We perceive of democracy as a socio-political process driven by citizens' active participation and democratic institutions. "It is apt to say that the term 'democratisation' epitomises the most universal socio-political imperative of our age" (Hennis 1970).

Democratisation is a chief tenet of green politics and a central issue in political education. Still it is often far from clear how to translate the general notion of democratisation into concrete projects, campaigns, or educational programmes. "Civil society" is one such concept which, while widely embraced, is very contentious when it comes to questions of implementation. Other such issues are the crisis of party democracy, the media and democracy, as well as numerous fundamental questions surrounding the relationship between politics and science. All of these are part of the foundation's activities. A further focus of our work are programmes that tackle far-right politics and racism. For us political education means getting people involved, empowering people to participate in political processes, and advising political activists.

Concerning the EU and European policy, our focus is mainly on the following areas: Democracy and participation in the European Union; ecology and sustainable development; EU enlargement; a common European foreign and security policy; and the future of labour and social policy.