| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Developing AI-Powered Survey Infrastructures to Enhance Resilience Research
|
Prof. Dr. Claudia Wagner |
2025
|
2027
|
GESIS,
LIR
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Resilience research investigates what enables people to maintain their mental health when facing stress. Resilience research faces two methodological problems: 1) imprecise measurements due to survey self-reports and variations in timing of stressor exposure across individuals, and 2) people dropping out of studies due to stress. As a remedy, this project will develop the first AI-powered survey infrastructure that integrates web browsing data with surveys, enhanced by Large Language Models. The methodological innovations of this project will contribute to a better understanding of resilience processes and provide a blueprint for similar survey infrastructures in the Leibniz Association and beyond.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Environmental pollution in a dish: Modeling pollution-induced effects on taste and nutrient sensing using tongue and stomach organoids.
|
Dr. Andrea Rossi |
2025
|
2027
|
IUF,
LSB (formerly DFA)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The project addresses the question, how environmental contaminants, especially heavy metals, influence the perception of taste. The substances ingested via the air and food can disrupt the chemosensory perception of nutrients in the gastrointestinal tract and thus influence energy metabolism, food preferences and general health. In order to test the effects of exposure to pollutants from air and food, the project will use tongue and stomach organoids (organ-like tissue cultures). Additionally, the team will carry out sensory tests on participants in the NAKO study and correlate them with the intake of heavy metals from food and air.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Commodity Frontiers in Eastern Europe. Environment and Societies at Global Risk (16th-21st Centuries)
|
Prof. Dr. Guido Hausmann |
2025
|
2027
|
DBM,
GWZO,
IOS
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
This study examines Eastern Europe's role within global capitalism through various epochs. Historians and economists focus on "commodity frontiers" – key zones where natural resources are harvested and integrated into global markets, influencing landscapes and societies across Eastern Europe. Four projects investigate mining in Central Europe, manganese extraction in Georgia and Ukraine, the cotton economy in the Soviet bloc, and the evolution of trade agreements in the context of these commodities. The case studies illuminate how Eastern European regions have contributed to and been transformed by global economic processes, revealing environmental and social risks and their relevance for the present.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Illuminating Metabolic Dark Matter in Clostridioides difficile Infections
|
Prof. Dr. Christian Hertweck |
2025
|
2027
|
HKI
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Severe, recurring colon inflammations that affect many patients worldwide are caused by the bacterium Clostridioides difficile. These infections, typically resulting from antibiotics usage, are very difficult to treat and can become fatal. Still, the reasons for the bacterium's success are poorly understood. The team previously demonstrated that C. difficile has the genetic potential to produce various antibiotics and toxins that could disturb the intestinal flora. This project aims to uncover these previously unknown substances and clarify their roles in gut microbial interactions using molecular biology and analytical chemistry tools. Insights gained will help to develop urgently needed approaches to cure the disease. External cooperation partners: University of Würzburg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Post-Glacial Human Seascape with submerged Stone Age Megastructures hidden in the Western Baltic Sea?
|
Dr. Jacob Geersen |
2025
|
2027
|
IOW,
LEIZA (formerly RGZM)
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Hunter gatherers lived in Northern Europe around the end of the last Ice Age (~16,000 years BP). Due to their non-sedentary lifestyle, traces of these societies are difficult to find. Recent findings show that anthropogenic megastructures from these days might have survived at the seafloor in the SW Baltic Sea, which was a terrestrial landscape at that time. Combining expertise in archeology, geology andgeophysics, the high risk – high gain project will explore this sunken landscape and try to identify further human structures. While the late glacial hunter gatherers are usually regarded as highly mobile and low territorial, the proven existence of anthropogenic megastructures from these societies would force us to rethink these paradigms. External cooperation partners: University of Rostock; Kiel University
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Screening National Socialism: Ideology and Everyday Life in German Cinema 1933-1945
|
Prof. Dr. Johannes Hürter |
2025
|
2027
|
GWZO,
IDS,
IfZ
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Films shape people and reflect history. In the Third Reich, cinema was a place where worldviews and emotions were conveyed, processed and contemplated. Film was the most popular mass medium of the day. The analysis of an extensive selection of films under specific questions such as the depiction of childhood, youth and family offers insights into the dynamics of the Nazi dictatorship and ideological manipulation. By means of diverse collaborative elements and formats for discussion, this project will create a space for interdisciplinary and international exchange to produce an innovative film history of National Socialism. This will result in the first systematic evaluation of the feature film as a seismograph of the society and culture of the Third Reich. External cooperation partners: Friedrich-Wilhelm-Murnau-Foundation, Wiesbaden; Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek, Berlin; The German Federal Archive, Koblenz; DFF - The German Film Museum, Frankfurt am Main; German Historical Institute Warsaw, Poland; Filmoteka Narodowa – Instytut Audiowizualny (FINA), Warsaw, Poland; Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Contemporary History, Prague
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Unequal trajectories: Spatial dynamics in refugees- multidimensional integration
|
Dr. Jonas Wiedner |
2025
|
2027
|
LifBi,
WZB
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project examines the role of the residential environment and of residential mobility in the integration of two cohorts of refugees in Germany: those who arrived around the year 2015, and Ukrainians who arrived after February 24th 2022. Using innovative analytical approaches and uniquely detailed data from various sources, the team investigates what kinds of neighborhoods different refugee groups settle in, and how these neighborhoods, and mobility between them, shape the social, economic and cultural integration of adults and the development of children. These analyses will generate evidence necessary for the design of effective refugee accommodation policies. External cooperation partner: Institue for Employment Research (IAB), Nürnberg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Deciphering the atomistic mechanism of selectivity filter gating in two-pore domain potassium (K2P) channels
|
Prof. Dr. Han Sun |
2025
|
2027
|
FMP,
LIV (formerly HPI)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Two-pore-domain potassium (K2P) channels are essential for the normal electrical balance and activity of various cells. Disruption of K2P channels causes severe health issues, including atrial fibrillation, respiratory depression, pulmonary hypertension, sleep apnea, neuropathic pain, migraine, and depression. The channels are therefore important targets for new medications. Understanding how they function, particularly how they open and close in response to external stimuli—a process called gating—remains a formidable task. The project aims to explore the gating mechanism of K2P channels at the atomistic scale using advanced experimental and computational techniques. It will combine expertise in electrophysiology, structural biology, pharmacology and computational biology to facilitate drug design for K2P channels. External cooperation partner: Kiel University
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
All-attosecond transient inner-shell absorption spectroscopy in atoms, molecules and solids
|
Dr. Bernd Schütte |
2025
|
2027
|
MBI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Electronic processes play a key role in biology and information technology. The development of attosecond pump-probe spectroscopy allows to make a movie of the electronic process: a pump pulse initiates the electronic process, and a probe pulse observes it at different time delays. However, up to now, either the pump pulse or the probe pulse could have an attosecond duration, greatly limiting the movie quality. The project will use all-attosecond pump-probe spectroscopy with both an attosecond pump pulse and an attosecond probe pulse to analyse atoms, molecules and solids, promising a fundamentally improved observation and understanding of electronic processes. External cooperation partners: Imperial College London, Great Britain; Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic; Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamic of Matter, Hamburg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
GENELLI - An empirical look into the language-cognition interface: The relationship between linguistic, population-related and stereotypical gender ratios in German
|
Prof. Dr. Carolin Müller-Spitzer |
2025
|
2027
|
DIW,
IDS
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Gender inequality remains a pressing issue in our society. Whether and how language, and in particular the use of personal nouns to denote social groups, contributes to perpetuating this imbalance has sparked intense debate. In an innovative interdisciplinary approach, the GENELLI project combines linguistics, economics, and cognitive science to study the interplay between language use, economic reality, and people’s stereotypical beliefs. Collecting large scale empirical data from all three fields, we provide solid scientific evidence to inform discussions on gender-inclusive language and gender inequality. External cooperation partners: University of Freiburg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Far-UVC compact laser module
|
Dr. Katrin Paschke |
2025
|
2027
|
FBH
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Far-UVC radiation penetrates very little into the skin. It can therefore be safely used as a medical device to inactivate pathogens. The high risk – high gain project aims to develop a compact far-UVC light source at a wavelength of 210 nm that allows the application of a proven disinfectant dose to the nasopharynx - the preferred habitat of multi-resistant germs. To achieve this goal, novel violet-emitting laser diodes and amplifiers are combined with a frequency doubling stage. As it has the potential to be applied in every clinic or even household, such a light source would be a breakthrough in disinfection and health-care. External cooperation partners: Chemnitz University of Technology
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Stimulating Prosocial Behavior (PROSOCIAL): Coordinated Analyses Across Diverse Domains
|
Dr. Mark Andor |
2025
|
2027
|
PIK,
RWI,
WZB
|
Section E - Environmental Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
In this project, we search for measures to promote prosocial behavior, such as donating money and blood, volunteering, or environmentally friendly behavior. While some forms of prosocial behavior have been studied intensely, others are under-researched and we lack a unifying understanding that would help us promote prosocial behavior at large. In this project, we will address this gap manifold: we will summarize existing knowledge on the topic and conduct surveys and coordinated field studies together with practice partners like a blood bank, a volunteer water rescue organization, and several charities. The aim is to find out which approaches can be generalized, and which factors favor or limit their applicability. External cooperation partners: University of Hamburg; University of Oxford, England; Central European University, Vienna, Austria; NUS – National University of Singapore; University of Waterloo, Canada; Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands; Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law, Freiburg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Innovative technologies for spectroscopic survey telescopes
|
Dr. Roelof de Jong |
2025
|
2027
|
AIP,
IPHT
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Survey telescopes gathering spectra of millions of celestial objects annually are crucial to breakthrough discoveries in astronomy fields as Dark Energy, Dark Matter, black hole and galaxy evolution or the origin of chemical elements. This project unites world-leading experts to develop key innovative technologies ensuring that the next generation of large spectroscopic survey facilities are technically and financially feasible. Our robotic optical fibre positioning and photonic innovations will enable simultaneous observations of more than 20,000 objects every 15 minutes. Beyond astronomy, these innovations will have broader applications in medicine, optical fibre communication, and robotics. External cooperation partners: École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland; Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Where the Rich Live: Mapping Villa Neighborhoods and Cultures of Wealth in Germany's Long Twentieth Century
|
Prof. Dr. Kerstin Brückweh |
2025
|
2027
|
IRS,
ZZF
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
RichMap deepens the understanding of the development of wealth inequality by investigating villa districts in 20th-century Germany. The project combines an established method, thick description, with a digital tool, the thick map, employing citizen science to unravel how villa districts are perceived and utilized internally and externally. This interdisciplinary project explores the evolution of villa districts in East and West Germany, qualitatively and quantitatively, to answer the questions: What factors characterize desirable addresses and how did historical transformations shape them during the 20th century? What relationship exists between neighborhood, address, and property? Historically, who utilized the villa district and how? External cooperation partners: Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies (MPIfG); German Historical Institute London, England; European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder)
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Trends in hidden taxa and habitats - understanding the extent and impact of the biodiversity crisis
|
Prof. Dr. Anton Potapov |
2025
|
2027
|
DSMZ,
LIB (formerly ZFMK),
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The project analyses biodiversity changes in invertebrates and microorganisms. To this end, samples are being collected at 120 locations in Germany where samples were already analysed 25-45 years ago. The aim is to gain new insights into the development of biodiversity of understudied taxa, and its consequences for the functioning of ecosystems. For this purpose, databases and the collected samples will be used to analyse the biomass as well as the genetic and functional composition of invertebrate communities in soils, marine and freshwater sediments as well as flying insects. The respective microbiomes will also be analysed. External cooperation partner: Stuttgart State Museum of Natural History (SMNS)
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Climate resilience, and climate vulnerabilities, of mating behaviours in mosquitoes
|
Dr. Renke Lühken |
2025
|
2027
|
BNITM
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Within the numerous uncertainties regarding global climate change, one thing is clear: the biogeographic distributions of numerous animals will change. For example, humans will move into areas affected by mosquito-borne disease and mosquitoes will invade areas which have previously been spared their menace, such as large parts of Europe. Understanding if – and how – mosquitoes adapt to new environments is vital not only to forecast the ‘threat of invasion’ for a given area, but also to design novel mosquito control tools. This high risk – high gain project will therefore explore the temperature resilience, and vulnerabilities, of mating behavior in four mosquito vector species. If successful, this could lead to acoustics-based means to monitor and control mosquito vectors. External cooperation partner: Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Quantum Transport in Quasi-two-dimensional Magnetic Systems
|
Dr. Shu Zhang |
2025
|
2029
|
IFW Dresden
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Spin and heat transport properties of quantum magnetic materials promise new routes to design energy-efficient devices for information and communication technologies. Quasi-two-dimensional magnetic systems, such as van der Waals magnets, are particularly appealing because they are smaller, lighter, more tunable, and amenable to stacking design. The Leibniz Junior Research Group led by Dr. Shu Zhang aims to investigate quantum transport phenomena in quasi-two-dimensional magnetic systems. It will explore the complex world of topology and quantum many-body physics by developing new theoretical tools targeting spin and heat transport study. The findings will provide insights for exotic quantum matter and guide the experimental study of new magnetic materials.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Effects of UV Light on the Origin of Life
|
Dr. Corinna Kufner |
2025
|
2029
|
IPHT
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The Leibniz Junior Research Group led by Dr. Corinna Kufner is dedicated to fundamental mechanistic studies on the role of UV light in the development of biological functionality on the early Earth using ultrafast spectroscopic techniques. The central hypothesis of the project is that UV light not only acts as a driving force for enzyme-like processes in biomolecules, but also as a selection pressure that influences the evolution of biological functions. The project aims to elucidate the origins of biomolecular functions to answer fundamental questions about the origins of life in the universe and to create new photochemical approaches for research of synthetic cells and modern biomedical mechanisms.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Assessment for Learning with AI - Research-practice partnerships and scaled-up transfer to operate an AI-assisted digital formative assessment platform
|
Dr. Ulf Kröhne |
2025
|
2027
|
DIPF,
IPN
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Although diagnostics to promote learning (formative assessment) is a prerequisite for targeted interventions for students, its full potential still needs to be exploited in German schools. Based on an analysis of obstacles that hinder the use of formative assessment in everyday teaching, an already established digital formative assessment will be extended by components of artificial intelligence and implemented into existing evidence-based interventions to enhance mathematics understanding. The AI-extensions supports teachers to gather more informative student responses, to identify individual error patterns and provides tailored advice for further intervention. Implementation strategies for the professional development of teachers will also be developed in collaboration with practitioners and program leaders. Cooperating University: Technical University of Dortmund
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
How Does the Past Matter? The Russian War of Aggression Against Ukraine and the Cold War
|
Prof. Dr. Nicole Deitelhoff |
2024
|
2026
|
IfZ,
PRIF (formerly HSFK)
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
With the help of an applied history approach, the project aims to address the question of the extent to which the lessons of the Cold War can help transform the current situation of confrontation between Russia and “the West” into a form of coexistence or cooperation. In an interdisciplinary cooperation of political science and contemporary history, the specific patterns of trust will be investigated in three thematic work packages. In doing so, false historical analogies will be deconstructed while structural patterns from the antagonistic phase of the Cold War era will be identified, which could make trust possible for the presumably longer period of antagonistic relations between "the West" and Russia.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Towards Efficient and Stable Semi-transparent pERovskite photovoltaics by plAsmonic Enhancement
|
Prof. Dr. Axel Lubk |
2024
|
2026
|
IFW Dresden,
IPF
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Solar cells allow the generation of sustainable electricity and are a promising option for carbon neutral energy production. Semitransparent solar cells are of particular interest for building-integrated photovoltaics. Perovskite solar cells offer many advantages over the broadly used silicon solar cells, however more research is required to develop efficient and stable semitransparent devices. By joining the expertise of two Leibniz Institutes (IFW and IPF), the collaborative project aims to address this gap. By integrating plasmonic nanoparticles into semitransparent perovskite solar cells, the project will not only explore their efficacy in increasing device performance, but also use the nanoparticles as a diagnostic tool to monitor the degradation processes that occur within the cells. The project will therefore result in a new generation of semitransparent solar cells and take an important step towards their application in building-integrated photovoltaics.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Phosphoinositide-mediated nutrient response in metabolic disease
|
Prof. Dr. Volker Haucke |
2024
|
2026
|
DIfE,
FMP,
ISAS
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The project aims to analyze the role of lipids, particularly phosphoinositides (PIPs), during nutrient signaling and metabolism in health and disease. Building on preliminary work, the team wants to test the hypothesis that PIPs are key factors for the adaptation of cells and tissues to changes in nutrient availability. They propose to study the role of PIPs and PIP-modifying enzymes on a molecular and functional level, during nutrient signaling as well as in healthy metabolism and in metabolic diseases.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Fungal RNA Transmission Impacting Human Epigenome Regulation
|
Dr. Matthew Blango |
2024
|
2026
|
HKI
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Antifungal-resistant and newly emerging pathogenic fungi pose a major threat to humanity. Humans and fungi both use so-called “long, non-coding ribonucleic acids (lncRNAs)” to control cellular activities. This cooperative project investigates if human fungal pathogens, like Aspergillus fumigatus and Candida albicans, transfer lncRNAs to their human hosts to manipulate their gene expression. The goal is to understand whether such a mechanism is used to weaken host immunity during fungal infection. The elucidation of this form of molecular pathogenicity has the potential to reveal new treatment options for fungal infections. External cooperation partner: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Chemogenetic dissection of primate brain circuits underlying adaptive cognition
|
Prof. Dr. Stefan Treue |
2024
|
2026
|
DPZ
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
To better understand the brain, it is important to know which of its networks support specific cognitive functions. The cooperative project investigates how a very heterogeneous brain area (pulvinar) is integrated into different (thalamo-cortical) brain networks. This integration supports cognitive functions that make it possible to react flexibly to environmental stimuli and to use sensory impressions for learning, remembering and decision-making. In this project, several areas of the brain in the pulvinar region of primates will be precisely inactivated in order to elucidate the cognitive function of these brain networks.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Epigenetic control of thymic CD4+ T lymphocyte development in humans - paving the way for new iPSC-derived T cell therapies.
|
Prof. Dr. Julia Polansky |
2024
|
2026
|
DRFZ,
FLI
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
T lymphocytes are an essential cell type of the human immune system that can specifically fight pathogens and tumor cells. Therefore, there are promising approaches to use the so-called CD4+ T cells for specific cell therapies against chronic inflammation, autoimmune diseases, infections or tumor diseases. The applicants want to gain a better understanding of the key mechanisms involved in the development of CD4+ T cells in humans to be able to reproduce these processes for efficient in vitro generation of T cells - ultimately for therapeutic use. Specifically, the application focuses on the characterization of epigenetic regulators required for efficient in vitro differentiation of CD4+ T lymphocytes from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC). These regulatory mechanisms are determined by the three-dimensional structure of the genome (the epigenome) and can be specifically modified using state-of-the-art molecular methods (epigenetic editing). With this approach, cells of a specific cell type and with desired functions - e.g. for therapeutic use - can be produced. External cooperation partners: Berlin Institute of Health @ Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (BIH)
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Documenting Russia's war against Ukraine: The challenges of living archives for historical knowledge production
|
Dr. Simon Donig |
2024
|
2026
|
HI,
IEG
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The project addresses the question of how historiography and historical documentation should act with regard to new possibilities of digital recording of war events, especially against the background of the war in Ukraine. Wartime events are to be documented through the archiving of social media as well as other historical documents and cultural artefacts. Historians produce their own sources in the current war situation, which they subsequently analyse for their studies. This dual role forces in-depth reflections on ethical and methodological questions, digital data standards and epistemic aspects of digital source criticism. The proposed project aims to set accents and standards for this. External cooperation partners: Hochschule Darmstadt, University of Applied Sciences (h_da); Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History (C²DH); Philipps-Universität, Marburg; Center for Urban History of East Central Europe, L'viv, Ukraine; Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media (RRCHNM), Virginia, USA; Justus-Liebig-Universität Gießen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Mapping Frontier Molecular Orbitals in Ultrafast Charge Migration Dynamics
|
Dr. Erik T. J. Nibbering |
2024
|
2026
|
MBI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Chemical reactions involve formation or breaking of chemical bonds. Such processes happen on very short timescales, therefore time resolution is a limiting factor for observing the reactions in real time. This project aims to use x-Ray spectroscopy on ultrafast timescales to allow observations of molecular reaction dynamics with a resolution of femtoseconds (one quadrillionth of a second). To achieve this goal, an experimental setup is to be established, which will enable researchers to conduct such experiments in laboratories instead of large facilities, with unprecedented signal strengths and time resolution. External cooperation partners: Ottawa University (OU), USA; Stockholm University, Sweden
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
High-resolution analysis of synergistic effects between membrane active peptides and classical antibiotics on bacterial membranes
|
Prof. Dr. Christian Eggeling |
2024
|
2026
|
FZB,
IPHT,
LIV (formerly HPI)
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering,
Section C - Life Sciences
|
With the aim of gaining new insights for the fight against antibiotic-resistant pathogens, the effect of membrane-active peptides is to be investigated in more detail. Structural changes in cell membranes can lead to resistance to membrane-active peptides, which points to a mechanism of these peptides that has hardly been investigated and is poorly understood.
The consortium plans to use membrane-active peptides in combination with classical antibiotics. To this end, an analytical platform is to be established that will enable research into the specific interactions between the peptides and bacterial membranes. Highly sensitive microscopic methods, electrophysiological and spectroscopic experiments and modeling will be used. Deciphering these mechanisms could pave the way for novel antibiotic therapies. External cooperation partner: Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
From waste to value - concepts for the depolymerization and upcycling of bio-based polymers
|
Prof. Dr. Thomas Werner |
2024
|
2026
|
IPF,
LIKAT
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Polymers and Polymer-based products are part of virtually every aspect of everyday life. However, transformation to a more sustainable and green industrial production makes it necessary to reduce the use of fossil resources for polymer products. The use of bio-based polymers and their recycling are therefore becoming increasingly important. The project will develop methods for the chemical recycling of bio-based polymers; by doing so it will obtain monomers suitable for the generation of novel polymers. By comparing different technologies and methods the project will create a toolbox for chemical recycling which will help to selectively transform waste products to novel polymers. External cooperation partner: Universität Paderborn
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Pollution in urban ponds, eco-evolutionary dynamics, and ecosystem resilience
|
Dr. Lynn Govaert |
2024
|
2026
|
ARL,
ATB,
IGB,
IZW
|
Section E - Environmental Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Inner-city ponds provide essential functions for urban areas, but their stability is threatened by many stressors such as anthropogenic pollution. The project leaders aim to investigate whether pond ecosystems become more resilient through evolutionary or microbiome-mediated adaptation of water fleas (Daphnia) to urban pollution. To this end, 40 ponds in Berlin will be studied for their chemical, hydrological, limnological, and microbiological characteristics. Based on this, the project sets out to understand to what extent the adaptation of water fleas to urban stressors contributes to improving the quality of pond ecosystems and how improved pond management can be implemented. To address these questions, an interdisciplinary approach will be pursued, including water chemistry, microbiology, evolutionary biology, ecology, and spatial planning. In addition to fundamental questions, the researchers also seek to identify ways to protect urban ponds and enhance their ecosystem services. External cooperation partner: University of Iowa, USA
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Linguistic Meaning and Bayesian Modelling
|
Dr. Anton Benz |
2024
|
2026
|
WIAS,
ZAS
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The project addresses the mathematical modelling of logical conclusions and inferences as an essential part of our use of language. Human communication processes cannot be modelled by pure logic alone; probability calculations and world knowledge have to be added. The integration of such probability calculations is currently being driven by Bayesian models that are combined with traditional logic. However, the use of Bayesian methods for modelling human communication in all its diversity and complexity poses difficult mathematical challenges to the field, which the project aims to address in a collaboration of linguistics, mathematics and computer science, thus advancing the field as a whole. External cooperation partner: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
High-growth Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and the Transformation of our Economy
|
Prof. Dr. Javier Miranda |
2024
|
2026
|
IWH,
ZEW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Innovation by entrepreneurial firms is at the heart of productivity enhancing reallocation, and growing standards of living. These firms introduce new ideas, products, and services that displace those offered by less innovative ones. However, entrepreneurship and business dynamism are in decline in Germany with potentially broad implications for growth and well-being. The project team studies the conditions, determinants, and implications of innovative high-growth entrepreneurship in Germany. It brings together a leading group of national and international experts in a partnership between IWH and ZEW and develops a rich new data infrastructure to study high-growth entrepreneurship. External cooperation partners: Universität Mannheim; University of Chicago, USA; Institute for Employment Research (IAB)
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Incubator for Collaborative and Transparent Economic Sciences - Lab²
|
Dr. Levent Neyse |
2024
|
2026
|
DIW,
WZB,
ZBW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
A large number of studies in empirical economic research are not replicable which leads to a credibility problem, which the project addresses. It proposes to establish a centre for replication studies in behavioural economics and to link this centre closely with other behavioural economics laboratories. In addition to replication studies, through meta-scientific research the research process and the associated incentive systems will be studied there. If the problems described are successfully reduced, research can be made much more efficient. The project could also be the impetus for similar initiatives in other fields within and outside economics. External cooperation partners: Stockholm School of Economics (SSE), Sweden; University of Oxford, England; Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München; Emlyon Business School, Lyon, France; GATE Laboratory, Lyon-Saint-Etienne, France
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Reordering Yugoslavia, Rethinking Europe: A Transregional History of the Yugoslav Wars and the Post-Cold War Order (1991-1995)
|
Dr. Agnes Bresselau von Bressensdorf |
2024
|
2026
|
GWZO,
IOS,
IfZ,
PRIF (formerly HSFK)
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The far-reaching conflicts and tensions that erupted in the Yugoslav Wars proved to be fundamental challenges to the constitution of the post-Cold War order: nationality conflicts and “ethnic cleansing”, refugee movements and humanitarian emergencies, state collapse and military interventions. To explore the interplay between the Yugoslav Wars and the transformation of the international order, this project combines international history approaches with those of Southeastern European studies. Four subprojects focus on Southeastern, Central Eastern, and Western European actors and their attempts to reconfigure the post-Yugoslav space and the European political order. External cooperation partners: Humboldt University of Berlin; Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, the Diplomatic Archives, France; Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic; Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW); Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München; Max Weber Foundation; Sorbonne University, France; The Czech Academy of Sciences, University of Belgrade, Serbia; University of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina; Universität Wien, Austria; University of Zagreb, Croatia
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Sustainable Finance Law in Europe - Navigating between Regulation, Contractual Practice, Litigation, and Regulatory Competition
|
Dr. Nikolai Badenhoop |
2024
|
2028
|
SAFE
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Under the direction of Dr Nikolai Badenhoop, the project between law and financial economics aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the legal framework for so-called sustainable financial products. The research group examines the interrelated layers of regulation, contractual practice, litigation, and regulatory competition. It focuses on bonds and funds advertised as green, social or sustainable. The project investigates to what extent sustainability promises are met and how greenwashing or socialwashing can be prevented.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Photonics with ultra-pure fluoride crystals
|
Dr. Hiroki Tanaka |
2024
|
2028
|
IKZ
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Photonics has opened up technologies in a variety of areas from fundamental research to applications in industry. Materials that govern light-matter interactions play a crucial role in photonics, and the limited purity of the materials has prevented the realization of various promising technologies, including nonlinear optics in the vacuum UV and laser cooling of solids. This is where the Leibniz-Junior Research Group led by Dr Hiroshi Tanaka starts: the aim is to use an elaborate, complex process to develop crystals of the highest purity and to further confirm their suitability for the abovementioned technologies in laboratory experiments. The group combines interdisciplinary expertise on crystal growth and photonic technologies in one place and will use this expertise to develop innovative solutions for applications in modern photonics.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
A bird's eye view: Modeling population responses to long-term climate and recent anthropogenic change using historical genomes
|
Dr. Mozes Blom |
2024
|
2028
|
MfN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Preventing biodiversity loss is one of the major challenges of our lifetime. To predict future changes in biodiversity, much can be learnt by studying how populations have responded to environmental disturbance in the past. Museums and herbaria, are archives of biodiversity and can be used to study biodiversity change over time. The Leibniz-Junior Research group led by Dr. Mozes Blom will use simulations and genetic data from museum specimens to understand how bird populations have been affected by long-term (climate) and short-term (pesticides) environmental disturbances. These insights will be key to identify populations and species at risk and will help to guide conservation policy.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Next generation SustaInable semicoNductors For Optoelectronic aNd spIntronic Applications
|
Prof. Dr. