Germany’s leading cross-media women’s brand has been shining in print, online and via social media and special events for 70 years. To celebrate the anniversary, an anniversary edition was published on 25 September 2024 with special features and an exciting discussion with actress Iris Berben, journalist Aminata Belli and actress and presenter Anke Engelke. Three milestones also coincided with the 70th anniversary: The presentation of the inaugural Brigitte Awards on 26 September in Berlin, the publication of a major study to analyse the relationship between different generations of women, and the return of the ‘Scarf for Life’ campaign to promote climate protection.

Susanna Riethmüller, Editor-in-Chief of Brigitte, says: “70 years of Brigitte – that's 70 years of passion and commitment for women in Germany. Brigitte has always been courageous and outspoken, never afraid to take a stand and give all women a strong voice. Brigitte has also always been committed to political and social issues, for example the establishment of childminders or more women in the German parliament. The goal has always been to empower women – this will continue to be our mission in the future.”

Brigitte Awards 2024

The first ever Brigitte Awards were presented at Bertelsmann’s headquarters in Berlin during a glamorous event with around 180 guests from the worlds of business, politics and show business. Awards were presented across five categories to women who show commitment, attitude and personality, alongside an honourary award:

• Honourary award: Margot Friedländer, Holocaust survivor and subject of the award-winning documentaryIch bin! Margot Friedländer (I am! Margot Friedländer), was presented a special award for her tireless commitment to humanity, tolerance and democracy.
• Impact: Kristina Hänel, who began performing abortions in the 1980s and has since faced countless protests, threats and legal action, was awarded in the ‘Impact’ category.
• Next generation: Nour Idelbi, who launched the SafeSpace app when she was just 16 years old, was awarded in the ‘Next generation’ category for her efforts to make women’s lives safer.
• Thought leader: Ina Schlie, who founded the ‘Encourageventures’ association to support female-led start-ups with creativity, expertise and capital, was awarded in the ‘Thought leader’ category.
• Clarifier: Christina Clemm, a lawyer who has been representing victims of sexualised violence for almost 30 years and encourages women to break out of violent relationships, was awarded in the ‘Clarifier’ category.
• Shero (She-hero): Homa Abass, chairman of the Afghan Women’s Association who is committed to improving the lives of women and children in Afghanistan, was awarded in the ‘Shero’ category.

The big Brigitte study: ‘Generation Us’

What separates older and younger women, what connects them and how fair or unfair do they think society is? These questions are analysed in ‘Generation Us’ – a major study conducted to coincide with Brigitte’s 70th anniversary. Conducted by research institute Forsa and analysed by sociologist and gender researcher Paula-Irene Villa Braslavsky, the online representative study included 2,006 people between the ages of 18 and 75 living in Germany. The results are intriguing – showing more cohesion and common ground than expected, but also revealing some major challenges in the areas of sexualised violence and equal pay.

Here are the key findings:

• Women are willing to help each other, with 63 per cent stating that they support other women in the workplace. “Catfights” and “mommy wars” are a cliché, with only 3 per cent of mothers saying they are frequently criticised by other mothers.
• Younger women are appreciative of older women, with more than 70 per cent of 18- to 29-year-olds indicating that women aged 55 to 65 are helpful and supportive of each other. 63 per cent of the younger generation agree with the statement “We are grateful for what older women have achieved”.
• Older women, however, are more sceptical of younger women, believing they mainly spend time on social media and seek recognition from others. Only 27 per cent believe that young women are grateful to them.
• Almost half of all women believe that protection against violence and sexism has not improved since the 90s.
• Many women also believe there has been little progress in terms of equal pay – 29 per cent feel that nothing has changed since the 1990s, or the situation has worsened.
• In order to promote equality in Germany, more than 70 per cent agree that equal pay is needed, followed by higher salaries in care and education, better childcare opportunities, improved laws against sexual harassment and violence, and government remuneration of private care work.

Susanna Riethmüller, Editor-in-Chief of Brigitte, says: “The results of the study show us what women from different generations think about current social issues, offer an exciting outlook on future opportunities and challenges, and signal to us that our journey towards equality and solidarity continues.”

Helping children in need: ‘A Scarf for Life’

In collaboration with Save the Children, the Brigitte ‘Scarf for Life’ campaign is back for the 11th consecutive year to promote climate protection and benefit children in need. Designed by Guido Maria Kretschmer, the scarf will be worn by numerous celebrities and promoted in the print edition of Brigitte, as well as online and via social media. For each scarf sold, €10 will be donated to Save the Children – which will be used to assist children around the world who are at serious risk from the effects of the climate crisis.