German Kulturpolitikpreis Award 2023 goes to Isabel Pfeiffer-Poensgen

Isabel Pfeiffer-Poensgen served as the Chancellor of the University of Music and Dance in Cologne from 1989 to 1999, overseeing one of the largest music schools in Europe, which places special emphasis on professional training of students. From 1999 to 2004, she held the position of Deputy Mayor for Culture and Social Affairs in her hometown of Aachen, where she was responsible for municipal cultural policy. From 2004 to 2017, she served as the Secretary-General of the Cultural Foundation of the German States (Kulturstiftung der Länder) and was particularly engaged in the protection of cultural heritage and placed special emphasis on cultural education. From 2017 to 2022, she was the Minister for Culture and Science of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Thoroughly and systematically, with great empathy for the cultural and scientific fields, she fulfilled this role and established connections between the two areas. A particular focus was on the economic situation of artists. She advanced this topic not only in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia but also with great expertise and persistence in the Conference of Ministers of Culture.