supporting both elite and mass sport; ADAC organises motor sport events for two- and four-wheelers; and the ADAC foundation works among other things to promote amateur motor sport. Visitors can try out two exciting racing simulators, while children can get creative at the stand’s art station or make their own badges for personalised hi-vis road safety jackets. There are information desks where you can talk to experts about how volunteers help to make motor sport safe and successful, and how you can get involved yourself.

www.dmsb.de

With well over 10,000 projects supported to date – and this support totalling over 2 billion euro and counting – Germany’s best-established non-profit lottery has shaped solidarity and charity work in the country for almost 70 years. As well as funding good causes via the Deutsches Hilfswerk foundation, the German TV lottery offers players the chance to win tantalising prizes. Guests at the citizens’ festival can learn more about the idea behind the lottery at the organisation’s stand. They can also dive into an interactive activity or watch TV barbecue expert Andreas Rummel present authentic Kenyan meals.

www.fernsehlotterie.de

How does it feel to work together with a robot or augmented reality? Visitors to the stand can have fun finding out through hands-on activities – by assembling a product manufactured by Sennheiser or a model that represents three important pillars of efforts to attract young people to the metal and engineering sector. In the process, you’ll learn more about Industrie 4.0 as well as the work done by Gesamtmetall and its members to attract young people for a career in their industry. By choosing high-quality training, young people can help shape our future. The InfoTruck has other interactive stations and also allows visitors to discover exciting career fields.

www.gesamtmetall.de

In keeping with the spirit of this year’s motto for the citizens’ festival, “Pamoja – Stronger Together”, Gilead Sciences is presenting its efforts in the fight against HIV and hepatitis C. Gilead has projects in Germany, elsewhere in Europe and in Africa to bolster HIV and hepatitis prevention, education and support. It is inviting visitors to discover its stand under the slogan “Together against HIV and hepatitis C – in Germany, in Africa and worldwide”. There are family-friendly activities on offer as well as interesting facts and information – you can learn through play, explore a photo wall, discover individual stories, and find out more about prevention and support work. Something for everyone, young and old!

www.gilead-dialog.de/unser-engagement

Since 1980, HanseMerkur has presented the HanseMerkur Prize for Child Protection – Germany’s oldest prize for social causes. The company and four previous prizewinners are using the citizens’ festival to provide information on different aspects of child protection. You can learn about initiatives that teach people what to do if a child suffers burns, that find mentors for children of parents with mental illnesses, and that support post-transplant and palliative care for children and young people. And since it is children and young people who will shape the future, they can make a wish at the stand and tie it to a wishing tree. They can also have fun crafting bracelets to take away with them.

www.hansemerkur.de

How might cohesion be strengthened in Germany and Europe if everyone carried out community service at least once in their lives? Two studies by the Hertie Foundation tackle this question. There is a vigorous debate ongoing in Germany over the idea of introducing “compulsory social service”, alongside proposals to reintroduce compulsory military service. The exhibit at the citizens’ festival explores this issue on the basis of relevant studies and makes recommendations for action. It takes in the key considerations of European cooperation, of what sectors community service could be carried out in, and of how to win over a broad public ranging from teenagers to pensioners. Visitors are invited to reflect on the issue and develop their own opinion.

www.ghst.de

Honouring dedicated individuals with official awards is one of the tasks of the Federal President. The Order of Merit is a way of thanking people who have made a particular contribution to the common good, for example through outstanding voluntary work. The Honours and Decorations Division supports the Federal President in this task. Staff from the Division are at the stand to explain who the Order can be presented to and how nominations are made. They can also answer questions about the Silver Laurel Leaf, Germany’s highest award for sporting excellence.

Honours and decorations of the Federal Republic of Germany

“Seek the peace of the city, and pray unto the Lord for it”: for more than 140 years, the Berliner Stadtmission has been helping people in need in Berlin. For many years now, kleinanzeigen.de small ads have been supporting the Stadtmission’s work for the homeless. The two organisations bring homeless people together with people from other sections of society, thus raising awareness of the situation of those in need and their daily fight for survival. Wrestling shows provide a very vivid metaphor for this fight. At the citizens' festival, professional wrestlers will be hitting the canvas for a good cause. Visitors will have the chance to find out about the work of the Stadtmission.

www.kleinanzeigen.de

The Krupp Foundation provides funding to people and projects in the spheres of science, education, art and culture, health and sport. At the citizens' festival, the Foundation invites visitors to sit down at a large, round, rose-coloured table, where they can immerse themselves in an interactive journey of discovery into its 56‑year history and present‑day activities. If you feel like it, you can also play a computer game and test your knowledge. The game’s videos and photographs have fascinating stories to tell and let visitors discover what Koksbunker, Young and Giftschrank have to do with the Foundation. The top players will win ecofriendly prizes, such as the Foundation’s very own honey and seed paper bookmarks.

www.krupp-stiftung.de

The Liz Mohn Stiftung and the Bertelsmann Stiftung work towards enabling everyone to participate in society – politically, economically and culturally. To this end, they harness knowledge, skills and solutions to get people involved. Our shared stand invites visitors to start a conversation with us about the various different forms that participation can take. Explore democracy interactively, test your knowledge of important current issues related to democracy and Europe, talk to our experts about challenges facing today’s society, and take a photo to stand up for a vibrant democracy!

