Stiftung Stadtkultur

What Stiftung Stadtkultur does

Stiftung Stadtkultur is a German charitable foundation (Gemeinnützige Stiftung des bürgerlichen Rechts) founded in 2018 in Berlin as an initiative of HOWOGE Wohnungsbaugesellschaft mbH, a Berlin-based housing construction company. Operating under the supervision of the Senatsverwaltung für Justiz Berlin, the foundation functions as an "operationally active foundation" (operativ tätige Stiftung) rather than a grantmaking entity, with a five-person staff executing programs directly. Its mission spans culture, education, and social welfare, focused on underserved Berlin neighborhoods — particularly Lichtenberg, Karlshorst, and Hohenschönhausen — with the goal of enabling community, perspective exchange, and active participation across generations in a "mixed city."

The foundation's portfolio comprises four core programmatic lines plus a venue asset. KinderUni Lichtenberg (KUL), the oldest children's university in Berlin (established 2003, predating the foundation), delivers free scientific and cultural lectures by professors from HTW Berlin, HWR Berlin, and KHSB Berlin to children aged 8+, with its mobile variant KUL unterwegs having reached over 20,000 schoolchildren by 2021. Stadtwerkstätten is a neighborhood-based workshop program under the motto "Time sharing. Doing together." covering ecology, social, and technology topics across community venues. Lichtenberg Open ART (LOA Berlin), taken over from HOWOGE in 2023, is an urban art initiative deploying artistic interventions in publicly accessible spaces across Berlin. KAHO. Raum für Kultur is the foundation's cultural venue, operating out of the former Theater Karlshorst (built 1948/1949) with approximately 100 events during its 2021-2022 interim program, and is scheduled for major renovation beginning March 2026.

The business model is non-commercial: all programs are provided free of charge to participants, with no disclosed pricing, customer contracts, or revenue streams. The foundation is funded primarily by HOWOGE, with no disclosed revenue figures, app, or API monetization. In addition to cultural programming, the foundation supports social housing projects through property assets — supporting Karuna e.V.'s Villa Störtebeker (substance-dependent youth) at Pfarrstraße 119 and the Wohnprojekt Undine (homeless and at-risk individuals) at Hagenstraße 57. Distribution occurs through an institutional partner network including local libraries, universities, schools, Bezirksamt Lichtenberg, and community venues, reaching participants via digital channels (website, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, email newsletter) and earned media (press releases, rbb/radioeins coverage).

Name

Stiftung Stadtkultur

Legal name

Stiftung Stadtkultur

Website

https://stiftung-stadtkultur.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Stiftung Stadtkultur is a Berlin-based charitable foundation, founded in 2018 by HOWOGE, that delivers free cultural, educational, and social programs — including a children's university, neighborhood workshops, urban art, and a cultural venue — to residents of Berlin-Lichtenberg and surrounding districts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural and Educational Foundation Services

NAICS

Civic and Social Organizations (8134), Historical Sites (712120)

akta.pro primary industry

Community Arts, Culture & Creative Placemaking Enterprises (BPAGALAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Public Art, Arts Councils & Grantmaking Programs (BPAGAHAH), Community Center Education Programs (EDAAAFAB)

Keywords

• Cultural education programs
• Urban community engagement
• Neighborhood arts initiatives
• Children's university lectures
• Foundation cultural philanthropy

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, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Stiftung Stadtkultur is an operationally active charitable foundation that directly implements free cultural, educational, and social programs in Berlin-Lichtenberg and surrounding neighborhoods. Its portfolio includes children's university lectures (KinderUni Lichtenberg and the mobile variant KUL unterwegs), urban art installations (LOA Berlin), neighborhood workshops (Stadtwerkstätten), and cultural venue operations (KAHO. Raum für Kultur), all designed to foster community, perspective exchange, and active participation across generations and backgrounds.

Product overview

Stiftung Stadtkultur operates as a foundation engaged in culture, education, and social welfare for a mixed city. Its portfolio consists of educational programs (KinderUni Lichtenberg with its mobile variant KUL unterwegs), urban art projects (Lichtenberg Open ART), neighborhood workshops (Stadtwerkstätten), and cultural venue management (KAHO. Raum für Kultur), supported by a newsletter communication service. These initiatives work together to promote community, perspective exchange, and active participation across generations in Berlin.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Lichtenberg Open ART (LOA Berlin): Urban art project that sets impulses in publicly accessible spaces with artistic means, launched 2012 by HOWOGE and rethought by Stiftung Stadtkultur in 2023.
• KinderUni Lichtenberg (KUL)
• Stadtwerkstätten

Products and services

• KinderUni Lichtenberg (KUL) Free children's university program offering lectures by professors from Lichtenberger Hochschulen for children aged 8 and above, held annually in November at HTW Berlin.
• KUL unterwegs Mobile version of KinderUni Lichtenberg bringing lectures and workshops to schools in Lichtenberg and selected districts, serving grades 3-8.
• Lichtenberg Open ART (LOA Berlin) Urban art initiative setting impulses in publicly accessible spaces with artistic interventions, including facade art and open-air events.
• Stadtwerkst\u00e4tten Neighborhood workshops under the motto 'Zeit teilen. Zusammen tun.' addressing challenges in ecology, social, and technology through lectures, workshops, and community actions.
• KAHO. Raum f\u00fcr Kultur Cultural venue in a listed building (former Theater Karlshorst) offering events and currently undergoing renovation to become a multifunctional cultural location.

