German-Russian Youth Exchange Foundation

What German-Russian Youth Exchange Foundation does

The Stiftung Deutsch-Russischer Jugendaustausch gGmbH (DRJA) was a private non-profit foundation (gGmbH) established in 2006 in Hamburg, Germany, operating as the German federal government's designated central coordination office for German-Russian youth and school exchange. Its mission was to fund, coordinate, and support bilateral exchange programs between German and Russian schools, extracurricular youth organizations, and vocational training institutions, while also qualifying teachers and youth workers and providing methodological materials. Over nearly 20 years, the foundation facilitated more than 7,500 school and extracurricular encounter projects, reached over 100,000 young people, teachers, and specialists, and funded approximately 600 bilateral encounters per year.

The foundation's core offerings combined grant-making with curated educational content and capacity-building programs. Key products included the five-part "Russisch im Kontext" publication series (produced jointly with the Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung), the Themenjahre historical-political education program (centered on WWII remembrance), the VR-based "Play it Forward" youth exchange pilot, and gamified learning tools such as the "Planspiel Hilfe für Alphoria" simulation and the "Ein Festival in Gefahr" escape game. It also operated a publication onlineshop, a bi-monthly Infobrief newsletter, and recurring qualification seminars for teachers and youth workers. The organization is not a technology company in the conventional sense: its proprietary assets are primarily content libraries, methodological frameworks, and program designs rather than software platforms.

The foundation operated on a grant-and-donation-funded non-profit model with no fees charged to program participants. Revenue streams comprised institutional grants from its four founding partners — the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs (BMFSFJ), the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, the Robert Bosch Stiftung, and the Ost-Ausschuss der Deutschen Wirtschaft — supplemented by individual and corporate donations (channeled through campaigns such as "Gemeinsam Brücken bauen" and GLS Bank) and modest income from publication sales. Go-to-market was event-driven: the foundation reached beneficiary schools, youth organizations, and teachers primarily through its website, grant application processes, training seminars, conferences, social media, and its newsletter. In October 2025 the foundation announced it would wind down operations at year-end 2025, to be succeeded by Stiftung Juve in 2026, which will expand scope from Germany-Russia to Germany–Eastern Europe/Central Asia.

Name

German-Russian Youth Exchange Foundation

Legal name

Stiftung Deutsch-Russischer Jugendaustausch gGmbH

Website

https://stiftung-drja.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Stiftung Deutsch-Russischer Jugendaustausch gGmbH was a Hamburg-based non-profit foundation that served as Germany's central coordination office for German-Russian youth and school exchange, funding approximately 600 bilateral encounters per year and producing educational content for teachers and youth workers before ceasing operations at year-end 2025.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

International Youth Exchange Programs

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Grantmaking & Philanthropic Funds (Institutional Donors) (BPADAOAB), Scholarship & Fellowship Foundations and Trusts (EDADAHAC)

Keywords

• Youth exchange programs
• Bilateral cultural exchange
• School exchange grants
• Language teaching materials
• Youth work training

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Donations and Fundraising: The foundation operates as a non-profit organization (gGmbH) that raises funds from private and institutional donors to finance youth exchange projects. Donations are managed through GLS Bank, and the foundation actively runs fundraising campaigns (e.g., 'Gemeinsam Brücken bauen') to attract individual and corporate donors. Donations to the foundation are tax-deductible in Germany (Gläubiger-ID: DE52ZZZ00002402596).
2. Grant Funding from Institutional Partners: The foundation was established and is supported by four institutional shareholders: the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMFSFJ), the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, the Robert Bosch Stiftung, and the Ost-Ausschuss der Deutschen Wirtschaft. These partners provide ongoing funding that enables the foundation to function as the central coordination office for German-Russian youth exchange and to issue grants to project organizers.
3. Publication Sales: The foundation operates an onlineshop selling publications including informational materials about the foundation, methodological guides, and regional/cultural studies and language learning resources. These publications are offered to schools, organizations, and individuals engaged in German-Russian exchange.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The foundation operates as a central coordinating office (Fach- und Förderstelle) supporting German-Russian youth and school exchanges. It administers grant funding for exchange projects, develops publications and teaching materials (e.g., Russian-language resources), runs thematic focus years, trains youth workers, and sells educational materials through an online shop.

Product overview

The German-Russian Youth Exchange Foundation operates a portfolio of youth exchange programs and educational products. Core offerings include foundation projects (Stiftungsprojekte) such as the publication series 'Russisch im Kontext', VR-based 'Play it forward' experiences, educational simulation games like 'Planspiel Hilfe für Alphoria' and 'Escape Game Ein Festival in Gefahr'. The foundation maintains an Onlineshop for publications and methodological materials, publishes a regular Infobrief (newsletter), and runs the Themenjahre historical education program. The organization coordinates school and extracurricular youth exchanges between Germany and Russia, providing funding, qualification programs, and language animation support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• German-Russian Youth Exchange Grant Program Grant-funded bilateral exchange projects connecting young people and schools in Germany and Russia. For schools, youth organizations, and extracurricular youth-work groups.
• Russisch im Kontext

