Note: The following article was written during the lifetime of the award winner. Willi Resetarits died on April 24, 2022 in Vienna.
Willi Resetarits was born on December 21,1948 in Burgenland, Austria. He studied English and sports in college with the intention of becoming a teacher, as a back-up plan for his musical career. He spent his early years as a member of the musical group Butterflies and re-invented himself with the alter ego Kurt Ostbahn.
Resetarits is well known for his political engagements, and has always been an advocate for the integration of immigrants in Vienna. In addition to helping founding SOS Mitmensch, he spoke out against xenophobia and publicly supported the Integrationshaus in Vienna. Today the Integrationshaus is a well-respected program that has helped over 600 refugees since its founding in 1995.
It provides apartment-style housing for immigrants, as well as stipends for food. Resetarits is an honourable president of the Integrationshaus in Vienna today and has also won the Josef-Felder Prize for Public Welfare and Civil Courage. Resetarits is still performing in Vienna, in various different forms of media. He is currently a musician with the Stubnblues, but also runs a radio program.