Having occupied the role of Deputy President since 2020, Dr Nathalie von Siemens has now succeeded Berthold Huber, who held the position since 2014, as the President of the Board of Trustees of Siemens Stiftung.

Nathalie von Siemens

‘On behalf of the Board of Directors and the entire Siemens Stiftung team, I would like to thank Berthold Huber wholeheartedly for his constructive and faithful contribution over the years. Berthold Huber has assisted Siemens Stiftung ever since its inception. His input as a vital driver and critical companion has been essential in the success of Siemens Stiftung since it was founded in 2008’ said Dr Nina Smidt, Managing Director and Spokesperson, Siemens Stiftung Board of Trustees.

In addition to von Siemens’ appointment, Birgit Steinborn, Chairwoman of the Central Works Council and Deputy Chairwoman of the Supervisory Board at Siemens AG has also been made a member of the Board of Trustees, with fellow Board of Trustees member Dr Andreas C. Hoffmann, General Counsel and Head of Legal and Compliance at Siemens AG, succeeding von Siemens as Deputy President of the Board of Trustees.

Upon her appointment, von Siemens stated ‘I am delighted to be named President of the Siemens Stiftung Board of Trustees, a position that comes with considerable responsibility. I would like to thank Mr Huber for his faithful and inspiring collaboration. At the same time, I would like to welcome Birgit Steinborn as a new member of the Board of Trustees. She brings wide-ranging expertise and perspectives in relation to shaping societal processes and will be a valuable asset to the foundation.’ Von Siemens has had a long-standing connection to Siemens Stiftung, having served as the foundation’s Managing Director prior to her previous position as Deputy President of the Board of Trustees.

‘We are delighted with the excellent new appointments to the Board of Trustees. With Nathalie von Siemens and Birgit Steinborn, the Board of Trustees has two members with extensive experience in social issues; they will enrich the philanthropic work of Siemens Stiftung. With its broad expertise and diverse composition, the newly formed Board of Trustees is ideally positioned to continue implementing the foundation’s purpose with outstanding work in the future’ added Judith Wiese, Labour Director and Board of Trustees Member, Siemens Stiftung.

New topic areas for foundation

The announcement of Nathalie’s appointment comes as the foundation announces new project areas for its work. Moving forward, Siemens Stiftung will focus on three cross-foundation topics of: access to essential services, connected societies, and climate & sustainability. According to a statement from Siemens, ‘The necessary transformations demanded by these global challenges will be actively shaped by the foundation in an increasingly interdisciplinary manner from its Education, Social Entrepreneurship and Arts & Culture working areas.’

Photo credit: Siemens Stiftung

‘With the new cross-foundation topic areas, we are opening up space for synergies between our specialist areas to be able to help shape the necessary transformations as effectively as possible. We are convinced that the increasingly complex challenges can only be overcome by working together, and we will continue to expand our commitment to cross-sector alliances with a focus on shared learning as well as strengthening locally anchored sustainable structures’, said Smidt, Siemens Stiftung managing director.

In the three new cross-foundation topic areas, the foundation will increasingly work in an interdisciplinary manner with its partners from the various departments and build up further specialist expertise in the respective topic areas.

Siemens Stiftung was established in 2008 as an independent charitable foundation by Siemens AG and, since then, has been implementing international projects that contribute to sustainable social development.

Simon Hungin is a freelance writer that supports Alliance magazine.