Content

Foreword

Climate justice – now!

Shaping a new energy system

For a responsible infrastructure and raw materials policy

Promoting sustainable agriculture and development

Strengthening democracy and human rights

Strengthening women’s and LGBTI rights

Towards a sustainable and humane migration policy

For European solidarity in times of crisis

30th anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution – promoting a strong democracy!

A just society needs intact public spaces

Arts and culture

The Heinrich Böll House in Langenbroich

Scholarship and fellowship program – giving a lift to young talent

Awards

Publications 2019

Our financial framework

Addresses

Dr. Ellen Ueberschär

Photo: Bettina Keller

Barbara Unmüßig

Photo: Bettina Keller

Foreword

Sometimes in life, there are events so momentous that they make our joy about accomplished work and productive collaboration fade into the background. The Covid crisis is such a moment, an event beyond compare. Hardly ever before have we been forced to weigh scientific insights against political, social, and economic repercussions in the face of such great uncertainty. As we are living through these world-altering times, we are trying to make sense of them, at home, as well as at our 33 international offices.

We, as so many others, have adapted the way we work and the formats of our educational programs to meet the constraints of our current situation. We rapidly acquired new skills so we could continue to facilitate exchanges between politics, science, business, and society, even amidst a global pandemic. Digital formats that were mere experimentations just months ago became standard within a few weeks. We want to benefit from this digital leap and will use our new insights to strike a healthy balance between analog and digital services in the future.

Our Foundation continues to champion and advocate for democracy and human rights, social and ecological justice, peace, a planet that is worth living on, and a world as free of discrimination as possible. We provide ideas and propose solutions for the present and the future, because our mission is to raise and maintain public awareness of the problems and crises of our times.

Take the climate crisis, for example – it was real, it is real, and it will remain a reality for the foreseeable future. What started as a youth protest in 2018, began to grip an increasingly large section of our society last year: In September 2019, six million people around the world took to the streets to fight for more climate protection. As we grapple with the global economic fallout of the pandemic, we must also maintain this great readiness for change. The dramatic consequences of the global economic crisis are already being felt. In order to counter the climate crisis, we must restructure our economies and make them green and climate-friendly. We want to show that a socio-ecological transformation of our economy and our society is possible – for the benefit of all and without any detriment to political and individual freedoms.

A core focus of our work is strengthening democracy and human rights. Right-wing authoritarian governments are on the rise worldwide, curtailing the work of civil society organizations and activists, or even criminalizing them. Cut-backs of the rule of law and separation of powers, which were already occurring before the pandemic, are being expedited, in some cases also in Europe. Our solidarity and support go out to the many champions of civil society!

The European Union is also facing enormous challenges. On top of the necessary debates about the Green New Deal, democratic principles, and a coherent migration policy, we have an economic recession on our hands. On the bright side, Green parties saw great successes in the 2019 European elections, and this forms a good basis for pressing harder to assert our notions of solidarity, defense of democracy, climate protection, and species conservation in European politics. Our work in 2019 has done much to promote a positive image of Europe in Germany and to give those a voice that should have a rightful say on important EU issues.

Finally, we would like to thank our numerous and long-standing partners at home and abroad for their courageous work and for the many impulses and perspectives they bring to our work.

… and thus we are heading into the future with confidence!

Berlin, April 2020

Dr. Ellen Ueberschär and Barbara Unmüßig

Presidents, Heinrich Böll Foundation

December 2019: Fridays For Future in Berlin

Photo: Dominik Butzmann/laif

Climate justice – now!

Violent storms, heavy rains, extreme drought, devastating forest fires, dying glaciers – these are some of the visible effects of climate change that we are already experiencing. Global CO₂ emissions must be drastically cut to near zero by 2050 to limit global warming to a tolerable level. We believe this is feasible – in a fair and democratic way, and without resorting to dangerous large-scale technologies such as geoengineering. We want to promote real alternatives and advance the necessary socio-ecological transformation. Change is possible – if we take decisive action.

The global climate movement is growing, while international climate policy is a let-down

Fridays for Future and other climate movements were able to mobilize vast numbers, which shows that climate protests are gaining strength! Young people, in particular, are demanding ever more forcefully that the Paris climate targets be met and that global warming be limited to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. On September 20, 2019, the day of the Global Climate Strike, an estimated six million people demonstrated for more climate change mitigation in about 150 countries around the world. According to the organizers, about 270,000 people took to the streets of Berlin. And yet, at the International Climate Change Conference (COP 25) in early December, governments could not bring themselves to commit to more ambitious climate targets despite the urgency of the situation. The results were disillusioning. Due to the political situation in Chile, the Climate Conference was moved from its original venue in Santiago to Madrid at very short notice, dashing the hopes of many Latin American governments and civil society organizations that a Climate Conference taking place in Latin America may raise the global community’s awareness of the problems in this highly vulnerable region. Nonetheless, the alternative summit by the Chilean climate movement SCAC (Sociedad Civil por la Acción Climática) and the People’s Summit took place in Santiago de Chile as planned. Both platforms organized workshops and panel discussions with high-profile participants, as well as various cultural activities with grassroots organizations and experts from Latin America. Our Santiago Office also participated in a number of events, both in Santiago de Chile and in Madrid.

A critical take on geoengineering

Geoengineering is often hailed as a silver bullet for limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees. The idea is to use geoengineering technologies to remove CO2 from the atmosphere or to shield the earth from the sun. However, these technologies pose great risks. An attempt to regulate geoengineering technologies at the UN level failed at the 4th Session of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-4) in March 2019 in Nairobi in the face of strong resistance from the governments of certain oil-producing countries that have high carbon emissions. Prior to the negotiations, we presented critical analyses, including the much-acclaimed report “Fuel to the Fire – How Geoengineering Threatens to Entrench Fossil Fuels and Accelerate the Climate Crisis”, which we published together with the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL). This report analyzes the fossil industry’s decades-long involvement in the research and development of geoengineering technologies and shows how the growing focus on geoengineering as a supposed silver bullet against climate change is actually undermining climate targets and may cement the fossil infrastructure for decades to come.

Initiative for the prosecution of environmental crimes

The Assembly of States Parties to the International Criminal Court (ICC) took place in The Hague in the Netherlands from December 2–7, 2019. One of its highlights was a declaration made by the delegates of the island states Vanuatu and Maldives, calling on the Assembly to classify “ecocide” as an international crime. Since 2002, genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and crimes of aggression can be brought before the ICC. “Ecocide” was also listed as a prosecutable crime in early versions of the Rome Statute but did not make it into the ratified version. Adding ecocide back to the list could lead to a criminalization of serious and large-scale overexploitation of nature and ecosystems and thus to international criminal prosecution of the perpetrators. In response, we and some of our civil society partner organizations held a full-day workshop in The Hague on the political opportunities and risks as well as procedural possibilities for criminalizing environmental crimes at an international and national level. The workshop led to the creation of a civil society alliance that will continue to pool expertise and work towards ending impunity for environmental and climate destruction.

Climate-related lawsuits on the rise worldwide

Currently, the most prominent climate lawsuit in Germany is the case of Peruvian farmer Saúl Luciano Lliuya who is suing RWE as a major CO2 emitter because his village is in danger of being washed away by meltwater coming from a glacier. The number of such climate-related lawsuits is on the rise worldwide. In mid-June 2019, around 120 lawyers and representatives of social organizations and movements met near Mexico City for the third “Climate Justice Legal Experts Meeting”. The three-day international conference was preceded by a meeting with an exclusively Latin American focus, which was jointly prepared by our Mexico City Office, our Berlin headquarters, the Australian organization Climate Justice Programme, and the Latin American organization AIDA. The meeting was a motivation booster for many organizations who are now considering climate lawsuits as a useful addition to their toolbox. It is becoming apparent that, in the future, an increasing number of such lawsuits will be filed in the region. One of our partner organizations, The Mexican Center for Environmental Law, recently filed a lawsuit against a projected large-scale refinery. Their case explicitly relies on arguments related to climate change.

Support for the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights

Climate change and environmental protection are also increasingly an issue for the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Our office in Colombia supported the mandate of the Commission’s Special Rapporteur on economic, social, cultural, and environmental rights by holding a series of expert discussions and by networking with environmental and human rights organizations. In 2019, for example, we held expert talks at the 3rd Inter-American Human Rights Forum in Ecuador, a hearing of non-governmental organizations by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on the topic of climate change and human rights, and we also facilitated the Special Rapporteur’s attendance of the Madrid Climate Summit and her meetings with civil society actors.

Maintenance at wind turbine near the town of Neubrandenburg, in North-East Germany

Photo: Paul Langrock/laif

Shaping a new energy system

Fossil fuels such as coal and oil are finite and harmful to our climate. Renewable energy sources such as wind, water, or solar power offer an ecological and climate-friendly alternative. The technological prerequisites for a comprehensive overhaul of our energy systems are already in place. All we need now, is the political will and the necessary support for it. We are working with our project partners around the world to promote the shift to renewable energies and build social acceptance for it. This also includes developing strategies for a socially fair transition – with new economic perspectives for regions that have been dependent on producing coal and gas and generating fossil-based energy.

