Queer Network Awards Presented in Ingolstadt

The LGBTQ+ Prout At Work Foundation awarded, on Tuesday evening in Ingolstadt, the Queer Network Awards for the eighth time, honoring particularly engaged corporate networks. The four prizes went to the queer networks of the reinsurer Munich Re, the German Weather Service, the Dutch bank ING, and the U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer.

This year the employee network “Pride at Munich Re” receives the award in the “Big Impact Initiative” category. The network had launched the “Column of Voices” initiative. A self-built Litfaßsäule with self-designed posters drew attention to polarization in society and the role of language and media. The campaign was also presented as an exhibition.

The Prout At Work Foundation was founded in 2013 by Albert Kehrer, Jean-Luc Vey, and eight prominent companies. It is committed to “mutual understanding and equal opportunities for people of all sexual orientations, gender identities, and any gender expression in the workplace.” Its work toward a discrimination-free, open working world and the reduction of queerphobia spans from press outreach and events to commissioning and publishing studies, guides, and informational materials, as well as collaboration and exchange with professional queer networks. In doing so, Prout At Work partners with nearly 80 companies that support the foundation with annual contributions. The foundation’s team currently comprises nine full-time staff.