Applications can be submitted online at nachbarschaftspreis.de/de/bewerbung (opens in a new tab).

“Neighborhoods thrive on local engagement. Those who stand up for others strengthen the sense of community in our city. The Neighborhood Award highlights this commitment and gives it the recognition it deserves,” says Mayor Gert-Uwe Mende.

The German Neighborhood Award is a nationwide civic engagement competition that the nonprofit Nebenan.de Foundation has been organizing annually since 2017. The German Association of Cities supports the award. The award honors local neighborhood initiatives and projects that actively contribute to a vibrant and open neighborhood, foster a sense of community, and thus resolutely combat isolation and social division. Eligible to participate are neighborhood associations, community centers, nonprofit organizations, social enterprises, and municipalities, as well as dedicated groups or informal coalitions of committed neighbors.

The prize is endowed with a total of 59,000 euros and honors outstanding neighborhood projects at the state level as well as in five thematic categories. The 16 winning projects at the state level will each receive 2,000 euros, while the five winning projects in the respective thematic categories will each receive 5,000 euros in prize money. The award winners will be honored on Tuesday, November 17, in Berlin.