Statutes of the ZURÜCKGEBEN Foundation
§ 1 Name, legal form, registered office
The Foundation bears the name
Stiftung ZURÜCKGEBEN. Stiftung zur Förderung jüdischer Frauen in Kunst und Wissenschaft.
It is a foundation under civil law with legal capacity and has its seat in Berlin.
§ 2 Purpose
(1) The purpose of the Foundation is to promote Jewish women living in Germany in the arts and sciences.
(2) The purpose of the Foundation is realized in particular through
1. awarding grants for scientific and artistic work by women of Jewish religious affiliation, whereby this is not tied to membership in a Jewish community, and/or of Jewish origin,
2. grants for projects by women as defined in No. 1. The Foundation may also carry out such projects itself. The grants may also consist of institutional support for other tax-privileged corporations or corporations under public law.
(3) In exceptional cases, works by non-Jewish women or joint projects by Jewish and non-Jewish women that relate thematically to contemporary Jewish culture or Jewish history may also be funded, subject to the free decision of the awarding body.
(4) The Foundation may fulfill its tasks both operationally and by way of funding in accordance with § 58 No. 1 and No. 2 AO.
(5) The Foundation shall exclusively and directly pursue charitable purposes within the meaning of the section “Tax-privileged purposes” of the Tax Code (§ § 51 et seq. AO).
(6) The Foundation shall act selflessly; it shall not primarily pursue its own economic purposes.
(7) The Foundation shall not be party-politically bound and shall be independent.
§ 3 Assets, Use of Funds
(1) At the time of approval, the Foundation‘s assets consist of a claim to transfer of DM 180,000.
(2) In the interest of a sustainable realization of the statutory purposes, the assets of the Foundation may also be used. In this context, it must be ensured that appropriate fulfillment of the purposes can still take place until the year 2026.
(3) Funds may only be used for the purposes set out in the foundation statutes. No person may benefit from expenses that are alien to the purpose of the Foundation or from disproportionately high remuneration. The founders and their legal successors shall not receive any allocations from the funds of the corporation.
(4) The Foundation may raise funds for its activities.
(5) The Foundation may form reserves within the limits of tax law.
§ 4 Organs
The organs of the foundation are
a) the Board of Directors
b) the Advisory Board
c) the Jury
§ 5 Board of Directors
The Board of Directors shall consist of Jewish and non-Jewish women. It shall have at least three and at most seven female members, who shall be appointed by the Advisory Board for a period of three years. Reappointment or premature dismissal for good cause is possible. In the event of the premature departure of members of the Board of Management, their successors shall be appointed for the remaining term of office only. The members of the Executive Board shall continue to hold office until their successors take office.
§ 6 Duties of the Board of Directors, Substitution
(1) The Board of Directors shall administer the Foundation on its own responsibility in accordance with the foundation statutes. It shall determine the guidelines of the allocation procedure and the funds available for the realization of the Foundation‘s purpose. It shall fulfill the will of the founders as effectively and sustainably as possible. The members of the Board of Directors are obliged to manage the Foundation‘s assets and other funds conscientiously and economically.
(2) The Board of Directors may specify topics for projects to be carried out.
(3) If funds are tied to specific projects, the Board of Directors shall determine how they are to be allocated.
(4) As a rule, the members of the Board of Directors shall perform their duties on an honorary basis and free of charge. However, the Foundation‘s Board of Directors may grant individual members reasonable compensation for their time spent in the interests of the Foundation, insofar as the available funds permit. The members shall be entitled to reimbursement of their expenses.
(5) Members of the Board of Directors may receive separate appropriate remuneration for activities in the interest of the Foundation which go beyond the tasks pursuant to § 6 (1).
(6) The Chairperson shall represent the Foundation jointly with another member of the Board of Directors in and out of court.
§ 7 Managing Directorship, Adoption of Resolutions by the Board of Direcors
(1) The Board shall elect a Chairperson and a Deputy Chairperson from among its members.
(2) The Board of Directors shall pass its resolutions at meetings or by written ballot. The chairperson or the deputy chairperson shall invite all members of the Executive Board to the meeting in writing two weeks in advance, stating the exact agenda, or shall request them to vote in writing. The Executive Board shall constitute a quorum if at least
(3) Resolutions shall be adopted by a simple majority of the members present or participating in a written ballot, unless the foundation statutes provide otherwise. In the event of a tie, the chairperson shall have the casting vote.
(4) The dissolution of the Foundation, its merger with another foundation or a change in its purpose may only be resolved by a majority of two-thirds of the members of the Board of Directors. Such resolutions are only permissible in the event of a significant change in circumstances.
