In mid-November, the presidium of the HVD Federal Association approved the application for membership by a majority. In addition to Hesse, ten other state associations are currently organized in the federal association, which was founded in Berlin in 1993.
“After the friendly cooperation of recent years, what belongs together is now growing together. The Humanistische Gemeinschaft Hessen shares the history, practice and world view of many regional associations of the HVD. However, the HuGH has not simply joined an umbrella organization: As the third largest state association, it will be able to play a significant role in shaping the joint federal association. Together we can achieve a lot and learn from each other. I am looking forward to the coming years and warmly welcome the Humanistische Gemeinschaft Hessen,” said Florian Zimmermann, President of the HVD Federal Association.
“We are very pleased to be able to represent Hesse within the federal association from now on and to further strengthen the HVD with our more than 150-year history,” said Timo Saueressig, who has been President of the HuGH since March 2019. “For a long time, topics and key tasks such as organizing youth celebrations or humanistic life skills lessons for students in grades 1 to 13 – including the opportunity to take the oral Abitur exam – have been a large and important part of our work. By continuing and intensifying our cooperation and exchange with the other regional associations and, of course, the federal association itself, we hope to create new synergies and exchange knowledge and experience in order to further specialize and improve in these and many other areas,” Saueressig continues.
New association structures in and for Hesse
Prior to joining the federal association, the HVD Hessen e.V. had previously been incorporated into the HuGH, which had previously been the Hessian representative in the federal association. The association, which was only founded in 2011, had relinquished its e.V. status in October 2019 and joined the Humanistische Gemeinschaft Hessen K.d.Ö.R. as the new local association “HVD Gießen/Frankfurt”. The members of both associations voted overwhelmingly in favor of the merger. The organizational merger underscores the content-related and practical cooperation that was already in place. The HuGH is now divided into a total of seven local chapters and four contact points.
More information and contact to the Humanistische Gemeinschaft Hessen K.d.ö.R.:
Rheinstraße 78, 65185 Wiesbaden
Tel. 0611 377715

