1987-97 freelancer and 1997-2000 research assistant at the Memorial for the Victims of National Socialism in Düsseldorf.
Joined the SPD in 1986.
1989/90 AStA chairwoman, 1990-92 president of the student parliament of Heinrich Heine University.
1989-93 Member of the federal board of the Juso university groups and the Juso federal board. 1994-97 Deputy chairwoman of the Juso district of the Lower Rhine.
Since 1995 member of the SPD federal executive committee. Since 2006 head of the SPD forum "Children, Youth, Family".
1997-2003 deputy member, since 2003 member of the synod of the EKD. Since 2001 deputy member of the synod of the Evangelical Church in the Rhineland.
Memberships: Berliner Republik e.V., Willy-Brandt-Zentrum Jerusalem e.V., German-Israeli Society, Society for Christian-Jewish Cooperation, Gegen Vergessen - für Demokratie e.V., Kinderschutzbund, Marie-Schlei-Verein, IG BCE, AWO, ASB.
Member of the German Bundestag since May 11, 2000; Chairwoman of the Bundestag Committee for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth since 2002. Since 2006, representative of the SPD parliamentary group for churches and religious communities.