Purpose of the Association
According to the statutes, the goal is “to promote civil, non-violent conflict resolution, peace education, and peace research. This includes fostering international understanding and tolerance, as well as supporting youth exchanges and measures for youth welfare and education.”
The association represents the interests of its member organizations and individuals engaged in peace education to the public and promotes their activities, particularly through:
- Training opportunities
- Joint projects
- Exploring funding opportunities
- Joint public relations work
- Networking among themselves and with other organizations and networks engaged in peace education, including internationally
The association pursues exclusively and directly charitable purposes as per the statutes. Recognition by the tax office has not been applied for, but the association is nevertheless managed with a charitable orientation. It is registered in the Ulm Register of Associations under No. 50087.
The current board members are:
- Jürgen Menzel
- N.N.
History
The “Working Group on Peace Policy Education” e.V. (afpb) was founded in 1977 and has been advocating for increased peace education in society and schools. For many years, it served as the sponsoring organization for more than ten peace education institutions in collaboration with the Federal Agency for Civic Education (history of the association).
Today, there are various nationwide networks for peace education and a national exchange. In Baden-Württemberg, the Service Point for Peace Education was established in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and the State Agency for Civic Education, where we are actively involved.
The association is now primarily a network of peace education trainers and speakers based in Aalen, with an office in Berlin.
Networking
We collaborate within various networks for peace education in Germany. Together with Act for Transformation, we carry out different projects focused on peace education. We are actively involved in the campaign for the right to asylum for conscientious objectors, coordinated by Connection e.V. and internationally supported by various Quaker organizations.
International Quaker Office Berlin
Since 1925, the office in Berlin has been used by German and international Quakers as both an office and a place of worship. Initially, the “International Quaker Office,” operated by British and American Quakers, moved in to coordinate Quaker humanitarian aid for the German population, known as the “Quaker Feeding Program.” The office was led by an “International Secretariat” consisting of an American, a British, and a German Quaker.
With the onset of the Nazi era, the focus of the work shifted: the Quaker office became an important contact point for persecuted individuals, organizing their emigration. The office played a role, for example, in the so-called “Kindertransporte,” through which a total of 10,000 Jewish children were rescued by being taken to foster families in England. Near the Quaker office today, there is a memorial dedicated to the children of the Kindertransporte.
When the United States entered the war, the last foreign Quaker left the office in the summer of 1941. German Quakers managed to keep the office operational under challenging circumstances for some time afterward.