Essay competition

Through two essay competitions, the Hamburger Stiftung für Wirtschaftsethik helped to advance the debate on ethical issues and to strengthen moral judgement, particularly amongst younger people. The competition was aimed at school pupils, undergraduates, postgraduates and junior managers under the age of 30.

The first essay competition, held in 2007, focused on businesses and addressed the question: ‘Between competition and the debate on values: where are Germany’s businesses heading?’ In 2008, the second competition turned its attention to the media and, drawing an analogy with the previous year, asked: ‘Between the market and morality: where are Germany’s media heading?’

Whilst in the first year the focus was on how the market and morality can be reconciled within the tension between global competition and the debate on values, the second year centred on the fundamental conflict that arises when journalistic quality and the social mandate of journalists clash with the commercial success of private media organisations and economic considerations.

The aim of the essay competitions was to encourage young people to engage constructively with these areas of tension, to develop their own scenarios, ideas and opinions, and to present these in a concise yet sophisticated manner.