Research Funding

The foundation awards the Willy Brandt Prize for Contemporary History every two years. The award is given to outstanding academic work that, in keeping with the foundation’s purpose, is dedicated to German history of the 20th century in its European and global references and thus innovatively explores a topic that is connected to the political work of Willy Brandt.

The work should not be older than two years and must have already been published. Dissertations or habilitation theses must have been accepted by the respective faculty at the time of submission.

The prize includes publication of the award-winning work in one of the foundation’s publication series “Willy Brandt – Studien und Dokumente” at Cumpus Verlag or a subsidy for printing costs if another publication option is chosen. If the work has already been published, prize money will be paid out. The selection committee consists of the three members of the Executive Board and three members of the International Advisory Board.

The foundation accepts application for the 2025 Willy-Brandt-Prize until March 30, 2025. All details can be found in the Call for Proposals and the Rules of Procedure (in German).

The former recipients of the Willy Brandt Prize are

• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2023: Pénélope Léa Patry
  Willy Brandts frühe Europavorstellungen aus dem skandinavischen Exil (1933-1947): Entstehung und Ausformung eines außenpolitischen Bewusstseins zwischen Internationalismus und Europäismus
• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2021: Felix Lieb
  Arbeit durch Umwelt? Sozialdemokratie und Ökologie 1969–1998
• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2019: Michael Frey
  Vor Achtundsechzig. Der Kalte Krieg und die Neue Linke in der Bundesrepublik und in den USA, Göttingen: Wallstein Verlag 2020 (Beiträge zur Geschichte des 20. Jahrhunderts; 26)
• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2017: Scott Krause
  Bringing Cold War Democracy to West Berlin, 1933–1972: A Shared German-American Project, London, UK, Routledge 2018
• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2015: Kristina Meyer
  Die SPD und die NS-Vergangenheit 1945–1990, Göttingen: Wallstein-Verlag 2015 (Beiträge zur Geschichte des 20. Jahrhunderts; 18)
• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2013: nicht vergeben
• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2011: Claudia Hiepel
  Willy Brandt und Georges Pompidou: Deutsch-französische Europapolitik zwischen Aufbruch und Krise, München: Oldenbourg 2012 (Studien zur Internationalen Geschichte; 29)
• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2009: Petri Hakkarainen
  A State of Peace in Europe. West Germany and the CSCE, 1966–1975, New York, Oxford: Berghahn Books 2011
• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2007: Robin M. Allers
  Besondere Beziehungen. Deutschland, Norwegen und Europa in der Ära Brandt (1966–1974), Bonn: Dietz 2009 (Willy-Brandt-Studien; 2)
• Willy-Brandt-Preis 2005: Daniel Friedrich Sturm
  Uneinig in die Einheit. Die Sozialdemokratie und die Vereinigung Deutschlands 1989/90, Bonn: Dietz 2006 (Willy-Brandt-Studien; 1)

Willy Brandt Small Research Grants (2018 – 2023)

The Willy Brandt Small Research Grants were short-term scholarships intended primarily to enable young scientists to complete an ongoing research project. Work that either deals directly with Willy Brandt’s work or legacy or with a chapter of contemporary history that is linked to him and his political work were eligible for funding.

The former recipients of the Small Research Grants are:

• 2023 Christine Meibeck, M.A.
  Universität Potsdam
• 2022 Dr. Martina Garategaray
  National University of Quilmes in Buenos Aires, Argentinia
• 2021 Dr. Marina Pérez de Arcos
  London School of Economics and Political Science, UK
• 2021 Dr. Christoph Jünke
  Fernuniversität Hagen
• 2020 Felix Pankonin
  Leibniz-Institut für jüdische Geschichte und Kultur – Simon Dubnow, Leipzig
• 2019 Dr. Olga Rosenblum
  Russische Staatliche Universität für Geisteswissenschaften (RGGU) Moskau, Russland
• 2018 Dr. Aleksei Sorokin
  Staatliche Dostojewski-Universität Omsk, Russland
• 2018 Miriam Zlobinski M.A.
  Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin