Heroes of the Homeland Upper Franconia 2022

With the specially initiated competition concept for activating regional commitment for Upper Franconia, we make civic commitment more visible and drive the implementation of new non-profit ideas forward throughcontent-related impulses, networking and financial support.

Hero*ine Mission 2022: Create a new impact for Upper Franconia!

In cooperation with the Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Bayreuth, the competition concept "Heroes of Upper Franconia" of the Adalbert-Raps-Stiftung is already entering its third round in 2022. In contrast to the previous rounds of the competition, in which the foundation awarded prizes to existing initiatives, this year the focus is on the development potential of the individual projects and the organisations behind them. The stated Hero*ine Mission of 2022:Together with non-profit organisations, the aim is to create impact for the Upper Franconia region and promote social participation in this way! Therefore, the foundation is looking for participants who want to solve social challenges related to the region of Upper Franconia and effectively build up and expand their commitment with the support of experienced coaches.

Heroes of the Homeland Upper Franconia 2022: It's worth taking part!

In the third round of the competition, the heroes and heroines of our homeland, Upper Franconia, can look forward to a well thought-out programme with added value: In addition to an extensive coaching and workshop programme, the organisations can also look forward to an unconditional "Hero Prize" of up to 15,000 euros.

The programme: Reaching the goal in two phases

The ten teams that have shown the greatest potential, both in their application documents and in the personal online interview, will enter the first phase of the programme ("Developing and Networking") as "Heroes of the Homeland 2022" and will be given the chance to qualify for the second phase ("Working and Growing").

Heroes of the Homeland 2022: Heroine Programme
Heroine Programme 2022

Phase 1: Further development and networking

The goal in this phase from June to October 2022 is to create real social change with the organisations and their projects in order to initiate sustainable social change in the region.

Within the framework of joint hero workshops and individual hero coaching sessions, the teams work together with coaches on growing closer together, creating a clear vision, sharpening impact, communicating in a target group-specific way and creating opportunities for permanent organisational and project financing. The workshops, which are obligatory for all Hero*innen der Heimat Oberfranken, will take place on the following dates and are expected to alternate between Bamberg, Bayreuth and Kulmbach.

  • Sat, 25 June 2022 from 9:00 to 18:00
  • Fri, 08 July 2022 from 14:00 to 18:00 followed by a "get together".
  • Sat, 24 September 2022 from 10:00 to 17:00

The Hero*ine coaching sessions will be arranged individually between July and September 2022 and can take place online.

Heroines of the Homeland Festival

The first phase of the competition programme ends with the festive Heroes of the Homeland Festival, where all teams present their development steps to a jury and can qualify as one of three teams for phase two of "Heroes of the Homeland Upper Franconia 2022" .

Phase 2: Working and growing

In this phase during the period from October 2022 to October 2023, the focus is particularly on implementing the organisations' offers and increasing their impact in Upper Franconia.

To support the teams, they not only receive one year of coaching and the opportunity to participate in further workshops together, but also financial support. Each team is provided with an unconditional hero money of up to 15,000 euros. The special thing about this is that each team decides the amount and type of payment for itself. For example, a one-time call for donations for a larger investment or monthly recurring payments for the basic financing of the respective offer is conceivable.

Apply now for "Helden der Heimat Oberfranken 2022"!

From 4 April to 8 May 2022,non-profit organisations from Upper Franconia that meet the participation requirements can apply for a place in the "Heroes of Upper Franconia" programme. To do so, please complete the application form and send it to helden@raps-stiftung.de, addressed to Tina Beeg. The programme team will make a preliminary selection based on the application documents.

Organisations that were able to convince with their documents will be invited as a team to an online interview in the period from 16 to 25 May. The aim of this personal interview is to get to know and understand the organisations and their offers and ideas better.

Heroes of the Homeland Upper Franconia: The Path to the Programme
Heroes of the Homeland Upper Franconia 2022: The Path to the Programme

Together with the Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the University of Bayreuth,the Adalbert-Raps-Stiftung is looking forward to all incoming applications and our future joint development of exciting projects!

Documents to prepare the application

Click here for the detailed press release.