Schweizerische Gemeinnützige Gesellschaft
A Swiss civic and charitable association that promotes social welfare, volunteering, democratic culture, and cooperation across civil society.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
The Schweizerische Gemeinnützige Gesellschaft, commonly rendered in English as the Swiss Society for the Common Good (SSCG), is a Swiss association devoted to intellectual and material social welfare. Founded in Zurich in 1810, it emerged from the Enlightenment-era charitable tradition represented by the Helvetic Society and the Society for the Good and Charitable in Basel. Its early work focused on reducing poverty through education, moral improvement, vocational preparation, and economic development. The association became an important forum in which members of Switzerland’s political, economic, religious, and intellectual elites discussed social problems and developed practical responses. During the formation of the modern Swiss federal state, the SSCG served as a major social and sociopolitical organisation. From 1823, its annual meetings functioned as research-informed forums for debate, with proceedings and later a specialist journal documenting discussions about education, poverty, health, social policy, and public morality. The organisation supported liberal school reforms, helped establish teacher training initiatives, promoted vocational education, and encouraged the creation of local and cantonal charitable bodies. It also helped create networks addressing family policy, social work, public health, addiction, and assistance for vulnerable groups. The society’s public profile was strengthened by its role in the Rütli. It acquired the meadow in 1859 and transferred it to the Swiss Confederation, while continuing to manage the site and organise the annual national celebration there. In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the SSCG founded or helped establish a range of enduring welfare institutions, including Pro Juventute, Pro Senectute, community-centre initiatives, Pro Mente Sana, Swiss Mountain Aid, and the central information office that became ZEWO. It also created or administered funds for victims of natural disasters and other people facing needs that were not covered by insurance or public provision. As Switzerland’s welfare state and specialist nonprofit sector expanded, the SSCG gradually shifted from being a central architect of social institutions to acting more as a grant-maker, convenor, research supporter, and platform for civic cooperation. Its assets grew substantially through donations and bequests, although its direct political influence declined as new social and political movements emerged outside its historically liberal-conservative milieu. Since the 1990s, the organisation has placed greater emphasis on volunteering, intergenerational cooperation, social leadership, and democratic participation. Its current programmes include Pro Futuris, a think-and-do tank focused on democratic culture; SeitenWechsel, which gives managers experience in social institutions; and Intergeneration, which connects projects serving younger and older people. The SSCG also supports research on volunteering and publishes the Swiss Volunteer Monitor. Through its support for the Five up volunteering platform, it has participated in the digital coordination of volunteer activity. The association modernised its governance in the early 2020s. A new structure separated the Executive Board from the former Central Commission and created Netzwerk Gemeinnützige Schweiz as a coordinating body for regional charitable organisations. The period also brought internal disagreements over leadership, political orientation, board nominations, and organisational strategy. Nicola Forster became president during this reform phase and announced his departure effective June 2024 after the board approved a new strategy. On 21 June 2024, Anders Stokholm was elected president. The SSCG remains a Switzerland-focused civic institution combining philanthropy, research, programme delivery, convening, and support for democratic and social cohesion.
