Sozialhelden
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Sozialhelden e.V. is a registered
nonprofit organisation A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...
based in
Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...
,
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. Its projects engage people in activities promoting
social justice Social justice is justice in terms of the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has often referred to the process of ensuring that individuals fu ...
. The organisation is funded primarily through donations and grants and has been awarded multiple national and international prizes for its projects.


Goals

The organisation's aim is to make socially conscious engagement attractive and visible to a broad public. It strives to raise awareness for social issues, get people engaged in social activism and provide solutions which do not instill pity.


Projects

The project ''Pfandtastisch helfen'' makes it possible for customers to donate their bottle recycling receipts at supermarkets. The funds raised from the receipts are donated to other nonprofit organisations throughout Germany. The
food bank A food bank is a non-profit, charitable organization that distributes food to those who have difficulty purchasing enough to avoid hunger, usually through intermediaries like food pantries and soup kitchens. Some food banks distribute food direc ...
in Berlin, Berliner Tafel, for instance, was able to raise more than 100,000 euros per year in this way. The project
Wheelmap.org Wheelmap.org is an online, worldwide map for finding and marking wheelchair accessible places, developed by the German nonprofit organisation Sozialhelden e.V. Anyone can find and add public places to the map and rate them according to a simple ...
is an online map for finding and marking wheelchair accessible places. Users can mark public places such as cafés, cinemas, stores and doctor's offices using a simple traffic light system, which indicates if a place is fully, partially or not at all wheelchair accessible. The project gained national fame because of a Google Chrome TV advertisement featuring the map and its founder, Raul Krauthausen. The map is available in 22 languages on the website and as an
iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also includes ...
,
Android (operating system) Android is a mobile operating system based on a modified version of the Linux kernel and other open-source software, designed primarily for touchscreen mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. Android is developed by a consortium of de ...
and
Windows Phone Windows Phone (WP) is a discontinued family of mobile operating systems developed by Microsoft for smartphones as the replacement successor to Windows Mobile and Zune. Windows Phone featured a new user interface derived from the Metro design la ...
app. In May 2012 Sozialhelden introduced the project BrokenLifts.org. The project's aim is to create a central platform where users can inform themselves about the state of repair of elevators in public transportation systems. Starting in November 2011 information regarding malfunctioning elevators in the two transportation systems in Berlin was collected and analyzed hourly. On October 8, 2014, a revised version of the service was launched in cooperation with the public transportation providers
Verkehrsverbund Berlin-Brandenburg The Verkehrsverbund Berlin-Brandenburg (VBB) is a transport association run by public transport providers in the German states of Berlin and Brandenburg. It is a private limited company owned jointly by the states of Berlin and Brandenburg (with ...
, the
S-Bahn Berlin The Berlin S-Bahn () is a rapid transit railway system in and around Berlin, the capital city of Germany. It has been in operation under this name since December 1930, having been previously called the special tariff area ''Berliner Stadt-, Ring ...
GmbH and the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe. Elevators in the system report their operational state to BrokenLifts.org and the malfunctioning elevators are shown on the website and app of the service. In addition, the broken elevators are also shown on the online schedule of the transportation providers. Currently the project is limited to the Berlin region, but a collection of data nationwide is envisioned. On August 16, 2012, the organisation published the project Leidmedien.de in cooperation with the
Robert Bosch Stiftung The Robert Bosch Stiftung GmbH () is a German foundation that owns a majority shareholding in Robert Bosch GmbH, from which it derives its funding. The foundation was established in accordance with the wishes of Robert Bosch, who died in 1942, an ...
. The project, which was developed together with several journalists, is directed at reporters and commentators who work for the press, in radio broadcasting or other media. It gives directions and support on what phrases and expressions to employ when writing about people with disabilities, without stigmatising them. The aim of the site is to raise the public's awareness by making journalists consider the way language shapes our realities and thus has the power to represent people with disabilities in a realistic way, devoid of stereotypes. The project also gives a voice to people with a wide spectrum of disabilities, giving them a platform for perspectives that are rarely heard in the mainstream media. Sozialhelden emphasize that Leidmedien is not there to instruct journalists but rather to sensitise and change perspectives and give support in finding appropriate language.


Awards

* In 2014 the project Wheelmap.org was awarded the ''Smart Hero Award'' (awarded in cooperation with
Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
and the Stiftung Digitale Chancen ) in the category
voluntary commitment Voluntary commitment is the act or practice of choosing to admit oneself to a psychiatric hospital, or other mental health facility. Unlike in involuntary commitment, the person is free to leave the hospital against medical advice, though there ...
. * In 2013 Wheelmap.org was awarded the Zedler-Prize (awarded by
Wikimedia Germany Wikimedia chapters are national or sub-national not-for-profit organizations created to promote the interests of Wikimedia projects locally. Chapters are legally independent of the Wikimedia Foundation, entering into an agreement with the founda ...
) for free knowledge in the category ''External Knowledge Project of the year''. * In 2013 co-founder Raul Krauthausen was given the
Federal Cross of Merit The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...
by
Ursula von der Leyen Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen (; Albrecht, born 8 October 1958) is a German politician who has been serving as the president of the European Commission since 2019. She served in the Cabinet of Germany, German federal government between 2005 an ...
, Federal Minister for Labour and Social Affairs, to honour his engagement with Sozialhelden. * In 2012 Wheelmap.org won the
World Summit Award The World Summit Awards (WSA) is an awards system that selects and promotes local digital innovation to improve society. WSA is an international platform focused on broadcasting cutting-edge examples of how Information and Communications Technol ...
in the category
Inclusion Inclusion or Include may refer to: Sociology * Social inclusion, aims to create an environment that supports equal opportunity for individuals and groups that form a society. ** Inclusion (disability rights), promotion of people with disabiliti ...
&
Empowerment Empowerment is the degree of autonomy and self-determination in people and in communities. This enables them to represent their interests in a responsible and self-determined way, acting on their own authority. It is the process of becoming strong ...
. * In 2012 Sozialhelden received the prize ''Deutscher Verzeichnismedien Preis 2012'' for their project Wheelmap.org. The prize was awarded by Verband Deutscher Auskunfts- und Verzeichnismedien e.V. * In 2011 Sozialhelden received the ''Vodafone'' Smart Accessibility Award 2011 for their project Wheelmap.org. * In 2011 Sozialhelden received the award Ausgewählter Ort 2011 in the initiative "Germany – Land of Ideas", whose patron is the
Federal President of Germany The president of Germany, officially the Federal President of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: link=no, Bundespräsident der Bundesrepublik Deutschland),The official title within Germany is ', with ' being added in international corres ...
. * In 2012 the organisation was awarded the INCA-Award (bronze) for its app Wheelmap.Winners of the INCA Award 2010
/ref> * In 2010 Sozialhelden's project Wheelmap.org was awarded the ''VZ Award'' (audience prize of the German Citizens Award). * In 2009 Sozialhelden received the ''Audience Prize of the German Engagement Award''. 1They were also given the special award of the KarmaKonsum Founder Award for their project Pfandtastisch Helfen. * In 2008 Sozialhelden's project Pfandtastisch Helfen was elected one of eight "Bundessieger" projects by startsocial, a contest that supports social ideas and projects.


Notes and references


External links


Official Website
{{Authority control Charities based in Germany Non-profit organisations based in Berlin