Peace and Security in Europe and Beyond

Reading of letters on the SPIEGEL affair | FULLY BOOKED

Since 2021, the Bundeskanzler Helmut Schmidt Stiftung has commemorated its namesake with the annual Helmut-Schmidt-Lecture and invites a current "thought leader of today". The Helmut Schmidt Lecture focuses on social and political topics that have already shaped Helmut Schmidt's work and have lost none of their relevance to this day. The series of events brings together international personalities from politics, academia and civil society and creates space for debates on democracy, human rights, globalisation and social cohesion.

The Federal Minister of Defence will deliver the fifth Helmut Schmidt Lecture on 22 June in Berlin

Introducing an inclusive geoeconomics strategy for Germany | Thursday, 18 June 2026, 10 a.m. | Language: English

The Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung and Die Zeit present the Helmut-Schmidt-Zukunftspreis annually. This award honors an international figure who, through their significant work, stands for democracy and the common good.

At the EU summit in Brussels, the European heads of state and government get stuck due to a lift breakdown. A youth group spontaneously takes their seats in the European Council and has to make important decisions for the future of Europe - from peace and security to healthcare, climate protection and the fight against hate on the internet. But the documents are encrypted: Only by working together can the young people decipher clues, analyse information and make the right decisions in time.

Three questions for Kirsten Hartmann on the Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) agenda and our new project "Gen P(eacebuilder) - Implementing the Youth, Peace and Security agenda".

Below you find a series of interviews with experts on Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) that were filmed during our Gen P(eacebuilder) workshop in Hamburg in July 2025. They outline the relevance of the YPS agenda, stress challenges in implementing it and outline concrete examples from the contexts what it means to operationalise it. Whom should we interview next?

Brutal conflicts worldwide, democratic backsliding in many places, geopolitical power struggles, technological threats, the climate emergency: the list of current challenges seems endless. The effective participation of young people is central to the prevention and resolution of conflicts and lasting peace.

On the 120th birthday of the Hamburg publisher Gerd Bucerius

A look at the influence of the European Union in the Hanseatic city

Europe needs an independent foreign policy

The collapse of the canopy at Novi Sad train station in November 2024, which claimed 16 lives, ignited a struggle for justice in Serbia that was met with repression. Student-led protests have since shaken Serbia, creating a society-wide front demanding the rule of law. This text examines the crisis through the lens of the UN Youth, Peace and Security agenda, showing how government actions threaten three of its pillars – participation, protection and partnership – and how youth are experimenting with new democratic practices.

Latin American youth have always been peacebuilders: university reformers, student resisters, Indigenous organisers, feminist activists. Their struggles anticipated many of the principles later enshrined in the UN’s Youth, Peace and Security agenda. Yet, paradoxically, the agenda itself has failed to resonate in the region. For the framework to matter in Latin America, it must stop speaking about youth and start speaking with them, on their own terms, in their own vocabularies.

The connections between climate, youth, peace and security are gaining traction in global policymaking and research, highlighting the deep interdependencies between sustainability, conflict and the power of youth engagement. This article explores the challenges for young people engaging in climate action and/or peacebuilding, outlines innovative youth-led responses and maps out a shared path that depicts young people as not just being on the journey, but at the centre of it.

In 2015, the UN Security Council Resolution 2250 established the Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) agenda and recognised the important and positive role of young people in preventing conflicts and building sustainable peace. Despite this important milestone and although young people are leading change worldwide, their expertise on peace and security is still often dismissed.

Join us for a chat over coffee on 12 April | Helmut-Schmidt-Forum

Long Night of Museums 2026 at the Helmut Schmidt Forum invites people to talk and exchange ideas

A brief look at the history of compulsory military service and an invitation to a discussion in the Helmut Schmidt Forum

A look into the engine room of democracy | Wednesday, 18 March, 6 p.m. | Helmut-Schmidt-Forum

Recommendations for institutional reform at the trade-security nexus

On 18 March 1976, the German Bundestag passes the law on co-determination in companies

Challenges and potential of games for political education and participation

New BKHS platform on youth, peace and security

The Bundeskanzler-Helmut-Schmidt-Stiftung (BKHS) is launching a platform on Youth, Peace and Security (YPS). In 2015, the UN Security Council Resolution 2250 established the YPS agenda and recognised the important and positive role of young people in preventing conflicts and building sustainable peace. Young people are leading positive change worldwide – yet, a decade after the YPS agenda was formalised, youths’ expertise around peace and security is often dismissed.

A safety manoeuvre in a storm

The Port of Hamburg as an example of sustainable security policy

The latest BKHS Magazine "Strengthening Partner Europe!" has been published - A look inside the magazine

Rethinking economic security: Hamburg as a safe harbour for an inclusive geo-economy

Dealing with terrorism in the Federal Republic of Germany since the Second World War

Every two years, the Federal Chancellor Helmut Schmidt Foundation, in cooperation with the Europa-Kolleg Hamburg, offers a distinguished Scholar-in-Residence program. The program is aimed at outstanding scholars from Germany and abroad whose research focuses on Europe and international relations. During their stay in Hamburg, the Scholar-in-Residence plans an academic conference on a previously under-explored aspect of historical, political science, legal, economic, or cultural issues.

