The medal is in memory of his worldwide involvement in the politics of peace and humanitarian causes, in particular since the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 by the United States Army Air Forces.

It was established by his grandson Dietrich Hahn in 1988 and is awarded by the United Nations Association of Germany (Deutsche Gesellschaft für die Vereinten Nationen, DGVN, Berlin-Brandenburg) to persons or institutions that have rendered "outstanding services to peace and international understanding".

This 17 December 1938 therefore marks the beginning of the Atomic age, which from the scientific, political, economic, social and philosophical point of view has fundamentally changed the world.

The reason for Hahn's peace work was simply that, knowing more than other citizens about atomic weapons, he felt it his duty to speak about this issue that was so crucial for mankind.

In his commitment to the promotion of free scientific enquiry, as well as in his efforts to persuade scientists to recognize their responsibility for shaping the contemporary world and the future, we found something which we could identify.