Prospect Utopia – Anniversary Program
Funding program of the Gerda Henkel Foundation for the 50th anniversary: 50 research projects on social coexistence and utopian thinking will be funded with up to €50,000 per project. Submission of project outlines by 15.04.2026.
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Grant criteria
Funding objective
Research on utopian visions of the future and social coexistence through historical, social scientific, and interdisciplinary approaches. The goal is to reveal new interpretative and design potentials of science for successful coexistence.
Eligible expenses
- Personnel expenses
- Travel expenses
- Material costs
- Other costs
Non-eligible expenses
- individual doctoral projects
- projects of purely documentary nature
- supplementary funding for existing projects
- overheads and administrative costs
- flat rates and non-verifiable expenses
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Eligible to apply
- Individuals
Funding requirements
- Postdoctoral researchers
- provisional doctoral certificate at the time of submission
- no institutional affiliation required
Documents required for application
- Outline of the project idea (max. 3 pages)
- Schedule
- Preliminary budget for the use of funds
- Tabular curriculum vitae
Evaluation criteria
- Innovation potential of the research
- Relevance for social cohesion
- Clear scientific foundation
- Potential for broad public impact
Description
In the anniversary program “Prospekt Utopia,” the Gerda Henkel Foundation invites postdoctoral researchers from across Germany to explore utopian visions of the future and the conditions for successful social coexistence in an interdisciplinary manner. A total of 50 projects will be funded with grants of up to €50,000 each, covering 100% of all personnel, travel, material, and other expenses. Institutional affiliation is not required, provided that a provisional doctoral certificate is available at the time of submission. The Foundation expects innovative concepts that combine historical, social science, or artistic approaches and communicate results appropriately beyond academic circles. Individual doctoral projects, purely documentary approaches, supplementary funding for ongoing projects, as well as overheads, flat rates, and tuition fees are excluded from funding.
Interested postdoctoral researchers should submit a project outline (max. 3 pages), a timeline, a rough budget estimate, and a tabular CV digitally by April 15, 2026. Selection will be based on innovation potential, relevance to social cohesion, scientific foundation, and public impact. With “Prospekt Utopia,” the Foundation opens spaces of possibility and invites participants to understand the future as a process that can be shaped and to rethink social orientations. Funding decisions will be announced in November 2026, and project starts should occur within one year.
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