About us
What began back in 1982 with a small youth club in East Berlin has meanwhile developed into an internationally networked organization: Here, former street kids are working with companies, associations and institutions to form an inclusive community committed to solidarity, environmental protection and democracy. Together, we take projects to the street that are innovative and socially beneficial at the same time.
In Aldous Huxley’s novel “Island”, the birds on the fictional island of Pala sing the word KARUNA to remind the people about empathy and solidarity on a daily basis. Our organization follows precisely such a tradition: We need active empathy rather than passive sympathy – and from the widest variety of people: from children, theorists, artists, activists, engineers, teachers, young people, academics, seniors and the homeless. Let’s all get together to think about what kind of a world we want to live in in the future!
Bonus family
We have now grown to more than 100 people aged between 18 and 87 years, primarily from Germany, but also from Austria, the USA and Vietnam. We are the first youth solidarity association in Germany and see ourselves as a living bonus family.
What do we do?
We meet up and work together to seek solutions for the challenges of our time. There are virtually no issues we don’t feel a responsibility to address. We are full of empathy. We get involved in politics and participate in a living democracy. We love diversity and practice tolerance. Our community element means we no longer feel alone. We are working on helping particularly young people who cannot count on a loving, healthy family to find security and comfort with us. We are not aiming to replace anybody, be it youth welfare services or parents. We want to be reliable when others cannot or will not be there. We want to learn from one another. We promote cooperative ideals and with them global cultural heritage.