Based on the social challenges of our time, this statement addresses key aspects of the question of how the work of tomorrow can be redesigned. On behalf of the Standing Committee of the German National Academy of Sciences and under the leadership of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, the authors have intensively examined the current structural change in the world of work. They suggest that the concept of work should be interpreted broadly and that gainful employment should be considered in its interplay with other forms of activity.

Non-market-related activities such as citizen work, care work and political work and their interplay are also taken into consideration. The shift in emphasis from a “work-oriented society” to an “activity-oriented society” highlights the opportunities that open up for people, the economy and society if these activities are equally recognized.