Education for all – simply making it simple

Task: The Hamburg Climate Protection Foundation faced the challenge of structurally strengthening providers of Education for Sustainable Development (BNE) in Hamburg, expanding educational offerings and reaching everyone – regardless of their financial or social background.

Challenge: The BNE landscape in Hamburg is currently underfunded. Providers often work under precarious conditions – with low fees, uncertain prospects, and high personal commitment. Especially for young people, educational work is hardly financially viable, which makes it difficult to recruit young talent. At the same time, there is a lack of access on the demand side: many people cannot afford BNE programs. In addition, existing educational programs are often too invisible and do not receive the attention they deserve.

Solution: On behalf of the Hamburg Climate Protection Foundation and the Ministry of Environment, Climate, Energy and Agriculture, we are designing and developing an innovative, systematic new approach to extracurricular education as part of the Hamburg Master Plan 2030. The goal is to sustainably strengthen providers of Education for Sustainable Development (BNE) in Hamburg, raise the visibility of their offerings, and thus achieve a broad impact for a democratic, just, and sustainable society. The focus is on the participation of ALL people – regardless of financial or social circumstances.

Implementation: In concrete terms, this means that we are building structures that will better position educational stakeholders in the field of BNE financially, provide them with long-term support, and at the same time make their offerings accessible to more people. The Education Fund was launched on April 16, 2025, with an event we developed and implemented in the main hall of the Patriotic Society in Hamburg. The evening was moderated by Ralf Behrens, BUKEA, and Andje Stamer, Hamburg Climate Protection Foundation. Dr. Claudia Konrad and Kajan Luc presented BNE stories. Tanja Ferkau, IMPCT gGmbH, presented the idea, structure, and objectives of the Education Fund. To ensure stable medium- to long-term financing, we now need resources from all sectors: foundations, philanthropy, companies, and the public sector.

Intended impact (IOOI): Long-term strengthening of BNE providers in the extracurricular sector and promoting educational equity and equal opportunities for all. The fund has the potential to sustainably transform the educational landscape for Education for Sustainable Development (BNE) in Hamburg.