International projects to promote ownership in the energy revolution

Morocco – “Peer learning” workshops: Morocco is a pioneer in climate and energy policy. The kingdom is on a path to generate more than half of its energy from solar and wind power by 2030, and it already boasts the world’s largest solar power plant. Yet so far, the energy revolution that is well underway has failed to reach citizens and local authorities. To change this, our Rabat Office held various workshops in Rabat and Chefchaouen to support a number of Moroccan “pioneer” communities who are developing their local projects, such as producing solar power for their own use or models for citizen participation. In addition to a lack of energy expertise at the community level, the participants identified a lack of political coordination between the national and local levels as the central challenges for greater citizen involvement in the energy revolution.

Bosnia and Herzegovina – pilot project for water heating: In Bosnia and Herzegovina, renewable energies still receive little attention. Our partner organization REIC (Regional Education and Information Center), supported by a crowdfunding initiative of our Sarajevo Office, successfully raised funds for a pilot project on solar water heating. The solar panels were installed on the roof of a home for the mentally disabled in Fojnica. The chronically underfunded home now has hot water around the clock and was able to cut its energy costs by 60 percent. This pilot project inspired others to follow suit: Our partner organization Banja Luka Environment Center and the Pecka Visitor Center are now also successfully raising funds to generate their own electricity.

Greece – a manual for establishing energy co-ops: A successful energy revolution is driven by what we call prosumers, proactive citizens who produce their own clean energy, which is easier to achieve if they organize in energy collectives and cooperatives. A manual published by our Thessaloniki Office provides information on legal avenues in Greece and showcases successful energy cooperatives from other European countries. It is now a widely used reference for programs and workshops to educate citizens’ initiatives, multipliers, and municipal actors.

Poland – empowering environmental activists: In Poland, coal is viewed as “black gold” – and this makes the country’s fossil fuel phase-out the subject of heated debate, especially in Upper Silesia, where the coal industry has traditionally been and still is a vital part of local identity. Our Warsaw Office is helping activists build a strong case for a fossil fuel phase-out and is developing strategies that help cope with the social and cultural consequences of the energy revolution. Since women’s voices are still underrepresented, our Warsaw Office has created the Women’s Ecological Academy, whose mission it is to support women environmental activists in the coal-mining regions. The Academy’s first meeting took place in September 2019.

Successful resistance to coal mining – two examples

Russia – court rules in favor of anti-coal-mining activists in the Kuzbass: The Russian government views coal as a strategic future resource for its own consumption but also as export product to Southeast Asia and Europe. In Russia’s main coal region, the Kuzbass, people are beginning to fight the negative impacts of coal mining. In Mencherep, more then one hundred villagers filed a lawsuit against the expropriation of their farmland in favor of an open-cast mine “for state purposes”. Our Moscow Office supported the initiative, as it set a precedent and helped raise awareness of the situation in Kuzbass. To everyone’s surprise the lawsuit was successful: Many local media, a Russian news agency, and the BBC reported on Mencherep, kick-starting a debate about which officials should have the authority to expropriate land in order to grant it to mostly private coal-mining companies. The lawyers obtained a verdict in favor of the plaintiffs in the lower courts. In the face of this judicial defeat and mounting public pressure, state authorities revoked the mining license for the planned open cast mine in February 2019.

Senegal – partial success in the fight against a coal-fired power station: Since its opening in 2017, our Dakar Office has been fighting a whole series of major infrastructure projects alongside the villagers of Bargny near Dakar, namely a coal power station, a cement factory, a planned deep-sea port – all of them showcase projects for the government, yet a threat to the livelihood of the local population. The coal power station is a particular headache for the locals. Many have lost their land, fishermen are out of work, and the women who process the fish can’t sell their products because they are covered in coal dust from the power station. Health problems plague the entire population. In the meantime, the government has announced that the operation of the coal power plant will be suspended and that all coal-fired power plants are to be converted to gas. Although the government claims that this is due to climate goals, the success has much to do with the mobilization of the people of Bargny, who, with the support of the Foundation, documented the negative impacts, sounded out legal possibilities, and conducted public campaigns. However, the land rights and compensation issue remains, and even a gas power plant will have a massive impact, both locally and on the climate. The fight, therefore, continues!

More mobility, less road traffic – strategies for a mobility revolution

Since fossil fuels are a major factor driving global CO2 emissions and global warming, our transport systems need to become sustainable. We already have the innovative technologies needed to reduce the ecological footprint of transport. Over the last two years, we have consulted with experts on various aspects of the German traffic revolution. At our conference “Mobility as a work in progress: lighthouse projects for a transport revolution”, in November 2019, in Berlin, we brought together the various strategic discussions and formulated a response to the German government’s recently unveiled climate package.

Port of Piraeus, Greece: The China Ocean Shipping Co. (Cosco) took full control of its container terminals, leasing them for 35 years, at a cost of almost $5 billion.

Photo: Nikos Pilos/laif

For a responsible infrastructure and raw materials policy

Ports, interstates, power stations, railway lines – major infrastructure projects hold opportunities for economic development, which is why a lot of money is invested in this highly profitable growth market worldwide. Large projects are typically financed by development banks or public-private partnerships. As investors usually want to see returns, human rights and ecological aspects often fall by the wayside. Together with our international partners, we are committed to ensuring that human rights and environmental and climate protection are taken into account in the planning, financing, and implementation of infrastructure projects.

More sustainability in infrastructure projects

The infrastructures we build today will shape development and emissions for many decades to come. Experience shows that megaprojects often entail major financial, human rights, and ecological risks. Together with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, we have published the study “The Other Infrastructure Gap: Sustainability”, which contains a comprehensive list of the risks posed by large infrastructure projects as well as suggestions on how to minimize them. It was presented to the public at the annual conferences of the World Bank, the World Investment Forum of the UN Organisation for Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva, and at an expert meeting in Berlin.

Study “The Other Infrastructure Gap: Sustainability”

www.boell.de/en/2018/10/29/other-infrastructure-gap-sustainability

Die Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) – an analysis

In 2016, the Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) was founded as a multilateral bank for financing infrastructure projects. While its largest shareholder is China, Germany and other European countries also hold shares. The bank describes itself as “slim, clean, and green”. We commissioned Korinna Horta from the environmental and human rights organization urgewalt to conduct an analysis of the bank three years into its operation. Her findings are sobering: The bank utterly fails to meet the requirements of the German Bundestag for environmental, social, human rights, and governance. In the AIIB, China has in fact created a multilateral instrument to promote primarily Chinese interests and rewrite existing international rules on infrastructure financing.

Study “The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)”:

www.boell.de/en/2019/03/26/asian-infrastructure-investment-bank-aiib-multilateral-bank-where-china-sets-rules

Workshop on sustainable financing in Beijing

China is facing many obstacles on the way to more sustainable financing. These include not only technical limitations, but also a lacking sense of urgency. Our Beijing Office, together with the Greenovation Hub (Ghub) and the Green Finance Committee of the China Society for Finance and Banking, invited experts from numerous banks, including the AIIB, the World Bank, and the China Industrial Bank, to a workshop in Beijing, which addressed both general questions such as how development financing institutions may implement climate goals, as well as special challenges along the “New Silk Road”. A special focus was the importance of public funding to promote renewable energies.

Guideline for communities on how to fight the negative impacts of infrastructure projects

In Southeast Asia, bitter disputes keep erupting over infrastructure projects, with affected communities in fear of losing their land, health, or livelihoods. Our Southeast Asia Office in Bangkok has supported our partner organization Inclusive Development International (IDI) in developing a guide for activists and communities to help them fight environmentally and socio-economically harmful projects. This guide, which has been translated into several languages such as Burmese, Thai, Vietnamese, and Khmer, is based on a process called Investment Chain Mapping, which not only discloses investor cash flows and evaluates whether corporate standards comply with minimum labor laws or environmental policy standards, but also lays out legal, political, and PR strategies to push back, whenever these guidelines are being violated.

Guide:

http://on.boell.de/safeguarding

Greater transparency on China’s investments in Myanmar

Myanmar is of great strategic importance to China. The “China-Myanmar Economic Corridor” (CMEC, part of the “Belt and Road Initiative”) outlines the creation of new infrastructures in Myanmar to connect China’s Yunnan Province with the Indian Ocean and Myanmar’s economic metropolis of Yangon by means of roads, railways, special economic zones, and a deep-sea port (Kyaukphyu in Rakhine State). While the governments of both countries have concluded numerous agreements, there is little transparency and much uncertainty in Myanmar, for example about the financial consequences of such major projects, but also about possible expropriations and environmental impacts. In order to raise public awareness and strengthen Myanmar’s negotiating position towards its large neighbor, our Yangon Office is conducting a series of events in collaboration with local partner organizations. The participants, including both members of regional parliaments along the planned corridor and NGO representatives, are discussing CMEC plans and are receiving reports from other countries that are in a similar position regarding China, such as Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Limited transparency in public procurements in Lebanon – a study

Lebanon has the third highest per capita debt in the world and its banking system is on the verge of collapse. The political elites claim that the acute financial crisis can be overcome by mining fossil fuels in the Mediterranean, and the government is planing to develop oil and gas deposits off the Lebanese coast. However, civil society has reasonable doubts whether revenue from mining will benefit the country as a whole. For months, the Lebanese democracy movement has been protesting against a political system that lacks in transparency and runs on massive corruption. Among other things, the movement is calling for mechanisms of public control. Our Beirut Office has commissioned an investigation into the planned use of public revenues from mining in the Mediterranean. The study recommends, among other things, that all relevant contracts be made public, that public revenues be subjected to an external audit, and that an independent fund be created, which will be overseen by the public. With the support of the Foundation, the Lebanese Oil and Gas Initiative (LOGI) is also working on public accountability procedures.

Warming-up at the Foundation’s Headquarter after the “Wir haben es satt” (We’re fed up with agroindustry) march for a sustainable food system

Photo: Stephan Röhl

Promoting sustainable agriculture and development

Industrial agriculture causes serious climate and environmental problems, primarily because it depletes fertile soils and causes loss of biodiversity, the eutrophication of oceans, and its emissions harm our climate. We are calling for sustainable agriculture – without genetic engineering, factory farming, or hazardous pesticides. The global flood of plastics is damaging our environment, and greenhouse gas emissions along the life cycle of plastics are immense. We believe that a world without plastic pollution is possible, and we are working on solutions and alternatives to plastic.

Agriculture done differently – our Green Week

European agriculture is subsidized to the tune of almost 60 billion euros a year, yet still fails to deliver what many EU citizens care about: keeping livestock with animal welfare in mind, protecting bodies of water, birds, and insects, as well as supporting small farms. In Europe, a reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is due to begin after 2020 – however, there are no signs that agriculture is on a course that is more environmentally friendly. For our series “Agriculture done differently – our Green Week” in January 2019, we invited numerous experts to discuss why agricultural policy has failed to evolve for years and to spell out a vision for sustainable and fair agriculture. Also in January, we presented our “Agricultural Atlas 2019”. It reveals that hardly any funds from the Common European Agricultural Policy (CAP) are used for objectives such as sustainability, environmental protection, and nature conservation. Yet it also shows that advocacy for a better, fundamentally different agricultural policy is a worthwhile endeavor. In cooperation with various European partners, we published the Atlas in six additional languages and country versions. The Polish edition “Atlas Rolny”, for example, was presented in Warsaw in June 2019 at an event featuring prominent guests, including the Polish Minister of Agriculture. The Atlas is one of the few publications in Poland that clearly lays out the country’s current agricultural policy and its necessary reforms. It has triggered a lively debate on how to reform farming.

Toxic Business – pesticides in Kenya

About 70 percent of Kenya’s population works directly or indirectly in agriculture. Two thirds of its 4.5 million farmers operate small farms. Their demand for pesticides is growing steadily, with imports having more than doubled between 2015 and 2018. Since 2015, our Nairobi Office has been working with the Route to Food Initiative (RTFI) to assert the human right to nutrition. In August 2019, RTFI launched an information campaign on toxic pesticides. According to an RTFI report, 45 of the approved products in Kenya are classified as clearly carcinogenic, 31 as mutagenic, 175 as neurotoxic, 51 of them cause endocrine disruption, and 360 impact the reproductive system. One third of the pesticides are highly toxic to bees. According to RTFI, one third of the active ingredients in Kenya’s registered pesticides are no longer approved for use on the European market, while at the same time, 253 of the 862 approved pesticides in Kenya are actually imported from Europe. An EU regulation enables companies to produce pesticides that are banned or heavily regulated in the EU for sale in other countries’ domestic markets. In view of this double standard, it is becoming increasingly important for countries like Kenya to establish strict local registration criteria. Four Kenyan initiatives jointly developed a petition to the Kenyan Parliament calling for a ban on harmful active substances in pesticides and demanding stricter food monitoring as well as a review of pest control legislation. This petition has received the support of the Chair of the Health Committee, and the Committee will now submit a report along with recommendations to the Kenyan Parliament. RTFI and our project partners host regular film screenings, trainings, and public forums and are running a social media campaign (#ToxicBusiness) to educate the public about the use and effects of harmful pesticides and point out alternatives.

Recognizing Khoikhoi and San rights in the cultivation of Rooibos in South Africa

For many years, our partner organization Natural Justice has been supporting the Khoikhoi and San indigenous communities in their negotiations with the South African Rooibos industry for recognition of their rights from the use of this extremely lucrative plant. In July 2019, they finally scored a decisive success: For the first time, the entire South African Rooibos industry recognized both groups’ indigenous knowledge and committed to a benefit-sharing agreement that will give generations of Khoikhoi and San a share in the income generated from marketing the Rooibos plant. The agreement does not only benefit the Khoikhoi and San financially, but it is also an important step towards recognition and restoration of these communities’ dignity. The agreement also sets a precedent for indigenous communities around the world. It goes back to the Nagoya Protocol, a binding treaty under international law, which regulates access to genetic resources or traditional knowledge thereof, providing for fair and equitable sharing of benefits and profits.

It’s a world of plastic – the Plastic Atlas

Plastics have become an integral part of our everyday lives. Plastics are found in food and drinking water, clothing and cosmetics, everyday objects, and vehicles. We are just now beginning to understand the true extent to which this deluge of plastics pollutes and poisons our environment and even our bodies. For example, pollutants contained in plastics, some of which are carcinogenic and can alter our hormones, enter our bodies via water and the food chain, with women and children being at particular risk. Despite that, additional plastic-producing factories are slated to be built in Europe. Recycling is not a viable way out of the plastics crisis either: Only a small proportion of plastic waste is actually processed and can be used to make high-quality and pollutant-free products. Our “Plastic Atlas”, which we presented in June 2019, provides a wealth of facts and figures on the subject. Moreover, it also points to solutions and features networks pursuing a zero-waste vision of the future. Following the German and English editions, the Atlas has now also been published in Khmer. Further translations will be published in 2020, including French, Spanish, Portuguese, Georgian, Chinese, Russian, and Ukrainian versions.

Plastic Atlas:

www.boell.de/plasticatlas

“From the heart, from Idlib” – title of a photo exhibition about life in Idlib, Syria

Photo: Tim Alsiofi

Strengthening democracy and human rights

Ever more authoritarian governments are coming into power worldwide, and they are undermining civil rights and persecuting civil society. Democratic institutions are being dismantled and human rights disregarded. In many countries, the current pandemic is exacerbating this development. Civil wars, such as in Syria, have become proxy wars – and the international community is incapable of bringing peace to these regions. Respect for human rights has never been a matter of course at any time in human history. To enforce them in a court of law is not easy, but it is possible. We and our partner organizations are committed to ensuring that all people are aware of their rights and able to assert and defend them.

Life in Syria – photo exhibition

According to the United Nations, over 99 percent of people in Idlib, Syria’s last rebel-held province, are civilians. Nevertheless, armed groups are dominating the headlines, giving the international public the impression that there are no longer any “good guys” left. Reality is far more complex. Tim Alsiofi, a Syrian photojournalist from Ghuta, has documented life in Idlib on behalf of our Beirut Office. Alsiofi was 18 when the Syrian revolution began. In 2018, he was deported to Idlib after having lived for years under siege in his hometown. His photo diary became the basis of an exhibition at our Berlin headquarters, open from November 21 to December 13, 2019. The compelling images tell a story not only of war and destruction, but also of beauty and joy. Syrian rapper Hani Al Sawah contributed the texts, and an exhibition catalogue has been published.

Exhibition catalogue:

http://on.boell.de/idlib

Blackbox Libya – political developments and spaces for artistic intervention

A proxy war, powerful militias and a powerless government, migrants in misery and a paralyzed civil society – the situation in what once was Africa’s richest country poses a threat to the entire region. In Germany and Europe, Libya is often discussed only in the context of EU migration policy and the catastrophic situation of migrants and refugees. In the run-up to the Berlin Libya Conference in early 2020, we took a closer look at the lesser-known background to the conflict: A panel consisting of experts such as Wolfram Lacher from the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), Elham Saudi, Director of Libyan Lawyers for Justice, and journalist, activist and filmmaker Heba Shibani discussed the country’s power constellation: What caused this war? Who is fighting whom and why? What are realistic avenues towards peace? In the second part of the event, Libyan artists had the floor, talking about spaces for their work and presenting their art.

New trust index for Moroccan politics and its institutions

Trust is the glue of any social order, and in Morocco it is becoming increasingly brittle. More and more citizens no longer trust their state and its institutions to solve current problems. With the support of our Rabat Office, the fairly new think tank Moroccan Institute for Policy Analysis (MIPA) is undertaking a representative panel study to get to the bottom of what is causing this erosion of trust. The Institute created an annual Trust in Institutions index, the first of which was presented to the public in 2019. Based on over 1,000 telephone interviews and numerous expert discussions, the Institute concluded that only 23 percent of Moroccans still have confidence in their government and parliament. One reason for this is a simple lack of information and knowledge. The bigger issue, however, is the perception that government officials and parliamentarians are corrupt and inefficient. In addition, the trust index also points out what Moroccan politics must do to improve its institutions and regain their citizens’ trust.

Info:

https://mipa.institute/7141

Presidential elections and the peace process in Afghanistan

At a conference in Berlin in November 2019, we discussed prospects for peace in Afghanistan with German and international politicians and representatives of Afghan civil society. Everyone on the podium agreed that the only pathway to peace is a political process that involves the Afghan government, civil society, the international community, and especially the neighboring countries. A more contentious issue was the question what concessions would have to be made to the Taliban regarding human and women’s rights. We also discussed whether peace is at all possible without Afghans first coming to terms with their past and without justice. Once again, it became evident that the peace process in Afghanistan is far more complex than in other countries and will therefore take a great deal of time and effort.

Guidelines for the search for disappeared persons

The forced disappearance of persons – in dictatorships, authoritarian states, or during armed conflicts – is one of the most serious human rights violations worldwide. In Colombia alone, more than 80,000 people, mainly civilians, have disappeared in this way. The search for them is riddled with political, social, and legal difficulties and challenges. Through a series of workshops, consultations, and expert discussions (including representatives from human rights and victims’ organizations), our Colombia Office, together with the UN Committee against Enforced Disappearances, has developed guidelines for the search for disappeared persons. These guidelines include sixteen internationally recognized principles for solving such cases and can serve as a template for victims’ and human rights organizations around the world. The guidelines are of particular importance for the ongoing peace process in Colombia.

Supporting Brazil’s civil society in times of extreme pressure

In Brazil, civil society activists are trying to figure out how to continue their efforts under Jair Bolsonaro’s extreme right-wing government, which has no regard for issues such as environmentalism, human rights, gender, or social justice. Dissenters are increasingly under attack. In addition, there is concern about dwindling funds and the possible criminalization of activists and organizations. The majority of our project partners in Brazil are outspoken representatives of civil society. We are doing everything we can to support them in these difficult times. Our Rio Office, for example, helped provide training for activists on how to protect themselves – mentally, physically, and digitally. We also held workshops on how to deal with media that aggressively represent opposing standpoints and are out to discredit and shame all dissenting voices.

Bosnia-Herzegovina: For the first time ever, the LGBTI movement was able to hold a Pride Parade on the streets of Sarajevo, previously an impossibility due to massive hostilities.

Photo: Heinrich Böll Foundation, Sarajevo Office

Strengthening women’s and LGBTI rights

In many countries, people are ostracized and persecuted because of their sexual orientation and identity, and sometimes even face death threats. In Germany, homophobic acts of violence are also on the rise, as is sexual violence against women. Feminism, equal opportunities policies, sexual self-determination, and gender studies are also increasingly under attack. We are working with our international project partners to strengthen women’s rights worldwide and to advance legislative initiatives to protect the human rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual, and intersexual people (LGBTI).

First Pride Parade in Sarajevo

Until 2019, Bosnia-Herzegovina was the only country in Europe without a Pride Parade, as violence and hostility towards the LGBTI had made this impossible. In September 2019, the big moment finally came. Our partner organization Sarajevo Open Center courageously took to the streets in support of LGBTI rights, marching from the anti-fascist landmark “Eternal Flame” to parliament. Organizers expected about 500 marchers – yet 3,000 showed up carrying banners and rainbow flags. The parade had a sizable police escort and took place under strict security measures. Contrary to all concerns and fears, the atmosphere remained peaceful, and not a single incident was reported, despite some threats from radical opponents of the LGBTI community. The Pride Parade concluded with an emotional moment in front of Parliament, with thousands singing the anti-fascist partisan song “Bella Ciao”.

Short video clip of the Pride Parade:

https://www.rferl.org/a/bosnia-s-first-lgbt-parade-marches-through-sarajevo/30153146.html

Violence against the LGBTI community in Central America – a publication

In Central America, the LGBTI community is the target of severe discrimination and threats. Hate killings, especially of trans women, are on the rise, and a staggering number of perpetrators get away with impunity. The publication “Gritando desde la Violencia” (A Scream Against Violence) by our San Salvador Office is a collection of autobiographical texts, poems, songs, photos, and drawings that convey a sense of the level of violence people in Central America are facing because of their sexual orientation and identity. At the same time, the book is also a testimony of their hopes and dreams. It contains contributions from many renowned artists, among them the book’s editor Mauricio Orellana, a prominent author. In the summer of 2019, the book was presented in El Salvador’s three largest cities. Heartened by the authors and artists, some audience members even had the courage to come out themselves. In 2020, the book is scheduled to be presented in Guatemala, Honduras, and Costa Rica.

Rethinking prevention of violence against women in South Africa

In South Africa, a woman’s risk of being murdered by her partner or ex-partner is five times higher than the global average. Appalling gender-based violence has been going on for decades. In the past two years, social outrage over these atrocities has grown to a level that politicians can no longer afford to ignore. Our Cape Town Office has been working to prevent sexualized violence for a long time. Together with the National Shelter Movement, we analyzed the efforts of women’s shelters and developed policy proposals. Under mounting public pressure, lawmakers are now finally responding to these proposals. In addition to legislative changes, they increased the budget for preventive measures, including more funding for women’s shelters, thus meeting the key demands of the Foundation and its partners. This goes to show that sound research, combined with tireless lobbying, can indeed bring about change.

Promoting gender equality in Russia

Far too often, Russian panel discussions are dominated by men, with the odd woman sitting between them little more than an accessory. The women’s network “She is an expert” (she-expert.org), which was set up by our Moscow Office, is meant to change this situation. Here, women experts may register, specifying their field of expertise and providing examples of their professional experience. Panel organizers can search the database by topic and skills in order to find women speakers for their events. To encourage women who might be hesitant about registering, the project also offers courses to help them hone their public speaking skills.

Feminist Gala: Happy Birthday, intersectionality!

US law professor and activist Kimberlé Crenshaw is one of the world’s great feminist icons. Ever since she coined the concept of intersectionality thirty years ago, she has been working tirelessly to shine a spotlight on the complex realities of groups that are normally under the radar, especially black women. Crenshaw is convinced that intersectionality facilitates inclusive political work and makes it possible to truly reach all people. The activist has inspired, supported, and empowered countless people in their struggle for justice. In April 2019, the Gunda Werner Institute and the Center for Intersectional Justice honored Kimberlé Crenshaw with a gala in Berlin. To mark the occasion, “Reach Everyone on the Planet...” was published in German and English.

Publication “Reach Everyone on the Planet…”

http://boell.org/en/2019/04/16/reach-everyone-planet

Democracy needs feminism – now more than ever!

The Gunda Werner Institute (GWI) at the Heinrich Böll Foundation highlights that feminism is deeply rooted in and an integral part of the Green movement. We question ourselves and others too to learn about their vision for a gender-democratic society and the political paths and strategies needed to get us there. Gender democracy thrives on debate and dialog with and between all genders, according to Gunda Werner’s mantra: “Mental taboos are strictly taboo!”

www.gwi-boell.de/en

Moria, island of Lesbos, Greece: Literacy class for Afghan women Photo: Murat Tueremis/laif

Towards a sustainable and humane migration policy

There are many reasons for refugees and migrants to leave their countries of origin: authoritarian, undemocratic, and corrupt regimes, as well as persistent poverty and armed conflict. In addition, there are factors associated with global climate change and environmental degradation, to which Western affluence has been contributing significantly. We advocate for a humane EU migration policy, including the right to fair asylum procedures, the full implementation of the Geneva Convention on Refugees, and that all Member States assume their fair share of responsibility.

Municipalities aiding refugees

Both Germany and Europe have yet to define a consistent way of receiving incoming refugees from the crisis hotspots surrounding Europe, still, promising approaches are being developed all over Europe at the very level that shoulders the actual burden of integrating migrants – the municipalities. Yet thus far, however, local authorities have little say on migration issues, which is why we have published a policy paper that recommends granting local authorities a more active role in EU asylum and refugee policy. For example, local authorities should have better access to EU funds and play a role in determining the purposes of such funds. Access to EU funds should be made easier for smaller or underfunded communities. All these measures can help EU asylum policy get out of its impasse.

Training for unbiased news reporting in Morocco

Since 2014, Morocco has pioneered new migration policies in the region, granting migrants legal residence permits and thus access to work, education, and healthcare. Nevertheless, Moroccan society also harbors racial prejudice and many have reservations about migrants, viewing them as a security risk. To stop the spread of stereotypes and prejudices in the media, our Rabat Office has joined forces with two Moroccan media associations and developed a series of courses that train journalists in professional, human rights-based reporting techniques. These courses aim to make public debate more nuanced. In addition to investigative articles on the topic, the participating journalists published a collection of reports with the title “Migrations au Maroc: l’impasse?” with publisher En toutes lettres.

Analysis of migration policy in Senegal – a study

Equating more money with less migration is a fallcy, as a study by our Dakar Office on Senegalese migration policy between 2005 and 2019 has shown. According to its findings, state migration policy is primarily driven by the donors’ needs, that is, by EU countries and international organizations. Over the years, Senegal has hardly formulated any homegrown policies in this area. This is also true of the government’s current policy. By focusing on the interests of (potential) receiving countries, Senegal is losing sight of the positive aspects of migration for itself and the migrants’ own interests. The study advocates a more holistic approach to migration policy. Rather than preventing migration, the objective should be to manage migration well.

Flight and migration from Central America

The collective exodus of thousands of people from Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala and their arduous trek across Mexico towards the USA has made headlines worldwide. Even though people have been emigrating in large numbers for decades, the situation in Central America had worsened dramatically in 2018. Organized crime now dominates large parts of the national territories, often in complicity with corrupt military and police forces. Violence and murder rates are reaching alarming levels and unemployment is high, especially among young people. Consequently, there are many reasons that force people to migrate. Our San Salvador Office tries to raise awareness of the issue, working with alternative digital media like El Faro and GatoEncerrado (El Salvador), ContraCorriente (Honduras), or the magazine Envio (Nicaragua).

Raising awareness for the difficult situation of migrant workers in Jordan

In Jordan, a country with roughly ten million inhabitants, there are almost one million migrant workers, most of them from Arab countries and South/South-East Asia. Many of them fall prey to human traffickers, and female domestic workers are particularly vulnerable. Although Jordan has a decade-old law against human trafficking, police and the judiciary are often unaware of it and rarely enforce it. Undocumented people are imprisoned and deported, even when they actually need protection. Our Ramallah Office is cooperating with the Jordanian Women’s Union to train prosecutors, judges, and police officers on how to recognize human trafficking and apply the pertinent laws. Since the issue receives little coverage from regional media, our office is producing podcasts on labor migration and human trafficking. The aim is to raise public awareness, both of migrant workers’ difficult living and working conditions and of human trafficking in its different forms.

Alliance against the trafficking of women in Cambodia

In Cambodia, as elsewhere, the increasing globalization of the labor market means that many jobs in the clothing industry, food processing, agriculture, domestic work, and sex work are performed by migrant women. Their legal situation is precarious, both in terms of residence and employment. To some extent, their conditions are akin to slavery, as the women are held forcibly and are being economically exploited. The Global Alliance Against Trafficking in Women (GAATW), a partner organization of our Cambodia Office, supports and defends the human rights of migrant women and their families, calling for safety standards regarding migration procedures, as well as in formal and informal work environments. One essential requirement is the principle of non-discrimination on any grounds, be it ethnicity, religion, or migration status.

“I believe in saving human lives wherever we can.”

Heinrich Böll, 1981

Conference at the Heinrich Böll Foundation on the occasion of the European elections in May

Photo: Stephan Röhl

For European solidarity in times of crisis

The European Union has been in crisis for years, being unable to find common ground on major political issues. Today, because of the effects the COVID19 pandemic has on the EU’s approximately 450 million citizens, the Union is needed more than ever. After some nationalistic reflexes early in the pandemic, one thing has become clear once again: The EU needs cooperation, not only on climate change mitigation, but also when it to comes to combating a pandemic and its consequences. We want to help finding solutions to the many political challenges and restore confidence in the EU’s legitimacy and capabilities.

In the wake of the European elections: Quo Vadis, EU?

The result of the European elections in May 2019 was as diverse as Europe itself. The Greens were very successful in Western Europe, especially in Germany. In some countries, extreme-right and right-wing populist parties garnered many votes, but their surge was not as strong as had been feared. At our annual conference on European politics that took place on June 3-4, 2019, we analyzed the election results, explored the reasons for voting behaviors in individual EU countries, and held discussions with European experts on how the new constellation will affect the future direction of EU policy. On the occasion of the European elections, our Brussels Office produced the online dossier “The European Parliament goes green”, featuring analyses of election results in member states and video interviews with Green MEPs from all over Europe.

Online dossier on the European elections:

www.eu.boell.org/en/european-parliament-goes-green

European elections – greater opportunities for Polish woman candidates?

On behalf of our Warsaw Office, the Polish Institute of Public Affairs analyzed the nomination of female candidates for the 2019 European elections and their chances of success. The Institute conducted anonymous interviews with leaders and women candidates from important political groups. Although the proportion of women in politics has increased over the last two terms (rising from 27.2 to 28.7 per cent in the Polish Sejm, and from 24 to 35 per cent in the Polish delegation to the EU Parliament), it is still too low to make sure that women have a significant influence on political decisions. The study therefore makes recommendations on how to improve gender equality in election campaigns, including the creation of special funds for women candidates’ media campaigns.

The rocky road towards a European energy union: The example of the EU Gas Directive

The European Union’s dependence on natural gas imports continues to increase. Russia is the largest importer of gas to the EU. The first Nord Stream pipeline has been carrying Russian gas to Germany via the Baltic Sea since 2011. A second pipeline, Nord Stream 2, was to become operational at the end of 2019. The highly controversial project not only involves serious ecological risks, but also lays bare diverging geostrategic interests among member states that challenge European solidarity. In addition, the project undermines EU sanctions on Russia. As early as November 2017, the European Commission published a proposal to amend the EU Gas Directive. After much controversy, the European Parliament, member states, and the Commission finally agreed on a compromise. At a joint event held by the Foundation and the Polish Institute Zachodni in March 2019, experts discussed possible developments regarding the implementation of the Gas Directive and how to consolidate the EU Energy Union.

Foreign and security policy strategies for Europe

Since it came into force in 1987, the INF Treaty (Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces) has been regarded as one of the pillars of European security: It banned the stationing of medium-range missiles and led to the scrapping of hundreds of Soviet and American missiles and cruise missiles at the end of the Cold War. In 2019, however, the US and Russia terminated the treaty, following US accusations that Russia had violated it. At our symposium in Berlin in June 2019, experts from Europe, Russia, and the USA discussed how to prevent the stationing of medium-range nuclear missiles in Europe and thus a dangerous arms race. The conference was held in cooperation with the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) and the London European Leadership Network (ELN).

In November 2019, as part of our efforts to promote young talent, we created the Forum on New Security Policy, which provides a platform for 28 outstanding Green and Green-leaning foreign and security policy experts from government institutions, think tanks, research institutes, and parliaments. Our aim is to promote the next generation of Green and Green-leaning security policy experts and offer them the opportunity to exchange ideas. The forum is both a think tank and a feeder of ideas for Green security policy debates.

Strategies for an EU Western Balkans policy that secures peace

At the beginning of 2019, our Belgrade and Sarajevo Offices initiated the “Western Balkans Strategy Group”, in order to make sure that regional civil society has a voice in the discussions on the EU’s Western Balkans policy. The group analyzes current developments in the region in and drafts cross-national policies that promote EU enlargement while focusing on democracy and the rule of law. In March, in Berlin and Brussels, members of the group took a firm stand against the plan to swap territories along ethnic lines as part of an EU-moderated Serbian-Kosovar “normalization process”, something that is viewed as a “quick fix” to solve the Kosovo-Serbian conflict. The group stressed that this would mean reopening the Pandora’s box of 1990s ethnopolitical principles.

Presentation of the World Nuclear Waste Report in Berlin

More than 70 years after the dawn of the nuclear age, none of the world’s 31 nuclear states has an operational permanent disposal site for highly radioactive waste. The goal of safely storing nuclear waste deep underground for a million years is one of the greatest challenges we face. Initiated by former MEP Rebecca Harms, the first edition of the “World Nuclear Waste Report – Focus Europe” was conceived and produced in cooperation with an international team of experts. The report, presented in November 2019 at our Berlin headquarters, is an attempt to compare different national strategies for nuclear waste disposal. It describes scientific concepts and different national experiences, and provides current figures for the growing quantities of nuclear waste, as well as plans for funding, highlighting the enormous gap between the funds that are necessary and the financial resources that are actually available.

“World Nuclear Waste Report”:

http://on.boell.de/nuclearwaste

30th anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution – promoting a strong democracy!

In Germany, in 2019, many of our activities revolved around the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. We commemorated the anniversary with debates, readings, performances, and many other events, reflecting how it relates to the present day. In close cooperation with our regional foundations in Germany’s 16 states, we promoted dialog in both East and West Germany. However, we also highlighted the East-West question on a European level, exploring experiences of dictatorship and transformation that still resonate today.

“I think that’s effective immediately.” – our video installation to mark the 30th anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution on the southern facade of the Heinrich Böll Foundation

Photo: Stephan Röhl

“Effective immediately!” – a video installation

In early November 2019, Berlin celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution and the fall of the Wall. In contrast to the celebrations five and ten years ago, the capital refrained from holding major festivities, instead providing discrete, decentralized places to remember the historic events. We decided to set a visual landmark with our video installation “Effective immediately!” A selection of iconic phrases and slogans from the Peaceful Revolution of October and November 1989 appeared in a six-minute animation on the 600-square-meter south façade of our building. The installation was on display from sunset to midnight between November 1 and 10, 2019.

In case you missed it

www.boell.de/mauerfall

European History Forum

The “fall” of the Berlin Wall not only paved the way for German reunification, it also symbolized the end of communist rule in Eastern and Southeastern Europe. People remember these events and subsequent developments in very different ways, yet all former socialist states view it as a watershed moment that gave great hope for emancipation. At our 8th European History Forum in May 2019, we discussed how the narrative of 1989 has changed over the past 30 years in Eastern and South-Eastern Europe.

A just society needs intact public spaces

The current corona pandemic and its shutdowns have made it abundantly clear that we must rediscover and revitalize our public spaces in the name of democracy and social participation. Beyond squares and parks, this includes any spaces that facilitate encounters and foster integration – childcare centers, schools, libraries, sports fields, or corner pubs, but also social media. In 2019, we addressed the issue of public spaces in a joint project with our state foundations through events, films, and publications that highlight the usefulness and significance of public spaces and that show why we have to take good care of them.

Green Story 2019: The panel discussion with Sabine Rennefanz, Robert Habeck, Nora Bossong, and Daniela Dröscher met with great interest

Photo: Stephan Röhl

“What is the Green story of … public spaces?”

Everyone laments that our society is drifting apart – but where exactly are the cracks in our social and cultural fabric? How can we involve those who have been marginalized? At our two-day conference “What is the Green story of ... public spaces?”, we explored ways to build a more inclusive society, taking a closer look at all the places where society comes together – in the city and in the country, across social and cultural milieus. For example, one panel discussed how much state support would be needed to build more trust in public institutions. The panelists agreed that investment needs to be ramped up again because, as Berlin’s Green Senator for Economics, Ramona Pop, pointed out, otherwise the next generation would have to pay the price for crumbling public infrastructure. No one on the podium questioned the importance of infrastructure spending. The Green Party’s parliamentary leader, Toni Hofreiter, and the head of the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW), Marcel Fratzscher, also called for higher spending in this crucial area, which has been on the chopping block for decades. The debate on how to design and cultivate our public spaces will continue.

Arts and culture

Art can be a driver of social change, a means of resistance, and an integral part of social and political movements. Art sharpens perception, heightens intuition, provides shared aesthetic experiences, and inspires creative intervention. We are therefore promoting art and culture as expressions of social self-exploration.

German-Israeli Literature Days: Sami Berdugo

Photo: Stephan Röhl

Priya Basil

Photo: Stephan Röhl

“How much louder is this going to get?” –

German-Israeli Literature Days

Challenges posed by right-wing populism have long become a worldwide phenomenon – not only in the US, Brazil, or Hungary, where populists are already in charge. Such voices are also becoming louder in Germany and Israel. But how did we get there? During the German-Israeli Literature Days, which took place between September 4-8, 2019, authors from both countries debated how to address populists and polarization. Author Sami Berdugo, the son of Moroccan immigrants to Israel, warned against mixing private and political spheres. “It is the writers’ task to expose this linguistic distortion and inconsistency, though I’m not even sure if this is still possible. For a long time, we have been living under a populist, repressive regime whose decision-makers resort to linguistic manipulation. In literature, we try to distance ourselves from this mass jargon and use appropriate language.” Other guests included Dov Alfon, Friedrich Ani, Maayan Ben Hagai, Priya Basil, Dilek Güngör, Mati Shemoelof, and Tijan Sila. The German-Israeli Literature Days are a joint project of the Goethe-Institut and the Heinrich Böll Foundation.

Proscribed languages – 2nd German-Arabic Literature Days:

Sometimes, languages are being associated with terror, as has happened with Arabic ever since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Each day, exiles in Germany experience how much their language, the mother tongue of around 300 million people, is still being vilified. Even a phone call in Arabic on the subway can draw suspicious glances from other passengers. There is also a widespread assumption that men from the Arab world naturally pose a patriarchal danger, which in turn reduces women to primarily being their victims – another stereotype that contributes to a blanket defamation of Arabic speakers. Exiled authors quickly learn how difficult it is for a native Arabic writer to win over German publishers. This makes it all the more important for us to keep promoting Arab-German dialog and embed the Arabic language in the local cultural scene. The bilingual festival “German-Arabic Literature Days”, held jointly by FANN magazine and the Gunda Werner Institute in Berlin in September, showcased writers from Egypt, Syria, Tunisia, Palestine, Austria, and Germany, and attracted around 800 visitors.

Film festival poster

Mekong 2030 – short films from Southeast Asia

The Mekong is one of the longest rivers in the world and the lifeline of nearly 60 million people in Southeast Asia. The social and ecological impact of massive energy infrastructure developments and the consequences of droughts caused by climate change are already being felt in all countries along the Mekong River. Five young filmmakers from Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar created short films to show us their compelling and creative-philosophical visions of the river – and what life on its banks will be like a decade from now. In the coming year, with support from our Bangkok Office, the shorts will be screened at various film festivals in Southeast Asia and elsewhere.

Online:

https://mekong2030.org/

GreenCampus – Practicing successful politics

GreenCampus – the political training academy of the Heinrich Böll Foundation and its affiliated foundations at the federal state level – pools our diverse spectrum of advanced training programs in the field of political management. GreenCampus offers skills development, capacity-building, and management consulting for people active in politics – whether they work as volunteers, in political parties, or in organizations. In this way, we make a key contribution toward building and upgrading the skills that people need to engage in successful political work and effective social participation.

greencampus.boell.de

The Heinrich Böll House in Langenbroich

Artists around the world speak out on political and social issues, standing up for freedom of expression and making valuable contributions to democracy and human rights. This often puts them in the crosshairs of the powerful, making them subject to threats and persecution, and forcing them to leave their country. Of those, a few will find a safe place to work and live in Langenbroich.

Ines Kappert, founder of the project “Weiter Schreiben” (Keep on Writing), with authors and collaborators Rabab Haidar and Ulla Lenze.

Photo: Stephan Röhl

We support politically-minded writers and artists with our stipend program at the Heinrich Böll House Langenbroich in Germany. Since 1990, we have successfully partnered with the city of Düren and the state of North Rhine-Westphalia to host almost 200 guests from 50 countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, as well as Eastern and South-Eastern Europe at this former home of the Böll family. Here, writers and artists will find the time to pursue their creative work, undisturbed and free from financial worries, state control, or even persecution. The Foundation is part of a worldwide network of institutions that provide help to politically persecuted authors and artists.

Our guests in 2019

Osamah Al-Dhari, born in 1983, is a writer and poet from Yemen. In 2007, he published a collection of his poetry titled “Crossing Distances”. He serves as editor of Ashkal Cultural Website – Previously and chief editor of the Democracy Newspaper in Yemen. Since 2019, his writing has appeared on the literary website Weiter Schreiben (Keep on Writing) in collaboration with poet and translator Joachim Sartorius.

Maryam Duhaytim, born in 1982, is a Saudi writer who works as a news analyst and author for the Saudi Cultural Channel and also for talk shows on the Dubai-based channel Rotana. She has published articles and literary reviews in various Arabic-language and Saudi magazines such as Ahlan wa Sahlan, Alwatan Newspaper, and for the culture department at Aljazeera News. Two volumes of her poetry have been published in Egypt.

Rabab Haidar, born in 1977, is a writer and translator from Damascus, working as a columnist for various newspapers and magazines. Her first novel “Land of the Pomegranate” was published in 2012. Her second, yet unpublished novel “Rabbit Hole” is about revolution, feminism, and minorities. Haidar is also a member of the Syrian Women’s Network. Since 2019, she has been publishing on the literary website Weiter Schreiben in collaboration with writer Ulla Lenze.

Applications for residencies:

Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung, Ms. Sigrun Reckhaus c/o Stadtbibliothek

Josef-Haubrich-Hof 1, 50676 Köln, Germany

E reckhaus@boell.de

Scholarship and fellowship program – giving a lift to young talent

We support undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students from both Germany and abroad across all academic disciplines. Our aim is to find promising talent and help it fulfill its potential. In this way, we want to encourage young people to promote the Foundation’s goals worldwide, namely, more democracy, solidarity, environmental action, sustainable policies, and human rights.

Heidelberg: Summer Academy “Shaping Democracy” under the patronage of German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier.

Photo: Stephan Pramme, Hans-Böckler-Stiftung (CC-BY-NC 4.0)

Who are the beneficiaries?

In 2019, out of 2,657 applicants, the Foundation’s scholarship program selected 350 new fellows in a three-stage process. Last year, a total of 1,370 students – 1,143 undergraduate and graduate students and 225 doctoral candidates, and 2 postdocs – received financial support; 62 % of these fellows were women. The largest national groups of international fellows (by country) are from Syria (50), followed by Russia (10), Egypt (8), Turkey (7), Iran (6) and Ukraine (5).

Non-material support: advice – training – networking

At the heart of our non-material support services is our event program. Its aim is to promote political debate, teach key skills, encourage interdisciplinary dialog, help participants prepare for their future careers, and foster our fellows’ social and political activism. Our major training objectives are self-organization, critical thinking, and creative skills. The event program is designed for and with our fellows. Ecological issues are an important component: In 2019, the main topic of the “Campus” summer academy was social and ecological transformation, which is also a focus of doctoral research in the cluster “transformation research”.

Highlights of the 2019 event program

With financial support from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, a new series was launched – a cross-organizational summer academy for fellows of different scholarship programs. For the years 2019, 2020, and 2021 the program, which is coordinated by the Hans Böckler Foundation, takes place under the motto “Shaping Democracy!”. The first summer academy was held in Heidelberg from August 26 to September 2. A total of 200 participants, 16 of them fellows of the Heinrich Böll Foundation, discussed current threats to our democracy and how to defend it. The annual “Alumni Salon” focused on possible responses by Germany and Europe to the shift in global power dynamics and possible partnerships for the future.

“Scientists in Exile” – scholarships for scientists

Since 2017, our scholarship program has granted short-term residencies (three- to six-months) to politically persecuted scholars, enabling them to study in Germany. The program, initially aimed at doctoral students and postdocs from Turkey, has since been opened to students and young academics from other parts of the world. Last year, the program funded two doctoral students and one postdoc from Egypt and Turkey.

Awards

The Heinrich Böll Foundation bestows several awards and co-sponsors various other honors. Our most important awards are the Peace Film Prize and the Anne Klein Women’s Award.

Natascha Nicklaus, Nora Szász, and Kristina Hänel

Photo: Celebi Linden/Skripietz Fotografie

Jerome Kohn (left) and Roger Berkowitz

Photo: private and Doug Menuez

Anne Klein Women’s Award 2019 went to Natascha Nicklaus, Nora Szász, and Kristina Hänel

The jury honored three women physicians for their relentless battle for women’s right to information. All three were denounced for supposedly advertising abortions, which is considered a violation of Section 219a of the German Criminal Code. The three physicians refused to remove information about their medical services from their websites, and they are currently waging a legal as well as public campaign for women’s right to free information and the abolition of §219a of the German Criminal Code. Today, physicians are facing denunciations, defamation, and threats from self-proclaimed pro-lifers who would like to see abortion pushed back into secrecy. With the 8th Anne Klein Women’s Award, which is endowed with 10,000 euros, the jury honors these three women on behalf of all doctors who fight against such developments and courageously advocate for legal reform.

Anne Klein Women’s Award:

www.boell.de/en/anne-klein-womens-award

Hannah Arendt Prize 2019 awarded to Jerome Kohn and Roger Berkowitz

US scientist Jerome Kohn was honored for his efforts to make Hannah Arendt’s work – and especially her unpublished writings – accessible to a worldwide audience. Through interviews, articles, and lectures, Kohn keeps reiterating Arendt’s conviction that it is up to the citizens’ judgement to approve of what is good and oppose what is bad for society and the people – and to take action for the common good. Roger Berkowitz, Academic Director at the Hannah Arendt Center at Bard College (NY), has created a place where students can learn about Hannah Arendt’s philosophy and a venue where international scholars and politicians may discuss current politics. Jerome Kohn and Roger Berkowitz have kept Arendt’s philosophy alive, encouraging the next generation to take responsibility for what is done in their name. The Hannah Arendt Prize is awarded by the City of Bremen and the Heinrich Böll Foundation and is endowed with 10,000 euros.

Peace Film Prize for the documentary “Espero tua (re)volta”

The Peace Film Prize at the 69th Berlin Film Festival went to Brazilian director Eliza Capai for her documentary “Espero tua (re)volta”. “The winning film draws us into a highly topical and universal conflict, the struggle for education for all. The social emancipation of the young generation represents the political dimension of this struggle. The film, which was created in a collective effort, compels with its clever montage and novel narrative technique. The film’s captivating dynamic inspires us, the viewers, to take our own non-violent stance against the abuse of state authority,” the jury commented. The awardee is presented with 5,000 euros and a sculpture by artist Otmar Alt.

Publications 2019

Agricultural Atlas

Europe needs a new political majority for a fundamental reform of the EU’s damaging and inequitable farming subsidies, in order to save nature, prevent the worst effects of climate change, and revive small farms, as well as our rural regions. A radical change in the Common Agriculture Policy is crucial to fulfil EU Paris climate commitments, prevent the dangerous consequences of environmental degradation, and revive rural life in Europe!

The atlas shows how closely Europe’s agriculture is intertwined with our lives and our living spaces. It also reveals how little of the funding of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is fit for purpose.

Download: www.boell.de/agricultureatlas

Plastic Atlas

Plastic is ubiquitous: We use it for life-saving medical devices, clothing, toys and cosmetics; we use it in agriculture and industry – yet we also know of the growing risk plastic waste poses for the environment and the oceans.

We have only just begun to understand the huge dimensions of this crisis. A change of course requires in-depth knowledge of the causes, interests, responsibilities, and effects of the plastics crisis, which is exactly what the Plastic Atlas 2019 lays out in its 19 chapters.

Download: www.boell.de/plasticatlas

Winner of the Gourmand Award!

“This is (not) a recipe book” – going back to Brazil’s rich culinary roots

The book’s nine chapters not only cover a variety of dishes, but also critically address the issue of food and its production: distribution of land ownership, the work of small farmers, the importance of biodiversity, or the significance of food as cultural heritage. The book was nominated for the Gourmand Award as the Brazilian contribution in the category “university publications” and won 2nd place.

More information: www.comidadoamanha.org/istonaoeumlivrodereceitas

Perspectives Asia #8: Asia for Future

See all issues:

https://th.boell.org/en/product-series/perspectives-asia

Perspectives Africa #02/2019: Ecological

and Social Transformation in Africa:

Rethinking food systems for a +2 °C world

See all issues:

https://za.boell.org/perspectives-political-analyses-and-commentary

Perspectives Southeastern Europe

#02/2019: ‘stabilitocracy’ and/or

radicalism

See all issues:

https://www.boell.de/en/perspectives-southeastern-europe

Perspectivas Latin América, #05/2019:

A un alto costo. Generación de energía en América Latina (in Spanish)

See all issues:

https://sv.boell.org/es/perspectivas-america-latina-2020

Our financial framework

The Heinrich Böll Foundation is an incorporated association registered with the district court of Berlin-Charlottenburg and tax-exempt as a non-profit organization. Our work is largely financed through public grants. Transparency about how we use our funds is of utmost importance to us, which is why our financial reporting goes beyond the legal requirements. We are members of the Transparent Civil Society Initiative and committed to an anti-corruption code of conduct. In addition, we voluntarily prepare an annual financial report, which is guided by the rules of Germany’s Commercial Code and have it independently audited.

Revenue in 2019

The Foundation’s revenue increased by approximately 4.6 percent in 2019, which is mainly due to higher revenues from global funds, but also to additional funds made available for our international programs and in support of undergraduate and postgraduate studies in Germany. There was also an increase in revenue from third-party funding for our international programs, especially on climate change.

Expenditures in 2019

In 2019, about two thirds of the Foundation’s expenditures (approx. 46.1 million euros) went into program activities and into scholarship and fellow programs. Allowing for payroll for staff directly involved in programs, this share increased to approximately 87 percent. Administrative expenses increased slightly, as did expenditures for investments and special projects.

Preliminary cash-basis accounting 2019*

Reporting year: January 1 to December 31, 2019 (as of March 6)

2019

2018

Revenue for the global budget**

23,531,746

21,771,254

Project funding

International cooperation

36,760,032

36,204,203

BMZ

30,833,614

30,169,673

German Foreign Office

5,768,658

5,729,716

EU

21,605

202,657

Other/third party funds for international cooperation

136,155

102,158

Studienwerk

11,164,172

10,275,562

BMBF

10,091,792

9,403,116

German Foreign Office

1,051,910

850,355

Other

20,470

22,091

Third-party funds Germany

133,687

132,893

Miscellaneous

65,417

118,530

Total revenue

71,655,055

68,502,443

Specialist expenditures

1,855,659

1,576,051

Transfers to regional foundations

2,859,401

2,736,913

Project funding expenditures

International cooperation

30,199,786

30,244,591

Studienwerk

11,164,172

10,275,562

EU

21,605

202,657

Third-party funds

47,142

17,590

Personnel (salaries, including management of foreign offices)

19,296,163

18,108,149

Operating expenditures

2,930,599

2,761,003

Investments

699,245

531,667

Miscellaneous

454,122

383,841

Total expenditures

69,527,894

66,838,024

Annual result

2,127,484

1,664,418

Association revenue

248,355

182,071

Association expenditures

212,921

171,240

Association result

35,434

10,832

* all figures in euros

** including carryovers from the previous year

BMZ: Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, AA: Federal Foreign Office, BMBF: Federal Ministry of Education and Research

Addresses

July 2020

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Schumannstraße 8

10117 Berlin, Germany

T +49-030-285 34-0 F +49-030-285 34-109

E info@boell.de W www.boell.de

Archive Grünes Gedächtnis

Eldenaer Straße 35

10247 Berlin, Germany

T +49-030-285 34-260 F +49-030-285 34-51 40

E archiv@boell.de

International Offices

Europe and North America

Brussels Office – European Union

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Rue du Luxembourg, 47–51, 1050 Brussels, Belgium

T +32-2-743 41 14 F +32-2-743 41 09

E info@eu.boell.org W www.eu.boell.org

Paris Office – France

Heinrich Böll Foundation

80 Quai Jemmapes, 75010 Paris, France

T +33-1 84 86 15 81

E info@fr.boell.org W www.fr.boell.org

Prague Office – Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Jugoslávská 567/16, 120 00 Prag 2, Czech Republic

T +420-251 81 41 73

E info@cz.boell.org W www.cz.boell.org

Warsaw Office – Poland

Heinrich Böll Foundation

ulica Żurawia 45, 00-680 Warsaw, Poland

T +48-22-44 01 333 F +48-22-44 01 337

E pl-info@pl.boell.org W www.pl.boell.org

Moscow Office – Russian Federation

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Grusinskij Pereulok 3-231, 123056 Moscow, Russia

T +7-499-254 14 53 F +7-495-935 80 14

E info@ru.boell.org W www.ru.boell.org

Kyiv Office – Ukraine

Heinrich Böll Foundation

wul. Velyka Zhytomyrska 13, office 2, 01001 Kyiv, Ukraine

T +38-044 394 5242

E ua-info@ua.boell.org W www.ua.boell.org

Tbilisi Office – South Caucasus Region

Heinrich Böll Foundation

38, Zovreti st., Tbilisi 0160, Georgia

T +995-32-238 04 67 F +995-32-291 28 97

E info@ge.boell.org W www.ge.boell.org

Belgrade Office – Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Kapetan-Mišina 25, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia

T +381-11400 59 77

E info@rs.boell.org W www.rs.boell.org

Sarajevo Office – Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania,

North Macedonia

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Čekaluša 42, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

T +387-33-260 450 F +387-33-260 460

E info@ba.boell.org W www.ba.boell.org

Thessaloniki Office – Greece

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Aristotelous Street 3, 54624 Thessaloniki, Greece

T +30 2310 282829 F +30 2310 282832

E info@gr.boell.org W www.gr.boell.org

Istanbul Office – Turkey

Heinrich Böll Foundation

T +90-212-249 15 54 F +90-212-245 04 30

E info@tr.boell.org W www.tr.boell.org

Washington, DC Office – USA, Canada, Global Dialogue

Heinrich Böll Foundation

1432 K Street, NW

Suite 500, Washington, DC 20005–2540, USA

T +1-202-462 75 12 F +1-202-462 52 30

E info@us.boell.org W www.us.boell.org

Asia

Beijing Representative Office

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Office C704, Beijing Lufthansa Center,

No. 50, Liangmaqiao Road,

Chaoyang District, 100125 Beijing, China

T +86-10-8400 4265

E info@cn.boell.org W www.cn.boell.org

India Office

Heinrich Böll Foundation

C – 20, 1st Floor, Qutub Institutional Area

New Delhi 110016, India

T +91-11-2685 4405 F +91-11-26 96 28 40

E info@in.boell.org W www.in.boell.org

Southeast Asia Regional Office

Heinrich Böll Foundation

T +66 (0)2-6625960/1/2 F +66-2-6627576

E info@th.boell.org W www.th.boell.org

Phnom Penh Office – Cambodia

Heinrich Böll Foundation

#8, Street 476, Sangkat Toul Tompoung I,

Khan Chamkar Mon, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

T +855 23 210 535

E info@kh.boell.org W www.kh.boell.org

Yangon Office – Myanmar

Heinrich Böll Foundation

No. 45/A, Kan Lane 3, Kan Road, Kamayut Township

Yangon, Myanmar

T +95-9-3168 5846

E info@mm.boell.org W www.mm.boell.org

Hong Kong Office – Asia, Global Dialogue

E/22 Derrick Industrial Bldg,

49 Wong Chuk Hang Rd

Hong Kong, China

T +852 2869 8900

E info@hk.boell.org W www.hk.boell.org

Africa

Abuja Office – Nigeria

Heinrich Böll Foundation

3rd Floor, Rukayyat Plaza,

93, Obafemi Awolowo Way, Jabi District, Abuja, Nigeria

T +234-809-99 29 60-5 91

E info@ng.boell.org W www.ng.boell.org

Nairobi Office – Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Somalia/Somaliland

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Prof. Wangari Maathai Road (formerly Forest Road), P.O. Box 10799-00100, GPO Nairobi, Kenya

T +254-20-26 80 745

E ke-info@ke.boell.org W www.ke.boell.org

Dakar Office – Senegal

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Rue de Louga x Impasse PE 10,

Point E, Dakar B.P. 49 87, Senegal

T +221 33 825 66 06

E info@sn.boell.org W www.sn.boell.org

Cape Town Office – South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe

Heinrich Böll Foundation

8th Floor Vunani Chambers, 33 Church Street,

Cape Town 8000, South Africa

T +27-21-461 62 66 F +27-21-424 40 86

E info@za.boell.org W www.za.boell.org

Middle East and North Africa

Tel Aviv Office – Israel

Heinrich Böll Foundation

1 Har Sinai St. 2nd floor, Tel Aviv 65816, Israel

T +972-3-516 77 34 F +972-3-516 76 89

E info@il.boell.org W www.il.boell.org

Palestine and Jordan Office

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Tal az-Zaatar St. 6, P.O. Box 2018 Ramallah, Palestine

T +972-2-296 11 21 F +972-2-296 11 22

E info@ps.boell.org W www.ps.boell.org

Beirut Office – Middle East

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Achrafieh, St. Nicolas’ Garden, Selim Boustros Street

Jbeili Building, 4th Floor

P.O. Box 175 510, Mar Mikhael, Beirut, Lebanon

T + 961-(0)1-216073/37 F +961-1216037

E info@lb.boell.org W www.lb.boell.org

Tunisia Office - Tunis

Heinrich Böll Foundation

5, Rue Jamel Abdennasser, 1000 Tunis, Tunisia

T +216 71 322 345

E info@tn.boell.org W www.tn.boell.org

Rabat Office – Morocco

Heinrich Böll Foundation

17, Rue Tiddas, Hassan, 10010 Rabat, Morocco

T +212-537 20 20 93 F +212-537 20 20 92

E ma-info@ma.boell.org W www.ma.boell.org

Latin America

Mexico City Office – Mexico and the Caribbeans

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Calle José Alvarado 12

Colonia Roma Norte, Delegación Cuauhtémoc,

CP 06760, México D.F., Mexico

T +52-55-52 64 15 14 F +52-55-52 64 28 94

E mx-info@mx.boell.org W www.mx.boell.org

San Salvador Office – El Salvador, Costa Rica,

Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Residencial Zanzibar

Pasaje A-Oriente No. 24, San Salvador, El Salvador

T +503-22 74 68 12 F +503-22 74 69 32

E sv-info@sv.boell.org W www.sv.boell.org

Rio de Janeiro Office – Brazil

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Rua da Glória 190, ap. 701

20241-180 Rio de Janeiro, Gloria, Brazil

T +55-21-32 21 99 00 F +55-21-32 21 99 22

E info@br.boell.org W www.br.boell.org

Bogotá Office – Colombia

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Calle 37 No 15–40, Bogotá, Colombia

T +57-1-371 91 11

E co-info@co.boell.org W www.co.boell.org

Santiago de Chile Office – Chile, Argentina,

Paraguay, Uruguay

Heinrich Böll Foundation

Avenida Francisco Bilbao 882, Providencia

752-0063 Santiago de Chile, Chile

T +56-2-2584 01 72 F +56-2-2584 01 72-101

E info@cl.boell.org W www.cl.boell.org

Table of Contents

Foreword

Climate justice – now!

Shaping a new energy system

For a responsible infrastructure and raw materials policy

Promoting sustainable agriculture and development

Strengthening democracy and human rights

Strengthening women’s and LGBTI rights

Towards a sustainable and humane migration policy

For European solidarity in times of crisis

30th anniversary of the Peaceful Revolution – promoting a strong democracy!

A just society needs intact public spaces

Arts and culture

The Heinrich Böll House in Langenbroich

Our guests in 2019

Scholarship and fellowship program – giving a lift to young talent

Awards

Publications 2019

Our financial framework

Addresses