Volunteer Awards 2025: Heroes of Civil Courage and the Environment Awarded!

Volunteer Awards 2025: Heroes of Civil Courage and the Environment Awarded!

On November 7, 2025, the ceremony to award the Oberhavel district honorary awards took place in the Hennigsdorf city clubhouse. On the occasion of this special event, District Administrator Alexander Tönnies (SPD) and the district council chairwoman Birgit Tornow-Wendland (CDU) welcomed the guests and acknowledged the commitment of the honorary award winners.

A total of 17 people and groups were recognized for their outstanding commitment. Among the prizes awarded were the Honorary Prize for Tolerance and Civil Courage, the Cultural Promotion Prize and the Barbara Zürner Environmental Protection Prize. The prizes are endowed with certificates and 250 euros each, while the cultural support prize was awarded 2,500 euros and the environmental protection prize was awarded 2,000 euros.

Honors for civil courage and environmental protection

Particularly highlighted were the award winners Akira Krieg and Kevin Schäfer, who were awarded the honorary award for tolerance and civil courage. Akira Krieg received the honor for his initiative “Never again is now” and a memorial event for forced laborers. Kevin Schäfer was honored for his heroic rescue of sleeping children from a burning daycare center in Schildow. In addition to the certificate, both prize winners received prize money of 1,000 euros each.

Furthermore, the Oberhavel regional association of the German Forest Protection Association received the Barbara Zürner Environmental Protection Prize for a project to revitalize the Hohe Neuendorfer Rotpfuhle. The Hohen Neuendorf Cultural District was awarded the Cultural Promotion Prize for its many years of educational work in the cultural sector.

Volunteering since 2008

The volunteer award has been awarded in Oberhavel since 2008 and has established itself as an important recognition of civil society commitment. This form of engagement is an indispensable part of our democracy and enables citizens to actively participate in shaping society and bring about change. This is also evident in the different areas in which the volunteer award winners work, such as environmental protection work or supporting those in need. According to explanation and more, civil society engagement is not just a question of volunteering, but also a form of civil courage that enables people to stand up for their beliefs and act against injustice.

As part of these celebrations, the challenges that society is currently facing were also highlighted. Topics such as bullying or the importance of non-violent communication were addressed to make it clear that civil society engagement is particularly important in times of change. This makes it clear that the honorary honorary award is not only a personal honor, but also a signal to the community to take action.

Overall, the event impressively shows how important volunteer work is for our society and that there are many people who are willing to work for the well-being of others. But a lot of positive things don't just happen in volunteer work: there are also innovative developments in other areas, such as publishing. Amazon has launched an AI tool called Kindle Translate that enables automatic translation of books in different languages. This could be an exciting new way for authors on the platform to share their work with a wider audience, as Engadget is reported to be testing a beta version that may soon be available for additional languages. However, the tool is still criticized because the challenge of correctly capturing nuances and intentions should not be underestimated.

This makes it clear that both in volunteer work and in innovative technologies, the idea of ​​community and moral courage are crucial and can lead us into a positive future.