Frequently Asked Questions

The One Foundation was established in 2018. It was founded as a charitable foundation by Motel One founder Dieter Müller.

As a charitable foundation, we are committed to encouraging participation in society and fairer educational opportunities by funding external education projects and implementing our own initiatives. Our vision is for a society where young people can define their own futures through education and work.

Our mission is to lay the groundwork to enable people to determine their own futures. In so doing, the One Foundation supports SDG 4. SDG 4 refers to the Sustainable Development Goal of ensuring equitable, quality education (further information can be found here).

The major refugee movements in 2015 and 2016 prompted Motel One to launch integration projects to help refugees find their feet in Germany via mentorship programmes and intensive German courses.

This commitment was the motivation behind setting up a foundation and led to the establishment of the One Foundation in 2018.

However, the successful integration of people of all backgrounds is not the only matter close to our hearts: improving educational opportunities for young people is important to us, too. Even today, for many young people, educational opportunities depend on their parents’ income and educational background.

It is the task of politicians and society alike to provide all children and young people with equal opportunities to shape their own futures – both here in Germany and elsewhere in the world. The ability to learn, be curious and take pleasure in their own development is crucial not only for young people to enjoy a future rich in opportunities but also for the future of our world itself, because the skills we teach children and young people now will benefit us all when they reach adulthood later.

This is why the One Foundation supports socially and economically disadvantaged young people to access education and enter the world of work. Further information can be found in the following interview with Ursula Schelle-Müller, member of the Management Board of the One Foundation, and in our Foundation Report.

The One Foundation is a charitable organisation dedicated to promoting social and societal equality of opportunity. Our funding projects primarily support young people who are economically and socially disadvantaged, opening up new perspectives for them. In particular, we support integration. of people seeking asylum into society, as well as education and training in schools and workplaces. In addition,

The One Foundation also promotes the education of people with above-average talent (the promotion of excellence). Our thematic focus is on inclusion, promoting democracy, and preventing school dropouts. Thus, the purpose of our foundation is to lay a solid foundation for a self-determined life.

From when the Foundation was established to the end of 2025, we provided funding totalling over EUR 2.5 million to support more than 30 projects. Please see our Foundation Report for a detailed breakdown of the funds we have distributed.

In line with the principle of ‘helping people to help themselves’, we want to support organisations and projects that treat their target group with respect and involve them in the development of projects, with the aim of sustainably improving the situation for the people receiving funding. For that reason, we never work with organisations that display a fundamentally racist or neo-colonialist attitude.

The One Foundation solely supports organisations with legal capacity that

•    are recognised by the Tax Office as charitable or benevolent,

•    hold a valid exemption notice,

•    and are authorised to issue donation receipts.

The organisations must have their registered office in Germany and their activities must align with the One Foundation’s funding guidelines.

The One Foundation funds projects that enable people to access high-quality education, thereby paving the way for them to shape their own lives. Within this overall objective, we are open to different approaches and target groups. Our Foundation Report provides an overview of the projects funded to date.

The key thing for us is that the projects aim to create positive change for their target group in the long term and that they can clearly demonstrate their impact.

We do not fund projects that are ineligible for funding under our statutes and funding guidelines. They include, for instance:

• sponsorship,
• individuals (outside advertised scholarships),
• purely institutional funding,
• accommodation costs,
• or financial support for running events.
• We do not currently support projects in the so-called Global South, with the exception of Malawi.
• The One Foundation does not cover project costs retrospectively, either.

Further information on our funding conditions can be found in our funding guidelines.

The fundamental values that shape the collaboration between the One Foundation and the projects we support are a sense of partnership, transparency and openness.

We seek trusting communication with a specific contact person, who should always feel able to contact us, too. We believe that everything can be solved via joint dialogue.

We assume that our project partners will use the resources given to them responsibly. No prior consultation is needed for minor tweaks that will not affect the outcome of the project. If it is likely that the project will undergo significant changes, however, we would like to be consulted. Project funding is conditional upon the willingness to provide brief project updates on demand during the term of the project (approx. once a year) and to provide a detailed report on the project’s outcome when it comes to a close.

In addition, we require images and quotes from participants to document the project’s progress and for our PR work. It goes without saying that all privacy rights will be respected and material anonymised, if required. 

Impactful projects focus on a societal problem that they want to help solve. The activities undertaken as part of a project are designed to spark a positive, sustainable change for the target group.

Projects are selected on the basis of a funding application. We use the application to determine whether the project aligns with the One Foundation’s values and impact goals. The application form includes our evaluation sheet detailing the criteria we use to assess applications.

 We decide which projects to select during a board meeting. It can happen that a project that is eligible for funding in principle is not granted any. This can be the case, for instance, if the money available has already been awarded to other projects. There is no legal entitlement to funding.

During the board meeting, the board and management make their decisions on project applications and funding allocations based on the project goals, information on the target group, impact measurement indicators and financial planning. 

The checklist helps to determine whether potential funding from the One Foundation is possible before the project application is completed by the respective project partner. For 2026, please submit a two-page project outline in advance. We will then decide whether it is worthwhile submitting a funding application. You can find a sample funding application on our homepage under 'Organisational Information'.

Project applications can be submitted annually from 1 to 31 March and from 1 to 30 September.

The project application will then be reviewed by the One Foundation. If the project is shortlisted, it will be presented at the board meeting.

The One Foundation's board and management team will make the final decision on funding. We will notify potential project partners or applicants in writing to inform them whether their application for funding has been approved or rejected. Unfortunately, we cannot fund all the project requests we receive.

There is no legal entitlement to funding.

Project applications can be submitted from 1 to 31 March 2026 and 1 to 30 September 2026. 

Funding applications are normally approved or rejected within eight to ten weeks of the application deadline/board meeting.

During the board meeting, the board and management consider the

•    project goals,

•    information on the target group,

•    impact measurement indicators,

and financial planning to make a decision on project applications and on allocating funding.  

It’s worth checking out our funding guidelines before first getting in touch. To clarify whether your project is eligible for funding, we encourage you to send us a two-page project outline to foerderung@one-foundation.de. This will save you the effort of making a formal funding application unnecessarily.

We do not stipulate a minimum or maximum amount of funding. However, the funding allocated to the project needs to be plausible and appropriate in relation to the project in question and its duration. An overview of the amount of funding granted to previous projects can be found in the Appendix to our Foundation Report.

Generally, the One Foundation funds projects for 12 to 24 months. 

For various reasons, we are unfortunately unable to confirm or accept all applications for funding. If your application cannot be funded, the next steps depend on the reason for the rejection. As a result, we recommend contacting us via mail to clarify the situation.

There is no legal entitlement to funding.