A Statement for Digital Sovereignty: 16 Foundations Launch a Joint Mastodon Instance
The Volkswagen Foundation is one of a group of six founding foundations that have set up an own Mastodon instance, 'stiftungen.social'. Ten further foundations have already joined.
16 German foundations are launching a joint online presence on the Mastodon instance ‘stiftungen.social’. The platform was initiated by six foundations; ten other organisations had already joined before its launch.
With stiftungen.social, we are sending a clear signal in support of independent social networks and strengthening new independent digital spaces.
The group of founding organisations behind ‘stiftungen.social’ includes, alongside the Volkswagen Foundation, the Rudolf Augstein Foundation, the Robert Bosch Foundation, the Hertie Foundation, the Joachim Herz Foundation and the ZEIT STIFTUNG BUCERIUS. The foundation server on Mastodon was developed and implemented in collaboration with the non-profit organisation Save Social – Networks For Democracy.
Open to further foundations
The aim of the project is to make social media communication less dependent on large commercial platforms whilst simultaneously creating new spaces for public dialogue. The participating foundations are pursuing a “Plus 1 strategy”: existing channels on established platforms are not being replaced, but supplemented by their own value-based infrastructure.
‘stiftungen.social’ is explicitly designed as an open platform: other foundations committed to fundamental democratic values can join and become part of the network.
Contribution to digital sovereignty in Germany and Europe
With “stiftungen.social”, the participating organisations are strengthening a digital public sphere based on European open-source technologies and free from algorithmic bias. This aspect is becoming increasingly important, particularly for researchers and research-related institutions: transparent communication, trustworthy information and open exchange are central prerequisites for research and social progress.
"Hate speech, incitement and disinformation are on the rise across the networks of US and Chinese corporations. Furthermore, these platforms are shirking their responsibilities and evading regulation. This undermines trust in information and distorts public debate through algorithms. With ‘stiftungen.social’, we are sending a clear signal in favour of independent social networks and strengthening new independent digital spaces,” says the group of initiators, explaining their commitment.
Launch in the context of social debates
The project was presented for the first time at the 2MR Festival at Bucerius Law School in Hamburg, which focuses on social media that strengthens democracy.
At the same time, the participating foundations published their first posts on Mastodon and made their activities visible under the hashtag #neuhier. An overview of all accounts can be found at https://fedidevs.com/s/OTk3/.