Photo: Front of the VfK headquarters building at Hausvogteiplatz in Berlin-Mitte.

Photo: Verein für Kommunalwissenschaften

Association for Municipal Research

The Association for Municipal Research (Verein für Kommunalwissenschaften e.V., VfK) was established by the Association of German Cities and the State of Berlin in 1951 as an association to support communal research tasks. It supports academia, research and education on topics that are relevant to the German municipalities.

» The research work and the training offered by Difu are especially valuable for the cities and towns. If Difu did not exist, we would have to establish it! «

- Helmut Dedy, Managing Director of the Association of German Cities

History

The Association of German Cities and the State of Berlin established the Association for Municipal Research (Verein für Kommunalwissenschaften e.V. , VfK) by a charter dated 06/12/1951. It was originally known as "association to support communal research tasks" (“Verein zur Pflege kommunalwissenschaftlicher Aufgaben e.V.” ). Its tasks included supporting academia, research and education in aid of municipal practice.

Upon the foundation of the German Institute of Urban Affairs (Difu) in 1973, the VfK established a new foundation for the research work on behalf of the municipalities. Therefore, Difu is the joint research, training and information institute for cities and municipalities in the Federal Republic of Germany. The Institute stands for application-orientated research and the development of foundations for municipal planning and administration practice.

Until mid-2008, the VfK was the funder of the legally dependent German Institute of Urban Affairs. In August 2008, the Research Institute became a gGmbH (non-profit limited company under German law) with the VfK as the sole shareholder. Since then, a central task of the association has been the “procurement of means to support academia, research and education, in particular for the German Institute of Urban Affairs” (Charter, Section 2).

Members

According to the charter, the Association has eight members; six of which are nominated by the Association of German Cities and two by the State of Berlin. The members thereby function as the trustees of their parent organisations.

Chairperson:

Helmut Dedy

Managing Member of the Presiding Board and Managing Director of the Association of German Cities

Verena Göppert

Permanent Deputy of the Managing Director of the Association of German Cities

Management:

Birgitt Geßner

Association for Municipal Research (Verein für Kommunalwissenschaften e.V., VfK)

Articles of association (PDF in German)

Verein für Kommunalwissenschaften e.V.

Management

Birgitt Geßner

Hausvogteiplatz 1

10117 Berlin, Germany

Tel.: +49 30 37711-244

Fax: +49 30 37711-142

E-Mail: birgitt [dot] gessner [at] vfk [dot] de (birgitt[dot]gessner[at]vfk[dot]de)

Association register no. 95 VR 1271 B

Tax no. 27/029/41618 Finanzamt Berlin (Berlin tax authority)

Short link to this page: difu.de/en/15163