Moses-Mendelssohn-Prize

Target group / Purpose of funding

The Moses Mendelssohn Prize is intended to foster tolerance towards dissident thinkers and between peoples and religions.
This award was initiated in 1979 by the Mendelssohn-Gesellschaft (Mendelssohn Society) and its president at the time, Dr. Cécile Lowenthal-Hensel, a Mendelssohn descendant, in cooperation with Berlin’s cultural affairs department. The name pays tribute to the work of the philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, which originated in Berlin.
By publicly honoring both established and lesser-known figures who – working individually or with others in initiatives and organizations – have championed peaceful and tolerant interaction, the Moses Mendelssohn Prize aims to promote a humane and, at the same time, cosmopolitan atmosphere in Berlin.

Eligibility

The prize is awarded to individuals, groups, or institutions whose work in an intellectual or literary capacity, in religion or philosophy, or in practical social and/or cultural activities has made an outstanding contribution to achieving the goal of tolerance.

Funding volume

The award includes prize money of €10,000.

Call for nominations

As a rule, a call for nominations for the Moses Mendelssohn Prize is issued every two years in February. The next call for nominations will take place in spring 2018.

Submitting a nomination

Nominations for the prize are to be submitted to the Berlin Senate’s cultural affairs department. You may not nominate yourself.
A jury appointed by the Berlin Senate’s cultural affairs department will select the recipient of the prize.

Nominations should be sent until the 6th april 2020 to the following address:

Mendelssohn-Gesellschaft e.V.
z.Hd. Herrn Dr. Thomas Lackmann
Jägerstr. 51, 10117 Berlin
E-Mail

• Moses-Mendelssohn-Preis Vergaberichtlinien (German)

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Current press releas concerning the Moses-Mendelssohn-Prize

Moses-Mendelssohn-Preis für Monika Düllmann 2018