VolkswagenStiftung
About the funder
The Volkswagen Foundation is a private, non-profit foundation that has been promoting science and technology in research and teaching since 1961. It supports outstanding scientists and projects in forward-looking fields and contributes to advancing both scientific fundamentals across all disciplines and the structural framework conditions of research and teaching, as well as societal transformation processes through unconventional ideas and flexible funding instruments.
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Mission & Vision
The Volkswagen Foundation promotes science and technology in research and teaching, leveraging its independence to support topics with future potential quickly and flexibly. It focuses on experimental, transdisciplinary approaches to foster scientific innovations, structural improvements within the scientific system, and the dialogue between science and society with sustainable impetus. Its self-conception as a learning organization enables it to continuously reflect on its own actions and to act in commitment to the common good. The foundation's central motto is: "We create knowledge."
Target groups
The Volkswagen Foundation targets researchers from all disciplines at universities and research institutions in Germany and internationally. Funding is provided both to individuals (e.g., fellows, professors) and to interdisciplinary and international research teams that implement innovative projects in pioneering fields or aim to further develop the structures of research and teaching. Special emphasis is placed on transdisciplinary collaborations with non-academic partners and on initiatives for science communication.