Bertelsmann Stiftung mourns Reinhard Mohn

Bertelsmann Stiftung founder Reinhard Mohn passes away on October 3, 2009, at the age of 88. He and his wife, Liz Mohn, represented the fifth generation of the Bertelsmann and Mohn families of entrepreneurs and philanthropists. Reinhard Mohn closely followed the Bertelsmann Stiftung's work as a member of the Board of Trustees right up to the end of his life.


2009 NEUE STIMMEN International Singing Competition

In early 2009, the 13th NEUE STIMMEN International Singing Competition draws applications from 1,140 singers around the world. Between April and August 2009, more than 900 rising talents demonstrate their abilities in auditions at 23 locations worldwide. Thirty-nine talented young opera singers from 24 countries participate in the finals in October in Gütersloh, with Dominique Meyer, Director Designate of the Vienna State Opera, serving as the new jury chair. The top three prizes go to singers from South Korea: Eunju Kwon (24), Kihwan Sim (26) and JunHo You (29). In all, seven monetary prizes and one special award are given. More than 70 agents and opera company directors attend the competition and singers come away with numerous contacts and first engagements.


PHINEO gAG is founded

In late 2009, the Bertelsmann Stiftung partners with a broad alliance of interested entities from civil society, government and the business world to found PHINEO gAG. A continuation of the Bertelsmann Stiftung project Orientation for Social Investors, PHINEO helps social investors (philanthropists, donors and CSR decision makers) find particularly promising projects and high-performing organizations. By providing profiles of exemplary organizations, reports on various charitable topics, handbooks for donors and recipients as well as individual consulting for social investors, PHINEO establishes transparency about social challenges and outstanding solutions to them. This enables us to strengthen and promote civil society broadly over the long term.