FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

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General questions

What exactly is a gGmbH?

According to German law, a “gGmbH” is a limited liability company which uses its income for non-profit purposes. Its non-profit status is indicated by the small “g” (short for German „gemeinnützig“ = charitable) in front of the abbreviation “GmbH” and defined by the German Tax Code (ger. = Abgabenordnung, AO).

Non-profit status applies if the purpose of a corporation (such as an association or a limited liability company) is to “selflessly promote the general public in material, spiritual or ethical terms”. (Section 52/1 AO). A gGmbH is also subject to the laws on limited liability companies and the German Commercial Code.

For more information in the German language, please refer to Wikipedia.

Why set up a non-profit limited company instead of a registering a non-profit society?

Compared to a non-profit registered society, a non-profit limited company can operate more effectively. Decisions can be implemented quickly and do not have to be confirmed in a general meeting of its members. We have chosen this legal form at Rave The Planet because we want to be directly involved with our projects, for the protection, preservation, maintenance, promotion and further development of the electronic dance music culture. The profits generated by the gGmbH will be used exclusively for charitable purposes and not shared as dividends to any shareholders.

When was Rave The Planet founded?

We’ve been around officially since July 2019, but we actually got together shortly after the nineties berlin exhibition opened in mid-2018. This was a special multimedia exhibition about the 1990s in Berlin. We developed the special exhibition known as “30 Years of the Loveparade” together and, in the process, we realized that we all share the same passion for techno and the electronic dance music culture and recognized the problems that cultural locations are having in Germany. This is how we finally came up with the idea of founding Rave The Planet.

Why does Rave The Planet have several CEOs?

Easy to explain: Because there is a lot to do in some very diverse areas. There is an extremely large number of tasks on the agenda, which range from exhibitions, PR, back office, communication, team organization, donation management, politics, association representation, to talks with clubs and artists etc. Each CEO must be able to responsibly and fully represent his own area.

Our CEOs work on a voluntary basis, which means that they do the job for free since they do not get paid.

What is Rave The Planet calling for and what are its goals?

We want to ensure that the electronic dance music culture is protected, maintained, presented, promoted and further developed, and also to have the electronic dance music culture recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH). We also aim at having an official public holiday introduced for our culture and celebrating this with a living tradition of our electronic dance music: a new parade in Berlin that will carry forth the spirit of the original Love Parade.

What about transparency?

We are currently working on a transparency report.

Who’s behind Rave The Planet?

You can meet our team on the “About us” page. We’re a colorful bunch from different countries and the most diverse fields of activity. Our team is made up of students of architecture, cultural workers and artists, as well as successful entrepreneurs. We’re basically a bit of everything. This diversity gives us strength and plenty of expertise.

Why do the shareholders invest their time and money in Rave The Planet when they can’t make any profit from it?

Not everything in life is about money. We believe that the idea and spirit of the electronic dance music culture enriches us. Some shareholders are also involved elsewhere as supporters, donors or sponsors, for example in the fields of data protection, environmental and animal conservation, sports and education, etc. We want to move things and make more things possible. There are lots of other entrepreneurs who also donate money without expecting anything in return. That’s great! It must also be possible to promote ideas privately and without any bureaucracy. 

Questions on Cultural Heritage

What is „Intangible Cultural Heritage“?

Intangible cultural heritage is a term that covers customs, music and festivals directly created as a result of human knowledge and skills. These are passed down through the generations, are alive and constantly undergo development. Unlike buildings or monuments, for example, they are not material and cannot be touched – this makes them therefore immaterial.

“It is an expression of creativity, conveys continuity and identity, shapes social cohesion and contributes to sustainable development.” (Translated from German)

This is how it is defined by the UNESCO, the organization that internationally coordinates and ensures the protection of cultural heritage.

Immaterial culturage includes:

• Cultural traditions and artistic forms passed on verbally, including language as a vehicle for intangible cultural heritage,
• performing arts, such as music, dance and theater,
• social customs, social practices, rituals and celebrations,
• knowledge and methods in dealing with nature and the universe,
• professional knowledge of traditional handwork techniques.

(Source: German Wikipedia)

Various forms of music culture already have Intangible Cultural Heritage status. For example, the Pride Parade in Amsterdam, Reggae from Jamaica, Heidelbergs HipHop Culture (2023) and Zurich Techno Culture (2017) are already considered cultural heritage or living cultural practices.

What’s the difference between “World Heritage” and “Intangible Cultural Heritage”?

The designation known as „World Cultural Heritage“, but also called UNESCO World Heritage, is awarded to monuments, buildings, sites, natural formations, landscapes, etc. of exceptional value. According to the states signatory to the UNESCO World Heritage Convention, these can be protected. In our communication, we use the term „World Cultural Heritage” because we hope that our cultural heritage will one day become cultural heritage in Berlin as well as in the rest of Germany and gain recognition as World Cultural Heritage.

How should intangible cultural heritage help the electronic dance music culture?

Our culture is peaceful, rich in knowledge and has a wealth of experience. We are calling for it to be placed under the protection of UNESCO’s Lists Intangible Cultural Heritage. This would bring numerous social and legal benefits:

BENEFITS TO SOCIETY

• Inclusion on the nationwide UNESCO list is a communicative and symbolic recognition of electronic dance music and club culture.
• The status of “Intangible Cultural Heritage” promotes awareness within society that the electronic dance music culture is an independent cultural form that has long outgrown its niche existence.
• Inclusion on the UNESCO list guarantees international attention and raises awareness of the need to protect and preserve this culture.

