The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) currently funds thirteen study programs, four of which are religiously oriented, six are party-political and two others are economic or trade union-oriented. Contrary to the ministerial stipulation that the landscape of scholarships for gifted students should reflect the “various ideological, religious, political, economic or trade union-oriented currents in Germany”, not a single one of these scholarships for gifted students is ideologically oriented – even though humanism is a worldview shared by a significant proportion of the population and especially students in Germany.
Humanists answer the great existential and ethical questions of humanity without resorting to supernatural powers. The fact that they are currently unable to apply to a scholarship organization of their own, while Catholic, Protestant, Jewish and Muslim students have the opportunity to choose a scholarship organization of their religious preference, is an expression of ideological discrimination in the view of the humanist associations. In order to counteract this systematic discrimination, the Bertha von Suttner-Studienwerk was founded in Berlin a few weeks ago. Information on the concept of this “Humanist Foundation for the Gifted” is provided in a brochure that can be downloaded from the website that went live today.
The Bertha von Suttner Study Program
The newly-founded scholarship is named after the Nobel Peace Prize winner Bertha von Suttner, who died in 1914, shortly before the start of the First World War. She went down in history not only as a pacifist and women’s rights activist, but also as a humanist free thinker and committed representative of a world view based on science and humanity.
The Bertha von Suttner-Studienwerk has set itself the goal of supporting exceptional young people who identify with a humanistic world view and its values and are willing to critically reflect on their own views and stand up for them. The commitment to be demonstrated can be of a political, social or other nature, but should show that the applicants actively engage with their social environment and strive to improve the conditions of human life and coexistence. The specific form of commitment is deliberately left open.
In a first step, the Studienwerk will award ten scholarships per year from fall 2021. In addition to financial support, the Suttner scholarship holders will also receive non-material support. In a second step, the Bertha von Suttner-Studienwerk aims to receive the same state funding as the existing religiously oriented educational institutions.
The numerous public figures, including many academics, who support the project of the “Humanist Foundation for the Gifted” are also convinced of the need to put the Bertha von Suttner Study Foundation on an equal footing with the state-funded religious study foundations.
