Bildungswerk Berlin

What Bildungswerk Berlin does

Bildungswerk Berlin der Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung e.V. is a non-profit adult education institution registered as an eingetragener Verein (Vereinsregister-Nr. 7167 Nz) in Berlin, recognized under Berlin's Erwachsenenbildungsgesetz (EBiG) and granted charitable status for the promotion of vocational and adult education. It operates as one of 16 regional foundations (Landesstiftungen) within the federal Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung network, which is affiliated with Bündnis 90/Die Grünen (German Green Party). The organization delivers political education programming covering democracy, feminism, antisemitism, climate action, migration, international politics, media literacy, and urban development to adult learners, students, women/LGBTQ+ audiences, and individuals researching German family and WWII history.

Its core product is an event-based curriculum — workshops, discussion evenings, reading circles, city walks (Stadtspaziergänge), and feminist city rallies — complemented by downloadable and print publications (atlases, city walk guides, brochures), podcast series ('Shrinking Spaces', 'Wem gehört das Radio?'), a monthly newsletter, and the GreenCampus certificate program for formally credited Unterrichtseinheiten. Delivery runs through the website bildungswerk-boell.de and a separate program-registration site (programm.bildungswerk-boell.de), in-person at the Olivaer Platz 16 venue and partner Berlin locations, and online via Zoom and Big Blue Button, with content distributed on YouTube, Vimeo, Soundcloud, Spotify, and seven social platforms.

The business model combines public grants from the Berliner Landeszentrale für politische Bildung, which subsidize many events to free or reduced fees, with direct participant payments of €10–€100 per event and discounts of up to 50% for students, unemployed, and disabled persons. Six staff execute programming under a three-person Vorstand (Tanja Berger, Ario Mirzaie, Laura Seels) and a Geschäftsleitung (Simon Cames). No revenue, funding rounds, M&A, or venture investment are disclosed.

Name

Bildungswerk Berlin

Legal name

Bildungswerk Berlin der Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung e.V.

Website

https://bildungswerk-boell.de

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Bildungswerk Berlin der Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung is a Berlin-based non-profit adult education institution affiliated with the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung political foundation, delivering subsidized workshops, reading circles, city walks, and publications on progressive political topics to adult learners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Political Adult Education

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (81341), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Nonprofit, Social Services & Community Development Congresses (THAHAJAO)

akta.pro secondary industry

Political, Social History & Civic Tours (THAJAAAK)

Keywords

• Political adult education
• Civic education workshops
• Educational publications
• Guided city walks
• Discussion seminars

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Event Participation Fees: The organization charges participation fees for many events, ranging from free to 100 EUR per event. Some events are fully subsidized by public funding and offered at no cost.
2. Public Funding and Subsidies: Many events receive funding from the Berliner Landeszentrale für politische Bildung (Berlin Center for Political Education), allowing reduced or free participation fees.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Bildungswerk Berlin is a recognized political adult education institution offering workshops, seminars, discussion evenings, reading circles, city walks, and film events on topics such as democracy, feminism, antisemitism, climate action, migration, and human rights. It supplements these with educational publications (brochures, atlases, walking tour guides) and podcast series. Many events are subsidized through public funding from the Berliner Landeszentrale für politische Bildung, allowing free or reduced participation fees.

Product overview

Bildungswerk Berlin der Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung operates as a political education institution offering a portfolio of educational products centered around events and publications. The core offerings include seminars, workshops, discussion evenings, reading circles, and city walks covering topics like feminism, democracy, human rights, antisemitism, and social movements. The organization produces publications including brochures, city walk guides, and atlases available in PDF and print formats. Complementary products include podcast series, a newsletter subscription, and the GreenCampus certificate program that recognizes educational units from completed courses. The main venue is located at Olivaer Platz 16 in Berlin Charlottenburg, with events also held at partner locations throughout Berlin.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Veranstaltungen (Events and Seminars) Political education events including workshops, discussion evenings, seminars, reading circles, film screenings, and educational trips covering topics such as feminism, antisemitism, democracy, human rights, climate action, migration, and social movements. Delivered both in person at the Berlin venue and online via Zoom, with participation fees ranging from free (when subsidized) to EUR 100 per event.
• Publikationen (Publications) Educational publications including brochures, city walk guides, and atlases on topics such as human rights, migration, the agrar- und Lebensmittelindustrie (Konzernatlas 2026), and societies in wartime. Available as free PDF downloads or as physical copies shipped free of charge (up to three per order) via [email protected].
• Stadtspaziergänge (City Walks) Guided walking tours exploring political and historical themes in Berlin neighborhoods, including topics such as human rights, Walter Benjamin, Hegel and antisemitism, decolonial memory, and workers' culture in Kreuzberg. Standalone ticketed events listed in the program calendar.
• Feministische Stadtrallye (Feminist City Rally) Standalone workshop-format feminist city rally exploring women's solidarity, sisterhood, and feminist movements through creative activities and movement, targeting women, FLINTA*, and participants in feminist organizing.
• Lesekreis (Reading Circle) Guided multi-session discussion groups reading and interpreting philosophical and political texts, such as Walter Benjamin's 'Einbahnstraße', intended for academics, students, and theoretically engaged participants.
• GreenCampus Zertifikat (Certification Program) Certification program for political education courses, offering recognized educational units (Unterrichtseinheiten) for completion of Bildungswerk Berlin workshops and seminars.

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration12 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Berliner Landeszentrale für politische BildungcoreOthersThe Berliner Landeszentrale für politische Bildung (Berlin Center for Political Education) is a key public funding partner. Many events are funded through this body, enabling reduced or free participation. This partnership enables the organization to fulfill its educational mission with subsidized programming.
• borderline-europeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-published the publication 'Disappearance along the migration routes' together with borderline-europe. This is a collaborative educational publication on migration policy and disappeared migrants.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Berliner Volkshochschulen (VHS): Berlin's municipal adult education centers offering EBiG-recognized courses, workshops, and city walks. Most direct local competitor in the political and historical education segment, with shared pricing logic, venue model, and audience of adult learners in Berlin.

Broad incumbents

• Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung: Social Democratic affiliated political foundation operating a nationwide adult civic education program, including state-level academies. Directly comparable to Bildungswerk Berlin in mission, EBiG recognition, and reliance on public funding plus political-foundation sponsorship, but with much broader geographic reach.
• Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung: Left-leaning political foundation affiliated with Die Linke, offering nationwide political education including a Berlin office. Directly comparable delivery model of conferences, reading circles, and political analysis, competing for the same EBiG-funded civic education space.
• Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung: The federal parent organization of Bildungswerk Berlin and the umbrella for all 16 state-level Landesstiftungen. Operates the same political education mission at national scale, including major publications like the Konzernatlas, making it the most directly comparable incumbent for programming, branding, and funding structure.
• Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung: One of the six major German political foundations, affiliated with the CDU. Runs civic education events, conferences, and publications nationally with comparable EBiG-style adult education programming, but from a conservative political perspective. Closely comparable in delivery model, scale, and funder mix.
• Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit: Liberal (FDP-affiliated) political foundation with a national civic education and conference portfolio. Comparable in operating model (events, publications, seminars under EBiG-style frameworks) and in serving politically engaged adult learners, though ideologically distinct.
• Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung: The federal German agency for civic education, providing publications, conferences, and online resources nationwide. Comparable in adult civic education mission and reliance on public funding, and a frequent co-funder of party-foundation programming.

Others

• Berliner Landeszentrale für politische Bildung: The Berlin state agency that funds and co-programs many Bildungswerk Berlin events. As a public-sector political education body, it is the closest institutional comparator in mission, audience, and curriculum, though it operates as a government agency rather than a non-profit association.

Emerging players

• Stiftung Neue Verantwortung: Berlin-based think tank producing policy analysis, events, and publications on democracy, digitalization, and civil society. Comparable in Berlin geographic focus, event-driven model, and progressive orientation, but operates in a more research-and-policy register than adult civic education.
• Gegen Vergessen – Für Demokratie: Non-profit foundation focused on remembrance culture, historical-political education, and democratic engagement in Germany. Comparable in event-based adult civic education, especially in Holocaust remembrance and historical city walks, with overlapping audiences in Berlin.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/bildungswerkboell
• Facebookfacebook.com/bildungswerk.boell
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bildungswerk-berlin
• Instagraminstagram.com/bildungswerk_boell/?hl=de

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bildungswerk Berlin