We would like to invite your child to participate in a writing competition. All the essential information can be found here.
There should be roughly 700 participants.
The study was planned by Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg and is being conducted in collaboration with the Birmingham Institute for Sustainability and Climate Action at the University of Birmingham.
The programme is funded by public funds from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.
The product has been reviewed by an independent ethics committee. During the consultation, no objections were raised to the conduct of this study.
You and your child can decide together whether they would like to participate in the study. Their participation is entirely voluntary – no one is being coerced. Should they wish to withdraw their participation at any time, this will be permitted. They will not face any disadvantages as a result.
Please take the time to read this information in full. Should you have any queries, the study director will be available to discuss the study in detail with you and your child.
Thank you for your time.
What are the texts for?
Our ideas about the future shape our actions today. With regard to the climate crisis, it is therefore essential to identify possible ways of adaptation and mitigation and to reinforce positive narratives. This study examines your ideas about water in the future.
Creative writing stimulates the imagination and thus influences actions. Through a creative writing competition, we collect information about ideas about the future.
What is the procedure for the study?
Until the End of October 2026 your child can submit a story written on the topic 'Our Future, Our Water, Our Stories' on their own. A jury will then look at these. There will be an awards ceremony, which will be announced in June 2026. At this closing event prizes will be handed out.
The stories should be in English to ensure global comparability. Depending on whether English is your child's first language or not, the story will be evaluated in either the first-language or non-first-language category.
Is there any personal benefit to participating in the study?
Participants will be judged by a panel of experts, composed of independent writers. The best stories will receive prizes.
What are the risks associated with participating in the study?
Apart from data protection risks, participation in the study does not involve any risks.
What is expected of participants?
We expect your child to write an original story that is neither plagiarised nor AI-generated.
Information on data protection
Prof. Dr. Michaela Mahlberg is responsible for data processing in this study.
The legal basis for processing your data is your personal consent and that of your parents (Art. 6(1)(a), Art. 9(2)(a) GDPR). Your data will be treated confidentially at all times.
The data is collected exclusively for the purpose of this study and will only be used within the scope of this study.
We may wish to contact you again after the study has been completed. If you agree to this, you can give your consent together with your parents in the consent form.
The data also includes personally identifiable information such as your name, address and date of birth.
All data that could directly identify you, e.g. your name or date of birth, will be replaced by an identification code (pseudonymised). This makes it almost impossible for unauthorised persons to identify you.
The data will be stored at Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg and deleted one year after the end of the study.
We do not transfer the collected data to other institutions in Germany, the EU, or to a third country outside the EU or to an international organisation.Consent to the processing of your data is voluntary. You can revoke your consent at any time together with your parents. You do not have to tell us why you no longer wish to participate, and you will not suffer any disadvantages as a result. After that, no more data will be collected from you.
In the event of revocation, you and your parents may request the deletion of the collected data. If you agree, the data may then be used anonymously (without being assigned to a specific person).
You can obtain information about your data together with your parents. You can also request the correction, blocking, restriction of processing or deletion of the data and, if necessary, its transfer.
In such cases, please contact:
Andreas Wagner, andreas.w.wagner@fau.de
If you have any questions regarding data protection, please contact the data protection officer:
Datenschutzbeauftragter FAU
c/o ITM Gesellschaft für IT-Management mbH
Bürgerstraße 81
01127 Dresden
Telefon: +49 9131 85-25860
E-Mail: datenschutzbeauftragter@fau.de
You can complain to any data protection supervisory authority together with your parents.
You can contact the responsible supervisory authority at:
Bavarian State Commissioner for Data Protection
Postal address: PO Box 22 12 19, 80502 Munich
Street address: Wagmüllerstraße 18, 80538 Munich
Email: poststelle@datenschutz-bayern.de
Read the written information
I have received and read the written information and consent form for the above-mentioned study. I have been informed in detail, both in writing and verbally, about the purpose and course of the study, the benefits and risks of participation, and my rights and obligations.
Participation is voluntary
It has been pointed out that the participation of my child is voluntary and that we have the right to withdraw the consent at any time without giving reasons and without incurring any disadvantages.
Informed Consent
The processing and use of personal data for the above-mentioned study will be carried out exclusively as described in the section ‘Information on data protection’.
I agree to be contacted again after the study has ended.