Mehr zur Liz Mohn Stiftung und zur Bertelsmann Stiftung

LOTTO in Deutschland is presenting its strong partnerships and highlighting the topic of sport and inclusion – given the numerous big events taking place in 2024. Together with sports associations from Land Lower Saxony, it is showcasing a range of activities. Visitors can see what it’s like to play with restricted mobility, and, even better, meet top Paralympic athletes. Around 3.28 billion euro in funding – so around 9 million per day – went to support work in the fields of wellbeing and sport, cultural and architectural heritage, and nature and the environment in 2023. Stop by the stand and learn about the wide range of projects that benefited from this funding.

www.lottoindeutschland.de

Every year, the Luxon team gets volunteer social projects up and running – or, more to the point, on track. Staff organised a special train that brought refugees from the war in Ukraine to Germany. A special train for World Blood Cancer Day encouraged many people to register as bone marrow donors. A wish came true for a young cancer sufferer when he was allowed to travel in an engine. And senior citizens in need were invited on special trips in a luxury train. At the Federal President’s citizens' festival, our garden train will be available to passengers old and young.

www.railadventure.de/unternehmen/#CSR

A quick and easy way to help, with no red tape. That’s the idea behind ProCent. Employees of Mercedes-Benz Group AG voluntarily contribute the cents of their net monthly paychecks. The company then adds the same amount of cents, doubling the contribution. All donations go to non‑profit projects that are nominated by the employees themselves. The ProCent stand presents some important projects that receive these contributions. Also, visitors big and small are invited to climb “donation mountain” in the specially marked area, where instructors stand by to help them scale climbing walls with various levels of difficulty.

www.mercedes-benz.com

People with Parkinson’s disease often suffer from visible symptoms such as the characteristic tremors, which makes them increasingly reluctant to go out in public as the disease progresses. Since PingPongParkinson (PPP) was founded in 2020, it has used table tennis to encourage more than 2000 Parkinson’s patients to visit sports centres and step back into “normal” life. As well as the health benefits of PPP’s work, it gives people back their self-esteem. Visitors to the citizens’ festival can enjoy a game themselves at the PPP stand. You can learn more about the organisation and the disease as you play – and see if you’re good enough to win the official German Sport Badge.

www.pingpongparkinson.de

Reading is fun, it’s educational, it can make us laugh and make us cry. And it is, without exception, an essential lifelong skill – a skill that one in four primary-school pupils and 6.2 million adults in Germany have not mastered. This affects their whole lives. The Reading Foundation works to ensure that every child can learn to read. It is supported by its patron Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, by partners including the bookshop chain Thalia and by prominent reading ambassadors, some of whom can be found in the reading area at the citizens’ festival. And guests of all ages are sure to be inspired by the readings on offer at the Thalia stand. The message is that reading aloud to children makes learning to read easier – and every word counts.

www.stiftunglesen.de

Have you ever wondered what’s contained in the emergency rations that aid organisations hand out during crises? The “emergency foodtruck” at Save the Children’s stand lets you look inside and learn more about the organisation’s work for children’s rights. There’s also a health station where children can play at checking dolls for malnutrition. Meanwhile, adults can learn how the international community is doing in the fight against hunger and what its efforts look like on the ground. Save the Children has been defending children’s rights for over 100 years. While progress has been made, 153 million children worldwide are suffering from food insecurity. This needs to change.

www.savethechildren.de

The Siemens tent offers a coding bootcamp – for children and anyone else who wants to learn some programming and have fun in the process. Siemens works to promote coding skills around the world and supports the African Girls Can Code Initiative (AGCCI). This initiative helps young women in Africa aged from 17 to 25 to find jobs in the field of IT and cybersecurity. The Siemens stand also provides information about the company’s own initiative SieMent EmpowHer, which connects young women in Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa and Uganda with experienced female mentors from among Siemens’ staff around the world.

