The Federal Agency for Civic Education (FACE, german: Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (''bpb'')) is a German federal

government agency A government or state agency, sometimes an appointed commission, is a permanent or semi-permanent organization in the machinery of government that is responsible for the oversight and administration of specific functions, such as an administrati ...

responsible for promoting

civic education Civics is the study of the rights and obligations of citizens in society. The term derives from the Latin word ''civicus'', meaning "relating to a citizen". The term relates to behavior affecting other citizens, particularly in the context of ur ...

. It is subordinated to the

Federal Ministry of the Interior, Building and Community The Federal Ministry of the Interior and for Community (german: Bundesministerium des Innern und für Heimat, ; ''Heimat'' also translates to "homeland"), abbreviated , is a cabinet-level ministry of the Federal Republic of Germany. Its main ...

Thomas Krüger Thomas Krüger (born 20 June 1959) is a German politician. He is the President of the Federal Agency for Civil Education (since 2000) and the President of the German Children's Fund (since 1995). He served as the final Governing Mayor of East ...

has served as President of the agency since 2000. The modern agency was established in

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

in 1952 by the Adenauer government to counteract

communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

during the

Cold War The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...

, but it has its roots in earlier government agencies dating back to the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Objective

In 1997 the objectives for bpb were specified, and these were officially defined in 2001. Its task is now to promote understanding of political issues, strengthen awareness for democracy and willingness to participate in political processes amongst the citizen. Furthermore, a committee of 22 members of the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Commons ...

is responsible for monitoring the effectiveness and political neutrality of the bpb. Bpb publishes "Informationen zur politischen Bildung" (a magazine published quarterly) and "Aus Politik und Zeitgeschichte" (APuZ), a weekly topical journal of essays and academic articles. German, Arabic, Turkish and Russian versions of the

Grundgesetz The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Grundgesetz für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland) is the constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany. The West German Constitution was approved in Bonn on 8 May 1949 and came in ...

can be ordered for free by anyone living in Germany. Furthermore, it offers extensive material, e.g. books, journals and information material for schools on contemporary topics in politics, history, sociology and economy. A number of congresses, symposia and excursions are organised by bpb either directly for citizens or for experts on selected topics. Furthermore, bpb co-operates with a number of political foundations, associations and organisations committed to civic education.

History

The Agency has its background in the

propaganda Propaganda is communication that is primarily used to influence or persuade an audience to further an agenda, which may not be objective and may be selectively presenting facts to encourage a particular synthesis or perception, or using loaded ...

war of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In October 1914 the ''Zentrale für Auslandsdienst'' (Agency for Foreign Service) was established for the purpose of propaganda conducted outside Germany. In 1918 it was complemented by the ''Zentralstelle für Heimatdienst'' (Agency for Homeland Service) which was formed for the purpose of domestic propaganda; in order to strengthen the public resilience during the war. In the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is al ...

it was renamed as the ''

Reichszentrale für Heimatsdienst Reichszentrale für Heimatdienst ("Reich Agency for Homeland Service") was an organisation established in Germany in March 1918 to disseminate propaganda and educational material. It was soon to play a role in the emergent Weimar Republic. The orga ...

'' (Reich Agency for Homeland Service). ''Heimatdienst'', which literally means homeland service, may also be translated as "domestic propaganda" or "political explanation/education in the homeland". Following the Nazi ascent to power in Germany the agency was dissolved on 16 March 1933. The facilities and staff of the agency were incorporated into the new ''

Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda The Reich Ministry for Public Enlightenment and Propaganda (; RMVP), also known simply as the Ministry of Propaganda (), controlled the content of the press, literature, visual arts, film, theater, music and radio in Nazi Germany. The ministry ...

'' headed by

Joseph Goebbels Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazi politician who was the ''Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief propagandist for the Nazi Party, and then Reich Minister of Propaganda from 1933 to 19 ...

and responsible for enforcing Nazi doctrine on the people and controlling public opinion. The Agency was re-established on November 25, 1952 as the ''Bundeszentrale für Heimatdienst'' (Federal Agency for Homeland Service), and in 1963 it was renamed as the ''Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung'' (Federal Agency for Civic Education). It can also be translated as "Federal Agency for Political Education", as in the German language "civic education" normally translates as "Bürgerschaftliche Erziehung", of which "Politische Bildung" represents just a sub-category. The initial primary focus of the activities of the re-established agency during the 1950s was to counteract

Communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

in West Germany.

Voting advice

The agency runs a

voting advice application A voting advice application or voting aid application (VAA) or vote matcher or vote compass or election compass is a Web application that helps voters find a candidate or a party that stands closest to their preferences. VAAs are a new phenomenon ...

website , which compares the user's political position with the platforms of the parties and shows all parties ranked for closeness to the user's position.

State agencies

In addition to the federal agency, 15 of Germany's 16 states each have their own state agency for civic education. These agencies are independent from the federal agency, and subordinated to the state governments, usually to the state ministry of the interior. The agencies are: *State Agency for Civic Education of Baden-Württemberg *Bavarian State Agency for Civic Education *State Agency for Civic Education of Berlin *State Agency for Civic Education of Brandenburg *State Agency for Civic Education of Bremen *State Agency for Civic Education of Hamburg *Hessian State Agency for Civic Education *State Agency for Civic Education of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern *State Agency for Civic Education of North Rhine-Westphalia *State Agency for Civic Education of Rhineland-Palatinate *State Agency for Civic Education of Saarland *Saxon State Agency for Civic Education *State Agency for Civic Education of Saxony-Anhalt *State Agency for Civic Education of Schleswig-Holstein *State Agency for Civic Education of Thuringia

References

External links