The first World Economic Summit was held 50 years ago

Helmut Schmidt's understanding of democracy and what we can learn from it

The exhibition "Schmidt! Living Democracy" provides insights into a century of German and international contemporary history and highlights the - still highly topical - issues of conflict, particularly in the 1970s and 1980s. In the spirit of Schmidt, we also invite our guests to join in the discussion and ask questions about the future of democracy in Germany, Europe and the world.

On the challenges facing Gen Z and their significance for the resilience of our democracy

What do the recent mass protests in Kenya, Nepal and Morocco have in common? All have been described as ‘Gen Z’ protests – a reference to the generation born in the late 1990s and early 2000s – as they have seen a mass mobilisation of young people on the streets. Young people around the world are demanding their right to be involved in decisions that affect their present and their future.

Political developments and the future of the democratic order

International experts develop policy recommendations for implementing the Youth, Peace and Security agenda

Helmut Schmidt and the secret services - current travelling exhibition at the Helmut Schmidt Forum shows the effects of Stasi crimes

European capacity to act in a changing world

At the Ministerial Conference on UN Peacekeeping, states reaffirmed their support for peacekeeping missions and announced numerous contributions. Despite global austerity measures, this momentum must be maintained and rhetorical commitments must also lead to tangible effects on the ground.

Europe needs a co-operative geo-economic approach

Insights into the evaluation results of "Unlock Europe"

The Future of United Nations Peace Operations

Alliance brings together the expertise and brain power of close to 100 peace operations experts from around the globe

Plea for a focus on peacebuilding against the backdrop of the uncertain future of the crisis-ridden UN peacekeeping missions

A review of America's industrial policy experiment

The Evolution of United Nations Peacekeeping Operations: Challenges and Prospects

BKHS travelling exhibition tours the country in politically turbulent times

UN peacekeeping missions are in crisis. Germany has a duty to take on more security policy responsibility.

Industrial challenges for developing countries and policy recommendations for the EU

Industrial challenges for low- and middle-income countries and policy recommendations for the EU

Where is Europe's ability to act in foreign and security policy?

From aspiration to reality

New BKHS eyewitness project: Employees of the Federal Chancellor talk about working with a tireless boss

Former Chancellor urged the major powers to work together in China 20 years ago

New book "Schmidt! Living Democracy" is also dedicated to controversial topics

Review of the Helmut Schmidt Lecture 2024: Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu presents "democratic peopleism"

Ekrem İmamoğlu, Turkish opposition politician, finds clear words for the success criteria of functioning democracies at the Helmut Schmidt Lecture in Berlin.

Helmut Schmidt Lecture 2024 Welcome Remarks

Mayor of Istanbul Ekrem İmamoğlu speaks at the Helmut Schmidt Lecture 2024 on the success criteria of functioning democracies

Fourth issue of the BKHS Magazine presents important aspects of defence-oriented democracies

Ahead of the Helmut Schmidt Lecture "For a Just Democracy", we take a look at Germany, the USA and Turkey

13 policy briefs scrutinise the future of the UN, gender equality and acute crises

To make the UN fit for the future, the missions must change

Painted in oil by the Leipzig painter, the statesman returns to the Chancellery in 1986

FOTAR (Future of Transatlantic Relations) is a conference format conceived and organized by the Federal Chancellor Helmut Schmidt Foundation and the Europa-Kolleg Hamburg, and generously funded by the Hamburg Ministry of Science, Research, Equality, and Districts. It brings together high-level international experts from academia and politics, as well as representatives of civil society from the U.S. and Europe, to discuss the future of transatlantic relations. FOTAR takes place in Hamburg every two years.

39. President of the USA turns 100 - Looking back on a crisis-ridden era of foreign policy

Accessible exhibition tour focuses on the fight for the rights of people with disabilities

Today, the lack of access to digital space is a structural problem

Successor Kohl favoured copper cable - ex-chancellor later asked: What is a terminal device?

Social inequalities, climate change and international rivalry are forcing a rethink

A place of quiet diplomacy during the Cold War: burial of President Tito 45 years ago

The path to an inclusive geoeconomy

Struggling for relevance in an era of changes: The Ukraine war and the UN's future role in peace and security crises

Concept brings movement to the debate on inequality

Continuity and concentration - "Not so badly done"

The elections to the European Parliament will take place on 9 June 2024. In Germany, young people aged 16 and over will be able to vote for the first time and they are demanding that their voices be heard in politics. Issues relating to peace and security are increasingly among the core interests that influence their voting decisions.

