Friedrich Naumann Foundation
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The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (German: Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit) (FNF), is a German foundation for liberal politics, related to the Free Democratic Party. Established in 1958 by Theodor Heuss, the first president of the Federal Republic of Germany, it promotes individual freedom and classical liberalism. Usually still referred to as the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung), the foundation supplemented its name in 2007 with the words "for Freedom" (für die Freiheit).
| Friedrich Naumann Stiftung für die Freiheit | |
| Formation | 1958 |
|---|---|
| Founder | Theodor Heuss |
| Legal status | Foundation (nonprofit) |
| Purpose | The work of the foundation shall be based on the principles of Liberalism. It shall be nonprofit in nature. |
| Location | |
Chairperson | Karl-Heinz Paque |
| Website | www.fnst.org |
The foundation follows the ideals of the Protestant theologian, Friedrich Naumann. At the beginning of the last century, Naumann was a leading German liberal thinker and politician. He resolutely backed the idea of civic education. Naumann believed that a functioning democracy needs politically informed and educated citizens. According to him, civic education is a prerequisite for political participation and thus for democracy.
In this regard, the foundation is an agent of organized liberalism. It promotes this through civic education, international political dialogues, and political counselling. The foundation has numerous offices in Europe, Africa, America, and Asia. It also enjoys close links with Germany's Free Democratic Party (FDP) and Liberal International (LI).
While the foundation's activities in the field of civic education consist of seminars, conferences and publications aimed at promoting liberal values and principles, the international political dialogue program provides a discussion forum for a wide range of liberal issues. The foundation's counselling programs focus on candidates for political office, liberal political parties and other democratic organizations.
Scholarship program
The Friedrich Naumann Foundation, together with other foundations of different philosophical, political and ideological orientation and the non-political German National Academic Foundation, acts as an instrument for the promotion of excellence in German tertiary education. This scholarship system is funded by the Federal Government. Around 1% of university students in Germany hold one of these federally funded merit scholarships.[1] Currently, the Friedrich Naumann Foundation provides scholarships to approximately 800 students, among those 175 PhD students (as of 2009[2]). Scholarships are granted after a competitive multi-stage admission process. The selection is based on grades, letters of recommendation, leadership potential, community service, and a visible commitment to liberal values. Around 20% of the scholarships are held by foreign students studying at a university in Germany.
Foreign involvement
In Peru, the foundation has supported right-wing political groups according to La República.[3] During the 2021 Peruvian general election, FNF supported Keiko Fujimori and her party Popular Force.[3] The group funded the travel of Venezuelan opposition leader Leopoldo López to visit Peru in support of Fujimori.[3] During the presidency of Pedro Castillo, the foundation sponsored right-wing groups that planned to remove Castillo from office.[3]
See also
- Archive of Liberalism
- Contributions to liberal theory
- Liberal democracy
- Liberalism worldwide
- Konrad Adenauer Foundation (CDU)
- Heinrich Böll Foundation (Grüne)
- Friedrich Ebert Foundation (SPD)
- Rosa Luxemburg Foundation (Die Linke).
- Hanns Seidel Foundation (CSU)
- German National Academic Foundation (non-political and non-denominational)
References
- ^ "Begabtenförderungswerke - BMBF". Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung - BMBF (in German). Retrieved 2022-08-23.
- ^ Publication 2011-07-18 at the Wayback Machine of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (Germany):
- ^ a b c d LR, Redacción (2022-02-14). "Fujimoristas detrás de encuentro sobre la vacancia". La Republica (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-04-07.
External links
- Homepage of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation (Engl)
- Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Liberty, Jerusalem Office (Engl, Hebrew, Arabic)
- Scholarship Funds and Foundations in Germany[permanent dead link] I