The sleeping pill, marketed under the trade name of Contragan in West Germany, had caused fetuses to develop birth defects.

Extensive coverage in news media resulted in great public interest which permanently removed the taboo surrounding the issue of disability.

But when Der Große Preis failed to arouse public interest with new hosts after Thoelke's departure in late 1992 the show was ultimately cancelled at the end of 1993.

Everyone agreed that supporting projects wasn't enough to raise public awareness of the issue of disability and to trigger general re-evaluation.

On 1 January 2003, the association launched its newly prioritised welfare service for children and teenagers, supporting more than 120 projects with roughly 12 million euros in its initial year.

[11] The guiding principle of the 2011 campaign was to drive forward a shift of consciousness in society and to show by means of positive examples how inclusion can work.

[16] The board of trustees decides on the motions submitted on the basis of the funding guidelines of Aktion Mensch, which are published on the association's website.

The association provides the means for a variety of needs by supporting, for example, integration companies and barrier-free buildings, by transforming big establishments into community-integrated, smaller residential units, by providing more mobility and subsidisation of vehicles, by supporting staff and material costs as well as projects advocating inclusion in leisure and education.

With almost 36% of its lottery earnings the organization supports social projects to help the disabled and young people, along with the awareness-raising measures.

30% is distributed as lottery winnings, 16.7% is paid for income tax, 7.4% is used to cover business expenses, 10.1% is used for marketing and communication (status as of 2014).

The association offers a regularly updated network of more than 160 partners in care services for disabled people and their relatives, unique in Germany, on its website Familienratgeber.de.

[19] It covers a wide range of topics that are of importance for people with disabilities who desire to participate independently and self-reliantly in their community.

[21][22] The association's data base of volunteers is the largest and most comprehensive accumulation of voluntary and unpaid charity work, offering more than 10,000 services.

[25] Local associates and network partners ensure that the services offered nationwide are of the highest quality and that the data used is revised on a regular basis, guaranteeing a list of providers which is always up-to-date.

It includes reports, features, biographies and interviews pertaining to issues of inclusion, disability care and self-care, children's aid and welfare service for teenagers.

A ZDF show of the same name first aired in 2003, promoting the ideas and problems outlined in the journal,[27] succeeding previous formats such as The Great Aid (from 1976 to 1995) and Partake (from 1994 to 2002),[28][29][30] and was hosted by Stephan Greulich and Bettina Eistel, who left in 2007 and 2014 respectively.