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The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation campaigns for democracy, human rights and openness. The systematic displacement and murder of dissidents and people declared as not belonging must never be allowed to happen again. On the occasion of the commemoration of the victims of National Socialism last weekend, the Humboldt Foundation is taking a resolute stance against political extremism which divides up the population into welcome and unwelcome groupings.
The Humboldt Foundation sponsors researchers irrespective of their nationality and discipline. Particularly the cooperation of people who have different perspectives generates great opportunities for science and democracy. When it was founded in 1953, it was one of the Foundation’s most important goals to regain international trust in Germany after the Second World War.
“The horror can happen again”
In our network there are many voices that stand up for democratic, diverse societies. The French filmmaker and author Marc Sagnol talks about the “forgotten Holocaust” in Eastern Europe and the importance of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
“Research is also a means of pursuing understanding between nations and diplomacy. Germany has become an internationally connected and highly-attractive science location. Researchers from all over the world value the safety and openness in Germany and benefit from the freedom of science practised here. And Germany benefits from them. Let’s not throw away the trust we have gained,” urges the Foundation’s President, Robert Schlögl, and emphasises the Humboldt Foundation’s culture of welcome. “A culture of welcome is part of our DNA; we have been campaigning for it for decades. In order to develop, society and science need the exchange of different positions and a diversity of opinion. Let's keep our society open and defend ourselves against attacks on democracy and the rule of law.”
Cultural diversity is a precondition for intellectual life, not a burden. Just like its partner organisations in German research funding, the Humboldt Foundation is also convinced that the global problems of our times can only be solved through international, interdisciplinary cooperation. It expresses its solidarity with people all over Germany who are taking to the streets to campaign for democracy and against right-wing extremism.
(Press release 2/2024)
Every year, the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation enables more than 2,000 researchers from all over the world to spend time conducting research in Germany. The Foundation maintains an interdisciplinary network of well over 30,000 Humboldtians in more than 140 countries around the world – including 61 Nobel Prize winners.