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Values are at the core of everything we do and stand for. Social Democracy and the trade union movement stand united in the pursuit of freedom, justice, solidarity and the preservation of peace.
We keep our finger on the pulse of the major trends of our times and are always endeavouring to inject fresh ideas to advance Social Democracy now and in the future. Harnessing innovative solutions, we address today’s challenges in a quest to build a just and fair society steeped in solidarity for the future – in Germany, Europe and worldwide.
We fight against parochialism and inequality, and work for social progress that strengthens workers’ rights and safeguards and ensures decent work. We are committed to a socially just economy that serves people, preserves our natural resources, and in which each and every member of society benefits from the digital transformation.
We stand for a strong, vibrant and diverse democracy in which the participation of all people is a given. We shall defend our democracy with all our might – especially against right-wing agitation and violence.
We are committed to gender justice – in every aspect of life. Because only democracy that establishes real equality between the sexes is true Social Democracy.
A just future can only be achieved together. We can attain our goals through a strong and social Europe, global solidarity and policies that promote peace. This is our aim and objective.
We connect people and their ideas to form a network of Social Democracy. In Germany and over 100 countries around the world, we work with a wide range of partners on forward-looking projects – at the local, national and global levels.
We endeavour, promote and work for a society based on solidarity that truly offers equal opportunities for all members of society to participate in politics, economic life and culture. To this end, we empower, inform and train each and every individual who ascribes to these goals.
We analyse political trends from a progressive perspective and seek to bring about a future society founded on solidarity with sound arguments. We share our knowledge and innovative ideas with all those who want to make a contribution.
Because Social Democracy can only thrive if all people, regardless of their social and cultural background, have the same opportunities, we support students and doctoral candidates, especially those from working-class and immigrant families.
Our foundation was named after the first democratically elected German President, Friedrich Ebert, in 1925. This makes us one of the oldest political foundations in the world. We nurture and keep alive the historical roots of Social Democracy and the trade unions to remind us time and again of the struggle for freedom, justice and solidarity
We want to inspire others with our values and services. Each and every day anew. That’s why our teams are made up of bright minds and committed individuals who perform their activities in an agile manner, with appreciation for one another and a clear focus. We view criticism and mistakes as an opportunity to review our actions and generate new ideas for our work as a team.
You can download the mission statement in various languages here.
Deutsch / German English / Englisch Français / French
Espagnol / Spanish русский / Russian Português / Portuguese
Gender justice means social justice!
Gender equality is a central national and global socio-political challenge and a universal goal of Social Democracy. Gender equality is therefore an important driver for our content and partner-orientated work in Germany and worldwide.
Read more about the Foundation's gender policy work in Germany and abroad in the guidelines on gender equality.
Deutsch / German English / Englisch Français / French Espagnol / Spanish
At the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES), we hold the fundamental values of Social Democracy to be our guiding principles: freedom, justice, and solidarity. In the spirit of these values and on the basis of our Mission Statement, we strive to work towards a society where every human being is met with dignity and respect, both in Germany and abroad. For our daily work this means that our workplace atmosphere shall always be characterised by mutual respect and tolerance.
We do not tolerate discrimination based on ethnic origin, sex/gender, disability, religion, world view, age, or sexual identity/orientation.
We reject any form of sexualised or gender-related discrimination and do not tolerate any sexual harassment. This applies to FES staff both in Germany and abroad, to all persons and organisations around the world with whom we stand in contact or cooperate, to our scholarship holders, to all contract partners of the FES in Germany and our approx. 100 international offices, as well as to all participants in our activities worldwide.
As an employer, the FES takes its moral responsibility and legal obliga- tion to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace very seriously. Pre- ventative measures aim at raising awareness among staff members for how to handle incidents of sexual harassment, as well as encouraging them to openly address these whenever they occur. Sensitivity and con- fidentiality are fundamental principles for the FES when it comes to exercising its obligation to protect and its duty of care towards its staff. The FES will pursue any incident of sexual harassment, investigate, and adopt adequate, necessary, and appropriate measures to penalise these infringements and protect those affected as well as other employees against further aggression.
As we go forward, it will remain imperative to continuously develop protection against gender-based forms of discrimination and sexual harassment within the FES. This is the only way to effectively counter sexualised harassment, discrimination, and violence. We take this challenge very seriously.
Code of Conduct in other languages: German / Deutsch English / Englisch Français / French Espagnol / Spanish
For us, sustainability is not just an ecological issue, but also a social and economic one. We want fairness and justice for ourselves and for future generations. For the FES, sustainability must be feasible for everyone.