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 7,500 school and extracurricular exchange projects facilitated over nearly 20 years of operation
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Bundesministerium für Familie, Senioren, Frauen und Jugend (BMFSFJ) – Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and YouthcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2006The BMFSFJ is one of the four institutional founding partners of the foundation, serving as the primary government backer alongside the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. The ministry provides federal government-level support and mandate for the foundation's role as the central coordination office for German-Russian youth exchange. The foundation was established on the initiative and with the support of this ministry.
• Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (FHH)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2006The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg is one of the four institutional founding partners of the foundation, providing state-level government backing alongside the federal ministry. Hamburg serves as the location of the foundation's headquarters.
• Robert Bosch Stiftung (Robert Bosch Foundation)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2006The Robert Bosch Stiftung is one of the four institutional founding partners of the foundation, contributing private-sector support alongside the government backers. As a major German charitable foundation, it provides strategic and financial backing to support the foundation's youth exchange mission.
• Ost-Ausschuss der Deutschen Wirtschaft (Eastern Committee of German Business)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2006The Ost-Ausschuss der Deutschen Wirtschaft, the German Eastern Business Association operating under the Federation of German Industry (BDI), is one of the four institutional founding partners. It represents the German business community's interest in German-Russian relations and provides private-sector backing for the foundation.
• Lernen aus der Geschichte (Educational Portal)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe educational portal 'Lernen aus der Geschichte' (Learning from History) cooperated with the foundation during the Themenjahre 2015/16, providing a platform for educational materials and resources on historical-political education. The portal aggregates content from numerous organizations and institutions for history didactics.
• Deutsch-Russisches Museum Berlin-KarlshorstminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe German-Russian Museum Berlin-Karlshorst (co-funded by Germany and the Russian Federation) was a partner during the Themenjahre 2015/16. The museum, located at the site of Germany's unconditional surrender in WWII, supports historical education and German-Russian understanding through its programs and exhibitions.
• Zentrales Museum des Großen Vaterländischen Krieges (Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War), MoscowminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Central Museum of the Great Patriotic War in Moscow was a partner during the Themenjahre 2015/16. The opening conference of the Themenjahre was held at this museum. The museum is a major memorial site for WWII and plays a key role in Russian historical memory culture.
• Nationales Koordinierungsbüro für den Jugendaustausch mit Deutschland (Russian National Coordination Bureau for Youth Exchange with Germany)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Russian National Coordination Bureau for Youth Exchange with Germany was the foundation's primary Russian partner in organizing bilateral youth exchanges and the Themenjahre 2015/16 initiative. This bilateral cooperation was central to the foundation's mission of facilitating German-Russian youth encounters.
• MitOst HamburgminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMitOst Hamburg was a partner organization in the 'Elbharmonie' project, a German-Russian WG and choir project funded by the foundation during the Themenjahre. MitOst contributes to intercultural learning and exchange programs in Hamburg.
• Landeszentrale für politische Bildung Hamburg (State Centre for Political Education Hamburg)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Landeszentrale für politische Bildung Hamburg co-organized the 'Elbharmonie' project alongside MitOst Hamburg and Interra, funded by the foundation. Dr. Sabine Bamberger-Stemmann contributed to the project's programming.
• Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (Federal Agency for Political Education)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung partnered with the foundation to produce the five-part publication series 'Russisch im Kontext – Impulse für den Unterricht,' which provides teaching materials for modern, context-aware Russian language instruction.
• Globus-Stiftung (Germany)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThomas Bruch, founder of the Globus-Stiftung, has long supported projects in Russia and the German-Russian youth exchange. The foundation endorses the foundation's 'Gemeinsam Brücken bauen' campaign, seeing it as essential for building partnerships and reducing prejudice.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Deutsch-Russisches Museum Berlin-Karlshorst: Joint German-Russian museum and memorial institution co-funded by both governments. Comparable as a parallel bilateral German-Russian institution focused on historical-political education; thematic partner on DRJA's Themenjahre WWII programming.

Direct peers

• German-Polish Youth Office (DPJW / PNWM): Intergovernmental bilateral youth exchange organization between Germany and Poland, founded in 1991 with a near-identical mandate, governance structure, and funding model to DRJA. Directly comparable as a sibling bilateral foundation model and a likely structural template for the successor Stiftung Juve.
• Tandem – German-Czech Youth Exchange Coordination Office: Bilateral German-Czech youth exchange coordination office funded by BMFSFJ and Czech partners. Operates the same grant-funding-plus-coordination model for school and extracurricular exchanges as DRJA, making it a near-clone in a different bilateral context.
• ConAct – Coordination Center for German-Israeli Youth Exchange: German coordination office for bilateral youth exchange with Israel, supported by BMFSFJ. Closely analogous role, funder base, and target beneficiary segments (schools, extracurricular organizations, vocational training) as DRJA's German-side mandate.
• Franco-German Youth Foundation (OFAJ / DFJW): The most direct structural parallel to DRJA: a bilateral youth exchange coordination body established by the governments of France and Germany in 1963. Operates the same model of government-mandated coordination, grant funding for school/extracurricular exchanges, and joint programming — the canonical reference design that DRJA explicitly emulated for the German-Russian context.

Others

• Robert Bosch Stiftung: One of DRJA's four founding partners and a major German philanthropic foundation operating its own international youth, education, and civil society programs. Comparable as a peer funder in the same ecosystem rather than a direct competitor; useful for benchmarking governance and program design.

Broad incumbents

• Aktion Mensch: Large German social-purpose organization funding inclusion, education, and youth engagement projects nationally. Overlaps with DRJA in funder category (lottery-funded social purpose), beneficiary overlap (youth, education), and grantmaking mechanics, but at a much larger domestic scale.
• IJAB – International Youth Service of the Federal Republic of Germany: Federally mandated specialist agency for international youth work, coordinating multi-country exchange rather than a single bilateral relationship. Overlaps with DRJA in funder (BMFSFJ), target audience (youth workers, schools), and service offering (qualification, partner matching), but operates at a broader multilateral level.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/stiftungdrja
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCyYDnBKsBzAofLiOHFIix6Q
• Facebookfacebook.com/stiftung.drja
• Instagraminstagram.com/stiftung_drja

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about German-Russian Youth Exchange Foundation