Austria Germany Society
| Austria | Germany | Society (ÖDG) |
|
|---|---|
| legal form |
Association ( ZVR : 400860642) |
| founding | 17th May 2016 |
| founder | Claus Walter |
| Seat | Vienna (Albert Hall) |
| people | Claus Walter (Managing Director) Erwin Kubesch (General Secretary) Christian Prosl (Special Advisor) Peter Huber (Patron) Christa Ludwig (Honorary Member) Sigurd Bauer (Advisory Board) Heinz Anton Hafner (Advisory Board) |
The Austria | Germany | Society (ÖDG) is a registered friendship society that aims to network Austria and Germany in the fields of business, science, sport, media, tourism, art and culture. The ÖDG was re-established in May 2016 at the suggestion of the Austrian Foreign Ministry . It maintains and supplements bilateral state-diplomatic relations at all levels of civil society .
Events in all federal states offer the opportunity to deal with current issues relating to the relationship between Austria and Germany.
history
The Austrian-German cultural society can be seen as the predecessor organization of today's society. The former finance minister Eduard Heilingsetzer was elected as the first president on March 12, 1968 and former Federal Chancellor Alfons Gorbach as honorary president. Heilingsetzer was followed by EVN General Director Rudolf Gruber for four years . Thereafter, the permanent Vice President of the Federal Council Herbert Schambeck held the position of President for over 40 years and until the voluntary dissolution of the company in autumn 2015, the international lawyer Heribert Franz Köck . Reasons for the dissolution were, according to their own definition, the aging of the organs and the lack of subsidies.
In 1971 the Austrian-German Democratic Republic Society was founded. The first president was the chairman of the patent office and lecturer at the University of Graz Friedrich Epstein. In 1980 Walter Schwimmer , a member of the National Council and later Secretary General of the Council of Europe, became vice-president. After the turning point and peaceful revolution in the GDR , this society dissolved on September 29, 1990.
The ÖDG was founded after the surprising dissolution of the Austrian-German cultural society with the aim of expressing the close relationships that connect the two countries on the civil society level as well. The ÖDG took on the maintenance and expansion of these relationships and intensified the exchange about and between the two countries beyond the established structures.
Recognition awards and Rolling Ambassador
The ÖDG will award a recognition award worth 10,000 euros each from 2018 to 2021. Prize winners can of course be legal entities from both countries alike. The 2018 award winner was the opera singer Christa Ludwig on the occasion of her 90th birthday . The award ceremony took place on April 12, 2018 in the residence of the German Ambassador Johannes Haindl .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Entry in the Central Register of Associations of the Federal Ministry of the Interior (ZVR number: 400860642), accessed on February 5, 2019.
- ↑ Walter, Claus .: Red-white-red PaN stories: 1945 - 2005 . Umbrella organization PaN, 2005, OCLC 895161582 .