“The Covid-19 pandemic affirmed our choice of support topics”
- The new dual management of the Robert Bosch Stiftung calls the Foundation’s performance positive.
- In 2021, around 75.5 million euros were spent on charitable causes.
Berlin/Stuttgart, 10 February 2022 – Robert Bosch Stiftung saw a successful 2021. According to the Board of Management, the Foundation achieved positive results in the first year since adopting its new strategy. The Foundation now focuses on three main areas – health, education, and global issues – and is been jointly managed by Sandra Breka and Dr. Bernhard Straub.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has inflamed local, national, and international problems,” says Breka, Robert Bosch Stiftung Chief Executive Officer, ”and has affirmed the Foundation’s far-reaching transformation.”
“Our interlinked support topics are of ever greater relevance,” continues Breka. “Violent conflict affects two billion people across the globe. The increased flow of migrants and refugees challenges immigration societies to encourage participation. Inequality, too, is on the rise both within societies and between global regions. Climate change threatens the very natural resources that we rely upon to survive as a species. Trust in democracy and state institutions is waning, while pressure on health care and education systems is mounting,” she says.
“Philanthropy has a unique role to play in how we approach these developments,” says Straub, the Robert Bosch Stiftung’s joint CEO. “As a foundation, we can take a long-term approach to challenges and work with stakeholders from a range of sectors to find solutions. This collaborative approach is ever more important in view of the size and complexity of global challenges. Together with our partners,” says Staub, “we want to develop participation-led interventions that initiate systematic change. Sometimes we have to take risks to achieve maximum impact with our funding.”
Major changes to type of support
Robert Bosch Stiftung has made considerable changes to its support programs. The Foundation is now significantly less operational. By the end of 2022, the Foundation plans to adapt its organizational structure in line with its new focuses and reduce its staff by around 20 percent. The aim is to improve the efficacy of the Foundation’s work by focusing its profile in terms of both content and structure.
Launch of two reorganization processes
Last year, Robert Bosch Stiftung launched two reorganization processes as part of its strategic realignment. In July, it integrated its Berlin-based former subsidiary, Die Deutsche Schulakademie (The German School Academy), into the area of education. The Foundation also set the course for the establishment of the Bosch Health Campus (BHC), which will bring together the Foundation’s work and resources in the area of health. This includes the Robert Bosch Hospital, the Institute for Clinical Pharmacology, the Robert Bosch Center for Tumor Diseases, and the Irmgard Bosch Learning Center, as well as the Robert Bosch Center for Innovative Health, which emerged from the Foundation’s health support area.
In 2021, Robert Bosch Stiftung GmbH spent around 75.5 million euros (preliminary figure) on charitable causes.