Further information

The Association of German Foundations represents the interests of more than 23,000 foundations in Germany. With over 4,500 members, it is the largest and oldest association of foundations in Europe.

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The foundation

The Hoffnungszeichen | Sign of Hope Foundation is an independent foundation under civil law, which was established in 2007 by Hoffnungszeichen | Sign of Hope e.V.. The Freiburg Regional Council, as the responsible foundation authority, recognized the Hoffnungszeichen Foundation as having legal capacity on 26 June 2007 under file number 14-2214.8. The foundation was established with 300,000 euros in basic assets by the Hoffnungszeichen association. The foundation's capital now stands at 1.67 million euros. In 2013, the majority of the foundation's assets were invested in the acquisition of a commercial property in Constance on Lake Constance due to higher returns; Hoffnungszeichen e.V. is also one of the tenants. The Hoffnungszeichen Foundation has been a member of the Association of German Foundations since 2013.

Work and projects

In 2024, the Hoffnungszeichen Foundation supported projects in the DR Congo, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, India and Ethiopia. You can find out more about the foundation and its work on page 30 in our latest annual report.

Administration and bodies

The foundation does not have any employees of its own; instead, the administration receives personnel and financial support from the Hoffnungszeichen association. The two bodies according to the statutes are the Executive Board and the Supervisory Board. These currently consist of two and three honorary members respectively.

Supervisory Board

The Supervisory Board of Hoffnungszeichen | Sign of Hope Foundation: Stefan Daub, Ute Felgenhauer-Laier (Chairperson), Manfred Steiner (Vice Chairperson)

Executive Board

The Executive Board consists of Klaus Stieglitz (Chairman of the Executive Board) and Miriam Schütze (CEO).) and Miriam Schütze (Deputy Chair of the Board).

Non-profit status

The foundation pursues exclusively and directly non-profit and charitable purposes. The Constance tax office has recognized this under tax number 09041/20443 with the last notice of exemption dated 24.04.2025 for 2023. Donations and endowments are therefore tax-deductible; bequests are completely tax-free.