Award ceremony: Schwarzkopf Europe Award honoring Zuzana Čaputová, President of Slovakia

The Schwarzkopf Foundation Young Europe honors Slovakian president Zuzana Čaputová for her courage to stand up against organized crime, for minority rights especially for Roma people, and for an eco-sustainable future. She offers hope to the whole of Europe that a future of tolerance, sustainability, and community is possible.  

Elected as Slovakia’s first female president in 2019 after the brutal murder of the investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée Martina Kušnírová, her fight against corruption shows that there is an alternative to a corrupt and authoritarian elite. She has become a role model in the whole region and opposition movements across the region have gained new power.

How can  an effective fight against corruption in the EU look like – also considering the EU current corruption scandal surrounding Eva Kaili? Which successes have been achieved in Slovakia in the fight against corruption and for the rule of law, and is it possible to transfer these successes to the EU? With so many threads for democratic and free societies inside and outside of Europe, how can we create a safe haven in Europe for people fleeing from war and violence from Afghanistan, Iran, or Ukraine and stand up against racism and injustice within our own societies? We are honoured to discuss these and other questions with and hear from our guest President Zuzana Čaputová and Young Europeans.

The Schwarzkopf Europe Award has been awarded annually since 2003 by a jury of young people from all over Europe to decision-makers and initiatives from politics or civil society. The Schwarzkopf Foundation thus gives the young generation the opportunity to honour individuals and organisations who, in their view, have made an exceptional contribution to European understanding and ideals. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic the awarding of the Schwarzkopf-Europa-Award 2021 was postponed to this year.

The event will be in english. We look forward to your participation and ask you to register by January 16. By attending the event, our audience agrees to the photos taken there being used for public relations purposes.