LEGAL BENEFITS

• Protecting the venues can be considered to be of higher priority than soundproofing, neighborhood protection and monument conservation. This restricts the discretionary powers of local governments.
• It does not automatically protect already existing clubs, but they are considered more worthy of protection.
• This certification increases the constitutional protection of art (see GG Article 5/3 of the German Basic Law). Protecting things of high relevance, i.e. culture and art, is of more significance than protection of the individual.
• When opening a new club, the status of “Intangible Cultural Heritage” ensures significantly lower hurdles and restrictions.
• Inclusion on the nationwide UNESCO list paves the way for state subsidies and support from other charitable organizations. The status of “Intangible Cultural Heritage” can bring tax benefits, e.g. generally 7% instead of 19% VAT

Questions about the Parade

What is a Techno Parade?

We define the term ” Techno Parade” in its original sense. It is a specific form of political demonstration (assembly in the sense of “Freedom of assembly”, article 8 of the German Constitution/Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany), in which dance and music are the forms of expression of political opinion and the means of communication.

The International Committee of Dance of the International Theater Institute (ITI) of UNESCO has been honoring dance as a universal language in the world since 1982, with the so-called “International Dance Day”. Since the first Love Parade, back in 1989 in Berlin, Techno Culture has also claimed this kind of non-verbal language as a means of communication and expresses its concerns through the common dancing of all generations, genders, ethnicities, religions and cultures.

“We are not just demonstrating for something – we are demonstrating something!”

(Quoting Ralf Regitz, former co-organizer of the Berlin Love Parade).

A Techno Parade not only creates a place of joy in the inner-city areas, but also an inclusive social event, where the culture of electronic dance music and rave is promoted, cultivated and passed on to the next generation. Thus, it is also a form of peace demonstration in which thousands and more people participate and dance together peacefully in the streets.

Conclusion: Techno Parades are an expression of the desire for freedom, self-realization and community, as well as a symbol of tolerance and respect for all human beings. What could be more political?

Why isn’t the Parade called „Love Parade”?

The trademark rights to the brand name “Love Parade” do not belong to us. But we would be very happy if this would change in the future.

What do the victims of the Love Parade in 2010 think about it?

For the launch of Rave The Planet an the press conference for the opening of the FundRaving model (January 2020), we had three representatives from the LoPa 2010 e.V. victims’ initiative to visit us. As a strong sign of commitment on the activities of Rave The Planet, they personally glued their miniature figures onto the FundRaving model in the presence of the media.

In a television interview on Duisburg’s regional channel Studio 47, Nicole Ballhause (spokeswoman for the LoPa 2010 e.V victim’s initiative) replied to the question of what the victims thought of Rave The Planet as follows::

„If this project takes place in Berlin and under the direction of Dr. Motte, none of us have any objections.”

You can see the clip from Studio 47 here (German only):

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Will the new parade be carbon neutral? What about particulate pollution?

We are working on strategies to protect the environment and avoid litter. Our goal is to organize a parade that is ecological and sustainable.

What about security?

The safety of the participants is our top priority. We constantly review and develop our safety concept. For its execution at the parade, we work together with volunteers who help out as security guards and awareness teams.

You wish to give something back to Techno Culture and become part of the parade team? Click here to register.

What’s different to the Berlin Love Parade?

Rave The Planet is a non-profit organization. This is a type of organization exists for a specific mission other than making a profit. Instead of distributing profits to shareholders, we reinvest all earnings back into our projects.

We rely on donations, grants, and fundraising to sustain our projects and activities in culture, education, social welfare and environment. 

Your donations help us to achieve financial independence for our projects.

However, despite the great help we receive from the scene, we’re not able to carry out our activities without the additional funding via sponsors. We are only working with partners who share and commit to the values and demands of our demonstration, so they will only be discreetly visible on the Rave The Planet Parade. The spotlight remains on the cultural-political message and the representation of the contemporary culture of electronic music by the cultural creators themselves (e.g. clubs, festivals, artists, DJs, crews, labels, etc.). The aim of the parade is to provide them with a platform for self-expression and to communicate their political and social concerns.

Conceptual changes, compared to the Love Parade, also exist in the procedure of the demonstration, in which increased attention is paid to the topics of environmental protection and sustainability. The float crews are obliged to take measures for waste avoidance and recycling or proper disposal. In addition, a joint public Clean-Up Day will take place in the Großer Tiergarten the day after the parade.

Regarding safety, many things have changed since the disaster at the Love Parade 2010 in Duisburg. Both from the official side, as well as in the scene itself. In order to realize a future-proof parade, it is necessary to rethink and break new ground. Therefore, it can not and will not be a “copy+paste” of the old Love Parade concept. That’s why we are developing something new, but remaining true to the tradition of the Berlin Love Parade.

“The Rave The Planet Parade is not a revival, but a new chapter that we all write together.”

(Quote: Dr. Motte, father of the Love Parade and CEO of Rave The Planet)

Join in and support us – get actively involved as a team member or make a donation. Thank you so much! 🙏 🙏 🙏