www.siemens.com

Under the motto “We strengthen democracy”, Stiftung Mercator works with its partners to shape transformation processes within society. At this year’s citizens' festival the focus will be on three project partners: KlimaDocs e.V., Wikimedia Deutschland e.V. and openTransfer Zusammenhalt. Together, we invite you to glean some insights into the work of the partners and engage in discussion with them. Learn what type of free knowledge you are and how to write a Wikipedia entry. Share your personal message of encouragement for the future on the encouragement board. Or find yourself a comfortable seat in the mini open-air cinema to learn about engagement at grass-roots level.

www.stiftung-mercator.de

The African Network of Germany (TANG) creates connections and provides advice and support for over 900 African associations. It helps to shape German policy in the fields of migration, integration and development cooperation. At the citizens’ festival, the TANG project Diversity in Civic Engagement (Vielfalt in Engagement) is highlighting people with African roots in Germany, as well as their organisations and their work, under the motto “Have a cup of Kenyan tea with us”. Every hour throughout the festival there are podcasts, interviews and discussions with experts working in education, health, business, politics and culture, covering topics such as skilled worker recruitment, development assistance and the BRICS community. The programme also features an interactive Africa quiz, a world map game, readings, a fashion show with the title “Discover Africa through fashion”, a photo booth with African utensils, African music and performances by young TANG artists including Js.Scotty and a percussion group. Learn more about day-to-day life in the 55 countries of Africa. And if you want to try a new look, you can even have your hair braided at the stand.

www.tang-ev.de

Reading is regarded as one of the key skills, if not THE key skill, enabling active participation at school and in the world of work. At the citizens’ festival, the bookshop chain Thalia is showcasing its efforts to promote reading. It aims to make a difference in encouraging young people in particular to explore the world of books. Visitors can pick out a comfortable spot in the reading area and discover a new favourite. Or you can listen in on readings with prominent authors. The festival is also hosting well-known reading ambassadors from the Reading Foundation, which has joined forces with Thalia to organise this year’s literary programme.

www.thalia.de

Natural disasters, critical infrastructure outages, accidents on land and on the water – these are just some of the scenarios where the emergency response organisation THW springs into action. Its work relies on volunteers, 88,000 of them in total, organised in specialised groups that save people in danger, fight environmental damage, operate high-powered pumps and much more. They support the police, firefighters and aid organisations with their expertise and experience. The THW thus forms a bridge between the federal, Land and local levels of government in Germany, so that they can work together to keep people safe when disaster strikes. A bridge will be built at the organisation’s stand to symbolise this role.

www.thw.de

Under the motto “Enabling safer spaces”, TÜV NORD GROUP and PROUT AT WORK are at the citizens’ festival to show how to create a working environment where queer people feel respected and valued. The key questions are: What can I do in the workplace to make queer people feel comfortable? And what can organisations do to support queer staff? Facts, figures and recommendations for action are displayed at the stand to show what all of us can do to help create a positive working environment. There is also an interactive quiz using the Rainbow Chat Deck produced by PROUT AT WORK. Spin the wheel to pick a question card that invites you to discuss, reflect and develop a personal connection to queer issues.

www.proutatwork.de

WOHN:SINN promotes inclusive living in the German-speaking countries. It advocates for people with disabilities to be able to live autonomously and in active community with others, for example in inclusive shared flats, buildings or neighbourhoods. At the citizens’ festival, you can learn first-hand how inclusive living arrangements work and how it feels to live in one. Take a look at helpful architectural models and talk to managers and staff of inclusive living projects as well as people with experience of living in them.

www.wohnsinn.org

The Young Mayors Network (Netzwerk Junge Bürgermeister*innen, NJB), founded in 2019, brings together over 800 mayors from across Germany who were younger than 40 when they were elected for their current term in office. It offers ideas and inspiration for young people in local politics and aims to make it easier and more attractive to get involved. At the citizens’ festival, the network is presenting its new video series Mayor Moves, where young mayors talk about their work and the diversity of local democracy in short videos. They offer a realistic look at what they do and clear up misconceptions about the role. In this way, they hope to inspire young people to enter local politics and thus to strengthen democracy. Young mayors are at the stand waiting to start a conversation. Getting involved and sharing your ideas is actively encouraged!

www.junge-buergermeisterinnen.de

In the Stronger Together studio, guests can watch talks by creators on issues concerning civil society and even join in the conversation themselves. The studio was created with technical support from the video platform YouTube and also offers visitors the opportunity to record short videos with their own phones. Stop by and listen in on some exciting discussions! Or step in front of the camera yourself and share your thoughts and ideas for an actively engaged civil society. The content recorded by the creators will be available on this webpage and on the YouTube channel for the citizens’ festival after the event.

www.youtube.com