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Funding offer 10 July 2024

Earth System Sciences (completed)

Universities in Germany with a geoscience focus can apply for one to two junior tenure-track professorships. Deadline is Nov. 15, 2023. 

Eine Gruppe protestierender Menschen
Stories 01 July 2024

Protest movements: How do they affect democracies in Europe?

Election victories for authoritarian parties, demonstrations against the right, Fridays for Future and increasing populism: democracies in Europe are coming under pressure. The "ProDem" project has analysed the impact of protest movements on the development of democracy in six European countries.

Broschüre mit Aufdruck "status 2023" vor rotem Hintergrund
Publication of the Foundation 26 June 2024

status 2023 – Annual report of the Volkswagen Foundation

In 2023, the Volkswagen Foundation approved more than EUR 600 million for scientific projects. Figures, data and facts from our 2023 annual report.

viele hochgestreckte Daumen vor einer dunklen Schiefertafel
News 19 June 2024

Positive feedback for distributed peer review

The Volkswagen Foundation's "Distributed Peer Review" experiment is well received by applicants, as a survey by the Research on Research Institute (RoRI) shows.

Funding offer 18 June 2024

Theme Week '(Tackling) Loneliness' (completed)

Apply now with your symposium: The aim of the (Tackling) Loneliness theme week is to explore loneliness and social isolation from a holistic, interdisciplinary and intersectional perspective and to propose solutions for more togetherness. Deadline: October 29, 2024

Lottery drum on a blue background
News 30 May 2024

Everyone is equal in the lottery drum

Reaching funding decisions by drawing lots? Although that might sound a little dubious, it is not. This is proven by a scientifically monitored experiment carried out by the Volkswagen Foundation, which concludes that a partially randomized selection procedure following the scientific reviews brings more diversity into the pool of grantees. The researchers asked by the Foundation to monitor the procedure arrive at some interesting insights in their overall assessment.

Eine Frau, die aufmerksam zuhört
Story 06 March 2025

So that everyone can have their say: Citizens' assembly on AI research

Rhetoric expert Anika Kaiser researches how people can make themselves heard on the major issues of our time – artificial intelligence (AI) being a case in point. She is the right person to take care that this grassroots democratic process does not remain too detached from reality: in her first life, she trained as a painter.

Frauen mit Kopftüchern sitzen an Tischen und haben Steinblöcke mit Inschriften vor sich liegen, die sie betrachten.
Story 26 February 2025

Archaeology as reconstruction: Ancient Near Eastern Studies in Mosul

He came to Mosul with the task of excavating ancient Nineveh. In the meantime, however, the mission of the ancient orientalist Stefan Maul goes far beyond this: he is rebuilding the study of antiquity in Iraq. And he is teaching the people what the Islamists robbed them of: pride in their cultural heritage.