The funds in numbers
Questions about where the donations go and how they are managed
Why is The House of One spending money on advertising?
The majority of the funds available to us will go into the construction of The House of One. However, since we want to build the project with as many people as possible – irrespective of where they live – we need to tell everyone we can about our idea. To help us do that, we are using a small percentage of our budget to share the message of The House of One with the world. We are extremely grateful to have found so many partners who are willing to be involved in this part of the project and to waive their usual fees.
How much will it cost to build The House of One?
In order to build The House of One, we need donations totaling 43.5 Million Euros.
What exactly will my donation pay for?
Your donation will be used to finance the construction of The House of One, from the planning stage to the completed building. On top of that, a small share of your donation will help cover advertising and management costs. However, as we are receiving a generous amount of pro-bono support from our sponsors, we can keep these costs to a minimum.
We are very much aware that our donors, sponsors, and supporters are putting an enormous amount of trust in us. We are therefore committed to handling the funds responsibly and with a high degree of transparency. For a precise overview of how we are using your donations and a detailed breakdown of all donations, click here:
Why does The House of One need to collect donations?
The House of One project was initiated in 2010 by a group of small institutions from the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim communities in Berlin. The partners invested a great deal of personal effort and financial resources in completing the first steps of the project, which included handling the preliminary conceptual work and running the international architectural competition in 2012.
The architectural competition and widespread global approval have caused the project to have grown so much over the past two years that the Berlin partners can no longer manage even the construction by themselves.
As a group of small institutions, we need your help, which is why we are asking you to become a part of The House of One by joining our efforts to build it. Every donation counts, no matter how small. This began as a grassroots, crowdfunded project and we want to make sure those shoots keep growing in the same way. That’s why we have put individual support at the very heart of The House of One and made it the defining factor of its success.
When I donate, am I buying real bricks for The House of One?
No. The House of One will be made of real bricks, and we’ll need about 4.35 million to get the job done.
However, the bricks that your donations buy are symbolic. They stand for the construction as a whole and all the various materials that will go into completing it.
How can I support/promote The House of One?
You can help make The House of One a reality by donating bricks and by encouraging others to get involved in the project. Launch your own fundraising campaign and get your family, friends, colleagues, classmates, and community to help your reach your goal.
How exactly do donors become part of The House of One, and how are they rewarded for their contribution?
By purchasing a symbolic brick, donors become co-builders of The House of One. As a thank-you and expression of friendship, we send each donor a blessing. You will also be rewarded with a lasting connection to The House of One. During the groundbreaking ceremony, the names of all the donors will be placed in the ground with the first stone. Also, the messages, wishes, and prayers that donors can submit when they purchase a brick will be documented and made available in The House of One. When the construction work is finished, everyone who helped make the building a reality will be able to find their message at The House of One and can add a new one if they wish. And lastly, your blessing, which doubles up as your donation certificate, will ensure that you are always made very welcome at The House of One.
Your prayer requests will become part of the liturgical celebrations held by the three religions and will testify to the global fellowship that exists within each of the faiths. One of our main goals is, by running initiatives and working with people who are committed to promoting peaceful understanding between the three religions, to create an international community in which we get to know one another, listen to one another and, where necessary, help one another.
Have any high-profile individuals pledged their support for The House of One?
One of the reasons the project has come this far is because we have numerous dedicated people on hand who are willing to lend us their support entirely free of charge. These include legal advisors and individuals who have made donations in kind to help us prepare for the fundraising campaign. The initiators provided all the financing at the start of the project, but now a small group of people in Berlin are covering half the costs of the fundraising campaign. We are extremely grateful for this. Encouraged by everything we have achieved already, we are now taking the next step and asking you, wherever you are, to support us by buying one or more bricks.
Naturally, we are also delighted that a number of high-profile individuals have made it clear how close The House of One is to their hearts.
Is the project receiving support from Germany at a national or state level?
The idea and concept behind The House of One has been extremely well received, both nationally and within the state of Berlin. Both levels are providing us with extensive, non-financial support. The state of Berlin is one of the founding members of our association, a member of the Federal Ministry of the Interior is on our supervisory board, and the Federal Foreign Office is assisting us with the fundraising campaign. The district of Berlin-Mitte is also giving us the site where The House of One will be built. We are very grateful to all the participants mentioned here, whose generous involvement is helping to move our project forward.
Will funds from Germany’s church tax go towards building The House of One?
The Evangelical Church is providing us conceptual support and human resources to the extent that it can. This is extremely helpful in our efforts to grow the project and gain widespread acceptance for it. However, none of the revenue from Germany’s church tax will go into building The House of One.
Why isn’t it possible to make a donation to specific parts of The House of One?
From the outset, we, the project leaders, wanted all decisions affecting the House of One to be reached jointly and equally. This commitment is reflected in the structure of the association and has been defining our day-to-day activities since 2011. With that in mind, splitting the fundraising campaign and making each religion responsible for the financing of its own holy room would be a backwards step.
This is why every donor will become a co-builder for The House of One. Work on designing the interior of each part of the building will be undertaken jointly and will respect the unique character of each faith.
What happens to my money if the project doesn’t reach its target of 43.5 million Euros?
We are delighted to have been able to inspire so many people with our idea over the past few months. We very much hope that this global trend continues, and that we receive enough support to be able to begin construction in 2019.
The architecture of The House of One has been designed in such a way that the work can happen in separate stages to match the progress of the fundraising campaign. For instance, 10 million euros will allow us to complete the first phase of construction, which will provide us with a building that can be used as The House of One until more funds are available. This set-up also gives us the option of catching our breath, so to speak, before we begin the next stage.
If, however, we fail to reach 10 million euros, the funds that we have received will go towards projects that, in compliance with our bylaws, “encourage mutual understanding between the religions by pursuing forms of coexistence that respect all life and are peaceful and socially just” (Article 2 of the bylaws).
Is my donation tax deductible?
Our foundation benefits from tax relief (tax office decision of Sept. 1, 2016), which means donations are tax deductible in Germany. Upon request we will send you a donation receipt for the total amount during the first months of the following year by post.
As a rule, donations within the EU are tax deductible, but donors should also check their national legislation. If you require help with donation receipts for countries inside or outside the EU, feel free to contact us.
How can I be sure that my donation won’t be misused?
An independent committee, made up of the institutions involved in the fundraising campaign, will decide how the funds are to be allocated. Quarterly reports will be available for download on the website, which means the process will benefit from a high degree of transparency.
Within the association, which is running the project, the six-person board is responsible for reaching funding decisions and handling the associated transactions. As part of this, an audit firm (Gieron&Partner) will monitor how funds have been used in each individual case. On top of that, an external audit firm will carry out a yearly evaluation that will also be published online and made available for download.