A Brief History of the Foundation

The foundation's initial years were shaped by a large undertaking: The new construction of the Robert Bosch Krankenhaus (RBK, Hospital) in Stuttgart. In 1940, Robert Bosch personally opened the first RBK. However, in the 1960s it became evident that only a newly constructed building and a focus on the demands of modern medicine would be able to permanently secure the existence of a competitive hospital; it was opened in 1973.

Two years earlier, Robert Bosch's oldest daughter had endowed the Dr. Margarete Fischer-Bosch Institute for Clinical Pharmacology which was also built on the Burgholzhof in Stuttgart. At this early stage, a second line of funding in accordance with Robert Bosch was realized through projects initiated regarding German-French relations. Furthermore, there were other smaller projects in the area of education and social affairs.

In the 1970s and early 80s, the foundation established thematic focal points for funding which provided a framework and structure to the previously individual projects. Therefore, from today's perspective, it is noteworthy that the focus areas "Structural Questions in the Health Care Sector," "City Development," "Support of Foreign Nationals in Germany," and "Practical Learning" (in other words education) belong – to this day – to the highly debated challenges facing our society and for which solutions are (still) being grappled with.

The international funding was expanded through German-Polish relations (which, in 1974, was a real pioneering effort) and German-American relations, which in 1984 were given a distinct profile with the still existing Fellowship Program. Also, the foundation lecture was born back then. In 1980, the Robert Bosch Stiftung's Institute for the History of Medicine was founded, a further step to contemporarily continue with the will of Robert Bosch who strongly advocated homeopathy. With a small team, this all took place under the leadership of Dr. Alfred Hetzel (Chairman of the Board of Trustees) and Dr. Peter Payer (Managing Director) beginning in 1986 in the historical rooms of the Bosch House. For its hundredth anniversary, the corporation had extensively restored the prestigious rooms and made them accessible as the foundation's seat.

For the foundation, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of Communism in Europe opened unexpected possibilities and opportunities. Numerous national programs were expanded to East Germany or especially tailored for it; step by step the international funding was expanded into Central and Eastern Europe. The outstanding initiatives of the early 1990s were: The "Acting Together – Learning from Each Other – Growing Together" competition for German-German school partnerships, the program "Social Civic Initiatives in the New Federal States" with close to one thousand individual projects, the focus areas "Health Promotion in Schools" and "New Approaches in Nursing and Elderly Care," the Lectureship Programs for Central and Eastern Europe, the "Postgraduate Program in International Affairs" as well as "Historical German Locations in the New Federal States."

Increasingly, the foundation defined higher ranking areas for its commitment: School and education, voluntary work, talent, new forms of international exchange, nursing, and old age. Internally as well, the foundation reacted to the new dimensions (considerably higher number of projects and funding amounts, professionalization of the processes, and a stronger public presence). The central unit and the public relations department were newly equipped and the departments (later program areas) were slowly, but steadily, given additional personnel. At this time, the Chairman of the Board of Trustees was Dr. Karl Gutbrod and the Managing Director was Dr. Ulrich Bopp.

In order to fund sensibly and effectively, the 90s brought - aside from the geographical expansion - an increasing differentiation in the employed methods and instruments. Numerous formats were developed and implemented. These include, for example, prizes, (funding) competitions, fellowship programs, but also the use of independent commissions and juries, model projects, and - increasingly more often - the (political) general public, for example with the "Manifesto for Voluntary Services in Germany and Europe" (1998) or the "Stuttgart Appeal for More Internationality in Education, Training, and Personnel Policies" (1999).

The international commitment is not only reflected in international relations, but has also found its way into other areas, for example, through the competition "Junge Wege in Europa" for joint projects by school students and youth groups in Germany and CEE and the competition "Humanitarian Aid for Central and Eastern Europe" (both 1998). The focus area "German-Czech relations" followed a year later. In the mid-1990s, with the foundation's financial support, the RBK began an intensive rebuilding and modernization phase, which reached its first apex with the 1998 opening of the Clinic for Geriatric Rehabilitation. The Chair of the Board of Trustees had been assumed by Dr. Heiner Gutberlet.

Around the turn of the millennium, the foundation looked for and found new questions and further expanded its operating range: The focus areas "Youth and Technology – Society and Sciences" (for example through the program NaT-Working), "International Agronomy and Forestry," "Museum" as well as "Life in Old Age" (2002). Here, old age is primarily seen as an opportunity and a resource in order to give new impulses to the cohabitation of generations in a changing society.

In 2003, the focus area "German-Turkish relations" opened international opportunities which, through its Turkish migrant population, were immediately felt in Germany. The focus areas "Family and Demographic Change" (2004) and "Education in Early Childhood" (2005) identify critical demands for the future viability and competitiveness of our society and show practical ways of implementation. In order to give the educational discussion some momentum, the foundation awarded the German School Prize in 2006. The subject "Migration and Integration" (focus area since 2005) seizes on another key social function requiring new solutions.

Internationally, the foundation is setting its sights on "Southeastern Europe" (focus area 2006) and on Asia with focus areas on German-Chinese, German-Japanese, and German-Indian relations. Further attention is given to science. The Euroscience Open Forum (ESOF) and the Robert Bosch Lectureship Research into the Sustainable Use of Renewable Natural Resources are sending a signal for the future. Various dependent foundations were, in addition to Hans-Walz-Stiftung, integrated into the Robert Bosch Stiftung: Otto und Edith Mühlschlegel Stiftung, DVA-Stiftung, Rochus and Beatrice Mummert Foundation. Since 2002, the Board of Management of Robert Bosch Stiftung has been led by Dieter Berg (Chairman) and, one year later, additionally by Dr. Ingrid Hamm. In 2008, Dr. Kurt W. Liedtke assumed the Chair of the Board of Trustees. The number of employees has reached 100.