Quantifiable outcome

• KUL unterwegs reached 20,000th schoolchild participant in 2021
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• sowieso PressebürocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPress office that co-organizes KinderUni Lichtenberg and KUL unterwegs projects with the foundation. Handles program coordination and educational content development for children's educational programs.
• HTW Berlin (Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three Lichtenberger Hochschulen providing professors for KinderUni Lichtenberg lectures. Hosts KUL events in lecture halls at their Karlshorst campus.
• HWR Berlin (Hochschule für Wirtschaft und Recht)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three Lichtenberger Hochschulen providing professors for KinderUni Lichtenberg lectures.
• KHSB Berlin (Katholische Hochschule für Sozialwesen)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of three Lichtenberger Hochschulen providing professors for KinderUni Lichtenberg lectures.
• Stadtbibliothek LichtenbergcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork of four libraries (Anna-Seghers-Bibliothek, Anton-Saefkow-Bibliothek, Bodo-Uhse-Bibliothek, Egon-Erwin-Kisch-Bibliothek) serving as venues for Stadtwerkstätten digital courses, senior university lectures, and children's programs.
• Material MafiaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization focused on upcycling and waste reduction, co-organizing 'Aufwerten statt Wegwerfen' workshops with the foundation.
• 360 Grad (Raum für Kreativität)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCreative space in Neu-Hohenschönhausen serving as venue partner for Stadtwerkstätten workshops and events.
• Special OlympicsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational sports organization for athletes with intellectual disabilities. KUL unterwegs created educational programming about inclusion accompanying the 2023 Special Olympics World Games in Berlin.
• Bezirksamt LichtenbergminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal government authority in Berlin-Lichtenberg, co-organizing KinderUni Lichtenberg and senior university programs.
• Karuna e.V. (Villa Störtebeker)minorOthersSocial organization providing residential and therapeutic support for substance-dependent youth. Stiftung Stadtkultur supports this project through provision of the Pfarrstraße 119 property.
• Sozialwerk des Demokratischen Frauenbundes e.V. (Wohnprojekt Undine)minorOthersSocial organization operating housing project for homeless and at-risk individuals at Hagenstraße 57. Stiftung Stadtkultur provides property support.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Stiftung Mitarbeit: German foundation supporting local civic engagement and neighborhood self-help initiatives. Comparable as a German Stiftung focused on community-level civic, cultural, and educational empowerment programs with a small operational team.
• Berliner Kulturprojekte GmbH: Berlin-based nonprofit project agency that develops and coordinates cultural projects across the city, including programs like 48 Stunden Neukölln. Comparable as an operational nonprofit executing neighborhood cultural programming with public funding and partner networks.
• Stiftung Neue Verantwortung: Berlin-based operational think-tank foundation working on digital, education, and social-policy programs. Comparable as a small Berlin operationally-active Stiftung running multiple project workstreams with a small team.
• Stiftung Zukunft Berlin: Berlin civic foundation focused on urban development, education, and culture in the city. Comparable as a Berlin-based Stiftung engaging in neighborhood-level cultural, educational, and community programs.

Broad incumbents

• Kulturstiftung der Länder: German federal-state cultural foundation that funds and supports cultural heritage projects nationwide. Comparable as a German cultural grantmaking and project-supporting Stiftung, though operating at a much larger national scale.
• Allianz Kulturstiftung: Corporate-founded cultural foundation supporting European cultural and educational projects. Comparable as a corporate-initiated Stiftung engaging in culture and education, though operating internationally rather than at a neighborhood level.
• Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz: Major German federal cultural foundation operating national museums and cultural institutions in Berlin. Comparable as a large Berlin-based cultural Stiftung, though much broader in mandate and asset scale than the neighborhood-focused Stadtkultur.

Regional players

• Berlinische Galerie: Berlin museum of modern art, photography, and architecture operated as a Stiftung. Comparable as a Berlin arts Stiftung operating cultural programming and managing cultural real estate, though with a museum focus rather than neighborhood outreach.

Others

• Kulturamt Lichtenberg (Bezirksamt): Local district-level cultural authority in Berlin-Lichtenberg that co-organizes programs with the foundation. Comparable as the district-level public-sector cultural counterpart coordinating neighborhood cultural programming in the same geography.

Emerging players

• Hans Sauer Stiftung: Munich-based foundation supporting social innovation and creative placemaking projects. Comparable as an operational cultural/social Stiftung running place-based community programs with strategic corporate-family backing.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCIFTmdpPggbKdvCUhH9I-0g
• Facebookfacebook.com/stiftung.stadtkultur.berlin
• Instagraminstagram.com/stiftung.stadtkultur.berlin
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stiftung-stadtkultur

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Stiftung Stadtkultur