The Chemnitz Peace Prize was again awarded for 2025 as part of the opening of this year's Intercultural Weeks. The citizens' association FUER CHEMNITZ e.V. and the migration commissioner of the city of Chemnitz have been awarding the Chemnitz Peace Prize since 2004.
All Chemnitz residents, associations and initiatives are hereby invited to nominate suitable individuals and projects. Self-applications are also possible.
Proposals and applications should include a justification of why the person or project is worthy of such an award.
Various members of the jury will review the proposals, visit them, present them to the assembled jury and make a majority decision.
The deadline for applications is 15 January 2025.
- Applications and proposals should be sent to:
Bürgerverein FUER CHEMNITZ e.V.
Street of Nations 45, 09111 Chemnitz
E-mail: bv-fuer-chemnitz@gmx.de
or - Migration Officer of the City of Chemnitz:
Moritzhof Citizens' and Administration Centre
Bahnhofstraße 53, 09111 Chemnitz
E-mail: migrationsbeauftragte@stadt-chemnitz.de
The award ceremony is expected to take place on 7 March 2025.
On Chemnitz Peace Day, which takes place annually on 5 March and on the occasion of which the Chemnitz Peace Prize is awarded, Chemnitz remembers the inhuman, hostile policies of fascist Germany, the victims of the war it unleashed and the destruction of the city of Chemnitz in 1945. The Chemnitz Peace Prize is intended to build on this, make peace commitment visible and promote more peace commitment.
The Chemnitz Peace Prize is a civic award in which the citizens of the city select the winners from among themselves. It honours people, organisations, projects and initiatives that work voluntarily and sustainably
- stand up for fundamental values such as tolerance and democracy,
- consider the integration of different cultures to be an essential part of our coexistence,
- carry out active peace work and
- promote and support non-violent coexistence and
- are role models in their commitment to peace and justice.
The jury of the Chemnitz Peace Prize, whose members are personalities from politics, society, church, culture, business and administration, selects the award winners from a large number of committed individuals.
The winner of the 1st prize and the only occasionally awarded honour prize for special services to peace in the city receives the sculpture "Chemnitz Peace Prize" by sculptor Erik Neukirchner.
The winners also receive a cash prize (1st prize: 500 euros; 2nd prize: 300 euros and 3rd prize: 200 euros).
The prize for children and young people and their projects is endowed with 300 euros.
Chemnitz Peace Prize 2024
In 2024, the jury selected the following award winners from the nominees:
First prize was awarded to the organisers and initiators of the "Language Café" project. The project, which is unique in Saxony, brings together many people from 20 nations every week to exchange ideas in German.
The second prize went to the artist couple Alke and Michael Schmidt, who have been opening up their private home for decades to exchange ideas with migrants in an informal atmosphere.
The third prize was awarded to Gabriele Engelhardt. She has shown outstanding commitment against right-wing extremist activities, in favour of democratic coexistence and as spokesperson for the civil society alliance "Stand up against racism" in Chemnitz.
Doris Müller received the prize of honour. During the period of mass unemployment immediately after the GDR joined the Federal Republic of Germany, she did everything she could to help people who suddenly found themselves in completely insecure circumstances.
The Children and Youth Prize went to Luisa Frieden. She spent a year at the Majdanek concentration camp memorial in Lublin (Poland) as part of an international voluntary service programme.