History
The Swiss Society for the Common Good was established in Zurich in 1810 at the initiative of friends and associates of city physician Hans Caspar Hirzel, acting in connection with the Zurich Relief Society. The organisation adopted an Enlightenment-inspired understanding of the common good and saw itself as part of the Swiss tradition of voluntary improvement societies. Its founders included members from both Reformed and Catholic backgrounds, helping the association operate as a cross-confessional forum at a time when Switzerland remained politically and socially fragmented. In its first decades, the society concentrated on poverty reduction through education, upbringing, moral formation, and economic advancement. From 1823, its annual meetings were used to examine social questions through member research and debate. These discussions were circulated in published proceedings and, from 1862, in the Swiss Journal of Public Welfare. The organisation’s education debates contributed to liberal school reforms during the 1830s. It established a commission for the education of poor children in 1835 and later used bequests to support teacher training, including the establishment of an early teacher-training institution in Schwyz. The annual meetings were held in different Swiss locations from 1828, strengthening links between regional charitable societies and promoting a shared national identity. In the politically tense 1840s, the SSCG presented itself as a place where opponents could discuss social and national questions through compromise and humanitarian principles. Its first prominent public relief action came in 1834, when it coordinated fundraising for victims of a major storm disaster in the Alpine foothills. The resulting disaster fund became a long-running instrument of assistance and was later renamed Fonds Suisse. The Rütli became the society’s most enduring national symbol. The SSCG acquired the site in 1859 and donated it to the Swiss Confederation, while retaining responsibility for its management. It has organised the annual national celebration there since 1860. During the rest of the nineteenth century, the organisation created or supported schools, special educational institutions, vocational initiatives, public-health and nutrition education, and campaigns against alcohol and gambling. In 1901, it established a fund for damage from natural disasters that could not be insured. The twentieth century brought a major institutional legacy. The SSCG helped found Pro Juventute in 1912, Pro Senectute in 1917, a foundation supporting community centres in 1918, and Pro Mente Sana in 1978. It supported the coordination and professionalisation of social work, helped develop family-policy organisations, and played a role in the establishment of Pro Familia. Its social-work coordination efforts during the 1930s contributed to refugee-aid structures and later to Swiss Mountain Aid. In 1934, it initiated the creation of ZEWO’s predecessor, a central information office for welfare organisations. The society’s financial base was built primarily from donations and bequests. Its managed assets increased from approximately CHF 180,000 in 1910 to CHF 5.7 million in 1980 and CHF 63 million in 2009, figures reported in historical reference material rather than current financial disclosures. As public welfare expanded and specialised organisations assumed operational roles, the SSCG increasingly focused on subsidies, individual assistance, convening, and policy discussion. Its earlier influence as a national social think tank diminished, in part because socialist and newer reform movements were not fully integrated into its historically liberal and economically oriented culture. A reorientation began in the 1990s around volunteering. The society supported research into volunteer participation and later backed Five up, a multilingual digital platform developed to match and coordinate volunteers with organisations. The platform experienced rapid user growth during the early COVID-19 period and received a Best of Swiss Apps award in 2019. The SSCG’s volunteer research has continued to examine changes in participation, including a move away from long-term organisational membership toward more flexible and individual forms of engagement. The organisation entered a further strategic phase in the 2020s. Pro Futuris was launched in 2022 to experiment with democratic participation and civic dialogue. Other programmes address social leadership through placements in social institutions and cooperation between generations. Governance reforms approved after pandemic-related postponements separated the Executive Board from the former Central Commission and created Netzwerk Gemeinnützige Schweiz as a coordinating structure for regional charitable organisations. Leadership controversies during 2023 exposed competing views about political balance and board composition. After Jürg Kallay was removed from the board in June 2023 and Nicola Forster announced his departure, Anders Stokholm was elected president in June 2024. The SSCG continues to combine charitable capital, civic experimentation, research, and national convening within Switzerland.
- 2024
Anders Stokholm elected president
[1]Anders Stokholm succeeded Nicola Forster as president after a period of strategic and governance reform.
- 2022
Pro Futuris launched
[1]The SSCG introduced Pro Futuris as a programme for democratic renewal, dialogue, and participation.
- 2018
Five up platform launched
[1]The society supported the launch of Five up, a multilingual digital service for coordinating volunteering.
- 2014
National anthem text competition launched
[1]The SSCG launched an art competition seeking a new Swiss national anthem text.
- 1978
Pro Mente Sana founded
[1]The SSCG helped establish Pro Mente Sana, extending its institutional contribution to mental-health advocacy.
- 1934
ZEWO predecessor initiated
[1]The society initiated the central information office for welfare organisations, an institutional predecessor of ZEWO.
- 1917
Pro Senectute founded
[1]The SSCG helped create Pro Senectute, expanding organised support for older people in Switzerland.
- 1912
Pro Juventute founded
[1]The society helped establish Pro Juventute as part of its twentieth-century welfare-institution legacy.
- 1860
Rütli management begins
[1]The SSCG began managing the Rütli and organising the annual national celebration at the site.
- 1859
Rütli acquired and donated to the Confederation
[1]The society purchased the Rütli meadow and transferred it to the Swiss Confederation, establishing a lasting national role.
Products and positioning
A national Swiss common-good organisation positioned between philanthropy, civil-society infrastructure, social research, and practical programme development. It supports cooperation among nonprofit organisations, government, business, and citizens rather than operating as a conventional consumer-facing brand.
Democratic participation programme · 2022
Pro Futuris
A think-and-do tank and programme focused on democratic culture in Switzerland. Pro Futuris develops dialogue formats, participation projects, and ideas about civic identity and democratic renewal. It reflects the SSCG’s shift from nineteenth-century institution-building toward experimentation with contemporary forms of public engagement.
Social leadership programme
SeitenWechsel
A programme that places managers in social institutions or gives them concentrated exposure through an intensive week or shorter workshop. Its purpose is to develop social leadership skills and encourage exchange between business and civil society.
Intergenerational network
Intergeneration
An initiative connecting projects and institutions serving younger and older people. It supports cooperation across generations through local activities and virtual exchange, reinforcing the society’s broader interest in solidarity and social cohesion.
Research publication
Swiss Volunteer Monitor
A recurring research and information project examining volunteering in Switzerland. The monitor supplies evidence about participation patterns, motivations, organisational involvement, and changing forms of civic engagement, informing both public discussion and nonprofit practice.
Volunteer-coordination platform · 2018
Five up
A multilingual digital platform supported by the SSCG, the Swiss Red Cross, and Apps with love. It combines mobile and web interfaces with cloud-based coordination tools to connect volunteers and organisations. Use increased during the early COVID-19 pandemic, when communities needed rapid volunteer matching.
National heritage and civic programme · 1860
Rütli stewardship
The SSCG manages the Rütli meadow, a nationally symbolic Swiss site, and organises the annual national celebration there. The activity originates in the society’s 1859 purchase and donation of the property to the Swiss Confederation.
Marketing campaigns
- 2018Five up volunteer coordination
Switzerland
The SSCG supported a multilingual platform intended to make volunteer matching and coordination easier for individuals and organisations.
Outcome. The platform gained substantial user adoption, particularly during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, and won gold in the Enterprise category at Best of Swiss Apps in 2019.
- 2014Swiss national anthem competition
Switzerland
The SSCG invited submissions for a new national anthem text. The public selected a contribution by Zurich health economist Werner Widmer from 208 entries; the text drew on the preamble of the Swiss Federal Constitution.
Outcome. The proposed text was performed at the Rütli in 2016 and attracted political controversy, but it was not established as Switzerland’s official national anthem.
- 1834Storm-disaster relief collection
Switzerland
The SSCG coordinated a nationwide collection for people affected by a major storm disaster in the Alpine foothills. The action helped establish a continuing disaster-relief fund.
Outcome. The fund continued as an instrument for assistance and was later renamed Fonds Suisse.
Brand decisions
2023
Board election and membership disputeOtherBackground
Ahead of the 2023 annual meeting, Jürg Kallay argued that board nominations lacked sufficient diversity and criticised existing members as politically left-wing. He acknowledged mobilising employees and young politicians to support alternative candidates.
Action taken
Kallay sought additional candidates, while the board described the situation as a loss of trust and asked the general meeting to remove him.
Aftermath
Kallay was voted off the board on 17 June 2023. Contemporary reporting characterised the episode as an attempted ideological takeover, while the organisation presented it as an internal confidence crisis.
2022
Pro Futuris introducedStrategyBackground
The SSCG sought to renew its role in Swiss public life after decades in which specialised welfare organisations and the state had assumed many operational responsibilities.
Action taken
It launched Pro Futuris as a think-and-do tank devoted to democratic culture, participation, dialogue, and new interpretations of Swiss civic identity.
Aftermath
The programme became a visible expression of the society’s twenty-first-century repositioning toward democratic innovation.
2020
Governance restructuring approvedStrategyBackground
Pandemic conditions disrupted the normal general-meeting schedule and prompted the association to reconsider its governance arrangements.
Action taken
Members approved a new structure in which the Executive Board was no longer a committee of the Central Commission, which was to be dissolved. Netzwerk Gemeinnützige Schweiz was created as a coordinating body for regional charitable organisations.
Aftermath
The reform set the organisational framework for later strategic changes and public disagreements about leadership and representation.
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