Archive discovery about the interplay between politics and science

16 and 17-year-olds called up for the first time - but forecasts predict a massive shift to the right

About traditions and today's responsibility to shape museums - #Challenging Democracy celebrates its premiere in Berlin

From Brandt to Schmidt - International conference sheds light on the historical background

A trade paradigm for the age of geoeconomic competition: Not economic, but human security

Constitution still surprisingly fresh and modern today - But right-wing extremists are targeting fundamental rights

New report by BKHS and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung shows that it is becoming increasingly difficult to build peace

February 2024 | Report | An international network of representatives from academia, civil society, and politics releases a new report on the future of peacebuilding

New themed tour at the Helmut Schmidt Forum on the importance of visual communication

Pandemics, human rights or the climate crisis: dangers do not stop at borders and require new concepts

Two days before Christmas: Special session in Hamburg City Hall makes headlines

President of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy Moritz Schularick holds the third Helmut Schmidt Lecture on 4 December in Berlin

"Investment boom" in Germany with more and more formats as a lucrative business

Conference opens up multifaceted perspectives on the NATO Double-Track Decision and its consequences

Two power-conscious and eloquent rivals engaged in a rhetorical duel

Helmut Schmidt and his commitment to German unity

Loki and Helmut Schmidt's home as the subject of research

China's New Silk Road project turns ten while the G7 struggles for "economic security"

Exhibition about the Kislau concentration camp spans the present day

"Global Expert Group" develops proposals for conflict resolution and peacebuilding of the future

BKHS and FES are bringing together a diverse group of peace experts in Hamburg and creating a space for meaningful dialogue

Helmut Schmidt's role in the founding of the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival

How democratic is lot-based public participation really?

What’s Next for Global Peace Work? – An Interview with Julia Strasheim and Tina Blohm

Der Bericht „Neue Perspektiven: Friedensförderung und Konfliktbearbeitung in einer sich wandelnden Weltordnung“ steht hier kostenlos zum Download bereit.

How the Spiegel affair contributed to the Hamburg press law

Despite massive anti-nuclear protests: Chancellor Schmidt saw nuclear power as the key to energy independence

Exhibitions as venues for current debates - varied programme at the Helmut Schmidt Forum

Sino-German Relations in the Mirror of Time - Conference on International Perspectives on China

Escape game provides a playful introduction to European peace and security policy

Loki Schmidt as a pioneer of nature and species conservation in Germany

Russian attack on Ukraine exacerbates global crises - BKHS and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung establish global network of conflict experts

More topical than ever: Helmut Schmidt published almost 50 titles - An author with conviction and authenticity

No change through trade - How the US and the EU can protect themselves from critical dependencies

The statesman's letters are being systematically catalogued for the first time

Helmut Schmidt's mother Ludovika worked as a maid - her parents had a white goods shop on Mundsburger Damm

International Conference of BKHS and Europa-Kolleg Hamburg: FOTAR - The Future of Transatlantic Relations

Human rights activist Hatice Cengiz holds the second Helmut Schmidt Lecture in Berlin

Fears about the future and a lack of trust in the EU are a challenge for us all

On the togetherness, coexistence and opposition of the two social democrats and statesmen

Helmut Schmidt at the wheel: parking offences, collisions with trams and other "motor vehicle matters"

Helmut Schmidt recognised the value of archives for the future during his lifetime

Schmidt-Map takes you to surprising places - historical facts in compact form

Our new podcast takes you on a musical tour of Germany

First Helmut Schmidt Future Prize: Vanessa Nakate stands for justice and climate activism in the Global South

From Crisis Manager to Agenda Setter: Policy Recommendations for the G7 from the Next Generation of Leaders

The role of the G7 for a value-based foreign policy

High-profile media campaign in 1980 exposed the spying on homosexuals in public toilets

Crimes such as those currently taking place are not an unavoidable side effect of wars, but often a deliberate decision by the warring parties. The international community does not have to stand idly by.

The idea of "human duties" in the state as a supplement to the "Declaration of Human Rights"

Government as friend or foe - Broad majority in favour of arms deliveries to Ukraine

The NATO Double-Track Decision as leverage for disarmament negotiations

The offence of genocide fulfilled" - Helmut Schmidt paves the way for rehabilitation of German Sinti and Roma

What his service diary from 1977 reveals about the man and politician Helmut Schmidt

The Lorenz abduction in 1975 as a turning point in Germany's approach to terrorism

On the connection between the global economy and social peace

A critical look at the US President's first year in office

The Interactions Between European Integration and German Reunification

40 years ago: Chancellor Schmidt meets Erich Honecker at the German-German summit after two cancellations

A discussion on EU trade policy, the transatlantic trade partnership and the future of the World Trade Organisation

Reading and writing in the Schmidt household - insights into the library in Langenhorn

A guest article by Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya

Why the "peace through democracy" approach is in crisis and what alternatives there are

On the friendship between two politicians and their shared desire for peace

Transatlantic co-operation

in co-operation with the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy (IFSH)

Relics in the Schmidt House commemorate the building of the Wall 60 years ago

A fictitious speech recalls the guidelines of Schmidt's European policy

Was Helmut Schmidt und Uwe Seeler miteinander verbindet

Helmut Schmidt took the helm on his diplomatic mission

Dissent and democracy in Germany - A review of the 20th anniversary of Jugend debattiert

Helmut Schmidt's early career as head of office in Hamburg

40 years ago: Helmut Schmidt's nuclear policy makes him the enemy of the protest movement

The estate of Helmut Schmidt's brother Wolfgang sheds light on the family history