How it all began. From
small steps to big ones.
In 2013, the Hoffnungsträger Foundation was built on a firm conviction: hope changes everything. Since then, this conviction has grown into a whole group. With Hoffnungshaus® (Houses of Hope), which fosters active neighbourhoods. With Hoffnungsträger Projektentwickler, a project developer that builds living spaces on a large scale. With Sinngeber, which rethinks philanthropic ventures. And with Global Impact, which facilitates reconciliation worldwide. Today, we are a foundation, a founder, an investor and a platform. And we’re only just getting started.
2026
New brand identity
The umbrella brand and its sub-brands are getting a new look. To make it easier for service providers and staff to work with our brand and visual identities, we are bringing all design guidelines together clearly in a brandportal.
Hoffnungsträger Projektentwickler: Construction of a kindergarten in Geislingen/Stg.
By building the first kindergarten in Geislingen an der Steige, we are creating added value for the youngest among us. Hoffnungsträger Projektentwickler (Project Developers) support local authorities and providers, ease the burden on families and open up spaces for the future where hope can grow – built sustainably with healthy materials for our youngest children.
Further development of the sponsorship model: introduction of the Hope Sponsorship Programme
The Hope Sponsorship Programme represents a strategic evolution of the sponsorship model: moving from one-to-one support towards a holistic approach incorporating elements of ‘helping people to help themselves’ for the families and communities in which the children we support live. In this way, sponsorship will have a more comprehensive and sustainable impact in the future.
2025
Hoffnungsträger organisational development to enable further growth
In 2025, the Hoffnungsträger Group was strategically repositioned to enable sustainable growth. Clear structures, strengthened governance and professionalised processes increase scalability, impact and transparency. This ensures that Hoffnungsträger is specifically geared towards future partnerships and further commitment.
Hoffnungsträger Gala 2025
At the Hoffnungsträger Gala 2025, around 200 guests experience an impressive and moving evening at SpardaWelt Stuttgart. Under the patronage of Winfried Kretschmann, residents of the Hoffnungshäuser (Houses of Hope) share personal insights into their stories of flight and demonstrate how lived integration opens up new perspectives.
Project launch
Planting Hope Colombia
Our “Planting Hope” forest programme combines climate protection with social responsibility. We are reforesting in Colombia, thereby providing the local population with jobs and prospects.
2024
Launch of the Home Harvest Programme for the self-sufficiency of prisoners’ families
The Home Harvest Programme enables families of prisoners to establish an independent food supply. In cooperation with the UBS Optimus Foundation, it strengthens resilience, self-efficacy and food security in particularly vulnerable households.
Project launch: Internationalisation
APAC Prisons
Together with the UBS Optimus Foundation, the international expansion of the APAC model for alternative sentencing begins. The aim is to structurally embed effective approaches to rehabilitation, responsibility and reintegration in further countries.
First Hoffnungshaus® location outside Baden-Württemberg
The first Hoffnungshaus® (House of Hope) in Rhineland-Palatinate is being established in Ingelheim in cooperation with Boehringer Ingelheim, the town of Ingelheim and the district of Mainz-Bingen.
2023
Investment in WoodRocks Bau GmbH
Through an investment in the Vorarlberg-based timber construction specialist WoodRocks Bau GmbH, the Hoffnungsträger Group and its subsidiary Hoffnungsträger Projektentwickler GmbH will further expand their services for towns and local authorities in need of affordable and sustainable housing.
Sinngeber: Go Live Giving Fund –
Your own foundation without the administrative burden
Sinngeber’s Giving Fund is going live. We are fundamentally simplifying philanthropic ventures: like having your own foundation, but without the administrative burden. With a flexible toolkit, we enable global grants, Impact Investments and bespoke programmes – efficient, transparent and with individual financial structuring options.
Hoffnungsträger Gala to mark the
10th anniversary
To mark Hoffnungsträger’s 10th anniversary, our charity gala is taking place at SpardaWelt in Stuttgart with 150 guests. Over €800,000 will go towards the vital inclusive work carried out in the Hoffnungshäuser (Houses of Hope).
2022
Emergency Aid for Ukraine
In response to the war in Ukraine, we are providing rapid and targeted emergency aid. The focus is on protection, provision and psychosocial support for families and children particularly affected by the violence.
1,205 sponsorships through the Hoffnungsträger Child Sponsorship Programme
More than 1,200 sponsored children are reached worldwide through the Hoffnungsträger Child Sponsorship Programme. The sponsorship ensures education, care and support, and opens up new prospects for a self-determined future for children of prisoners.
Construction of the 10th Hoffnungshaus® in Öhringen
The first Hoffnungshaus® (House of Hope) in Rhineland-Palatinate is being established in Ingelheim in cooperation with Boehringer Ingelheim, the town of Ingelheim and the district of Mainz-Bingen.
2021
Foundation of Sinngeber gGmbH
With Sinngeber gGmbH, we are establishing the first family office dedicated to philanthropy. We support high-net-worth individuals in shaping their philanthropic ventures in a strategic, effective and values-based manner – from the initial idea through to implementation. In this way, we contribute to the further development of philanthropic culture in German-speaking countries.
Founding of Hoffnungsträger Verantwortungseigentum GmbH
In 2021, Helmut Roßkopf transfers his company ROSSKOPF + PARTNER AG to the Hoffnungsträger Foundation as a purpose-driven ownership entity. A significant step towards a hopeful future.
Foundation of Hoffnungsträger Verantwortungseigentum GmbH and acquisition of Rosskopf+Partner
Establishment of the Merckle Foundation as a dependent foundation under the administration of Sinngeber
Together with other family members, the Merckle Foundation is established, which is closely linked to the Hoffnungsträger Foundation.
Schwäbisch Gmünd: first Hoffnungshaus® (House of Hope) with Hoffnungsblickand forest kindergarten
Schwäbisch Gmünd: first Hoffnungshaus (House of Hope) with Hoffnungsblick (View of Hope) and forest kindergarten
Intergenerational living is a top priority. Alongside the Hoffnungshäuser, a Hoffnungsblick is also being built for the first time at a single site: barrier-free housing for the over-55s. A forest kindergarten is being built for the children. (View of Hope)
Establishment of the Fundacion Llevando Esperanza (Hoffnungsträger) in Colombia (FULLE)
The establishment of FULLE marks the creation of a local foundation in Colombia. It promotes local ownership and provides the organisational basis for long-term programmes in rehabilitation, reconciliation and community work.
2020
Partnership with the UBS Optimus Foundation – programme for children of prisoners
The partnership with the UBS Optimus Foundation enables the expansion of targeted support for children of prisoners. The programme combines protection, education and psychosocial support to break intergenerational cycles of exclusion.
2019
Launch of the Livelihood Programme –
Sewing schools and chicken farming
Unsere Hilfe zur Selbsthilfe-Programme fördern die Einkommenssicherung von Familien durch Nähschulen und Geflügelzucht. Sie stärken wirtschaftliche Eigenständigkeit und schaffen Perspektiven jenseits von Abhängigkeit und Armut.
2018
Foundation of the subsidiary Hoffnungsträger Projektentwickler
Hoffnungsträger Projektentwickler (Project Developer) GmbH specialises in serial and innovative timber construction, enabling affordable, high-quality and sustainable buildings to be constructed within a short timeframe. Its projects promote holistic urban and neighbourhood development and set a clear example for circular, resource-efficient construction.
Purchase of Finca San José in Colombia to establish an alternative prison system based on the Seehaus model
The acquisition of Finca San José in Colombia lays the foundation for alternative prison models based on the Seehaus principle. The aim is a holistic approach combining responsibility, work, community and reintegration.
2016
First Hoffnungshaus® in Leonberg
The first Hoffnungshaus® (House of Hope) in Leonberg opened in October 2016 and has since offered integrated housing for refugees and local residents – and is the only one to have been established within an existing property portfolio.
2015
Launch of the Hoffnungsträger Child Sponsorship Programme with sponsorships for Zambia, Colombia, India and Cambodia
With the launch of the Child Sponsorship Programme in several countries, a key approach to impact is established, combining practical help with relationship-building and support for children in particularly difficult circumstances.
Rehabilitation and reconciliation programmes in Colombia
In Colombia, programmes are being developed that combine rehabilitation with reconciliation work. They promote the assumption of responsibility, dialogue and the social reintegration of offenders in circumstances marked by conflict.
2014
Programmes for preventing displacement and supporting children of prisoners
In partnership with Prison Fellowship International, we are developing and implementing strategies to prevent displacement and to support the children of offenders. The aim is to mitigate risks at an early stage and to create stable prospects for the future.
2013
Support and promotion of a wide variety of projects
The Hoffnungsträger Foundation was recognised on 22nd May 2013 by the Stuttgart Regional Council as a foundation with legal capacity under civil law.