(5) Minutes shall be taken of the meetings of the Board of Directors, which shall be signed by the chairperson of the meeting. Resolutions shall be recorded in the minutes.
§ 8 Advisory Board
(1) The Advisory Board shall consist of at least five and at most fifteen female members, who shall hold their office in an honorary capacity. A member of the Advisory Board may not be a member of the Executive Board at the same time.
(2) The first members of the Advisory Board have been appointed in the Foundation‘s business. They may elect additional female members up to the maximum number specified in paragraph 1. If the number of members falls below the minimum number, the Advisory Board shall also supplement itself by election.
(3) The provisions of § 7 paras. 1-3 and 5 shall apply accordingly.
§ 9 Tasks of the Advisory Board
The Advisory Board shall elect the members of the Board of Directors. It shall supervise the management of the Executive Board. It shall examine the statements and the report in accordance with § 13 para. 2 and shall decide on the discharge of the Board of Directors each year. In addition, it promotes the work of the Foundation, provides suggestions and carries out public relations work. It shall decide on the remuneration of the Board of Directors in accordance with § 6 para. 5.
§ 10 Jury
(1) The jury shall consist of three to five women of Jewish origin and/or Jewish religious affiliation, who shall hold their office on an honorary basis.
(2) The members of the first jury shall be appointed by the Board. Thereafter, the jury shall be completed by election.
§ 11 Tasks of the Jury
(1) The jury decides on the allocation of funds to beneficiaries and/or projects according to § 2 para. 1-3 of these statutes, unless the funds are tied to specific projects.
(2) The jury may delegate the decision on the allocation of funds to the Executive Board for projects pursuant to § 6 para. 2.
§ 12 Adoption of resolutions by the Jury
(1) The jury shall pass its resolutions in meetings or by written ballot. The jury shall constitute a quorum if at least half of its members are present at the meeting or participate in the written vote. Resolutions shall be passed by a simple majority of the members present or voting in writing.
(2) Each member of the jury is entitled to invite to the meeting or to initiate a written resolution.
(3) Minutes shall be taken of the meetings or the written voting procedure of the jury, which shall be signed by a jury member. The wording of resolutions shall be recorded.
§ 13 Management
(1) The Board of Directors may appoint a managing director for the Foundation, who need not be a member of the Board of Directors. This person may be granted an appropriate remuneration, provided that funds permit. If necessary, it may employ other persons.
(2) The income and expenditure of the Foundation shall be recorded and the receipts collected. At the end of each fiscal year, statements of the Foundation‘s income and expenditure and of its assets shall be prepared, together with a report on the fulfillment of the Foundation‘s purpose. The financial year shall be the calendar year.
(3) The Board of Directors may have the statements prepared in accordance with para. 2 audited by a publicly appointed auditor or a recognized auditing company, provided that the funds permit this.
§ 14 Dissolution or merging of the foundation
(1) The Board of Directors may resolve to dissolve the Foundation or to merge it with another foundation if the sustainable and lasting fulfillment of the purpose of the Foundation can no longer be guaranteed due to a significant change in circumstances (§ 7, para. 4).
(2) If necessary, the merger shall be resolved with a foundation whose purposes are as close as possible to the purpose of the foundation pursuant to § 2.
(3) In the event of dissolution or annulment of the Foundation or if tax-privileged purposes cease to apply, the assets of the Foundation shall pass to a legal entity under public law or to another tax-privileged corporation for the purpose of promoting art and science.
(4) The resolution of the Board of Directors may only be executed after approval by the competent fiscal authority.
§ 15 State supervision
(1) The Foundation shall be subject to state supervision by Berlin in accordance with the provisions of the Berlin Foundation Law (StiftG Bln).
(2) Pursuant to § 8 StiftG Bln, the members of the representative body shall be obliged to notify the supervisory authority of the following
1. to immediately notify the respective composition of the organs of the foundation, including the distribution of offices within the organs, to provide evidence and the respective addresses of the foundation and the members of the representative body,
2. to submit an annual report (annual financial statement with a statement of assets and liabilities or audit report pursuant to § 8 para. 3 StiftG Bln and report on the fulfillment of the purpose of the Foundation) within four months after the end of the fiscal year; the resolution of the Board of Directors on the adoption of the annual report shall be enclosed.
(3) Resolutions on amendments to the foundation statutes, dissolution of the Foundation or its merger with another foundation shall require the approval of the Supervisory Authority. Approval shall be applied for from the supervisory authority by the members of the Board of Management authorized to represent the Foundation in accordance with Section 6 (3).
(4) Amendments to the foundation statuteswhich affect the purpose of the Foundation shall require the prior approval of the fiscal authority.
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Version: June 27, 2017