Founding an association: from idea to a registered association

Fourth Germany-wide networking meeting of refugee LGBTI activists took place in Erfurt.
Refugee LGBTI activists from all over Germany have met for the fourth time in order to continue their activities within their network. This time, the meeting was held in the form of a seminar in Erfurt, in cooperation with “Vielfalt Leben Queerweg Weimar e.V.”

The fourth Workshop was on the topic of founding an association in Germany. Refugee LGBTI activists have already met for four times since December 2016 and have wished to form a Germany wide association of “Queer Refugees Deutschland” where they could raise their voice independently for the rights of LGBTI refugees in Germany. The goal of the workshop was to list down the steps of founding an association in Germany according to rules and regulations. Our contributor Maria Oikonomidou from VIA Berlin held her presentation on how to found an association from scratch. Her presentation included the following points:

– Step by step process of founding an association

– Why an association has to be founded?

– What should be considered while founding an association?

– Costs of founding an association

– Statute and non-profit status of an association

There were thirteen participants from eight federal states of Germany and from seven countries of origin participating in the workshop. The participants brought their ideas forward about the kind of association they would like to found. One of the main aspects of these ideas was how to stay connected with the LGBTI community in countries of origin while at the same time working for the rights of LGBTI refugees in Germany.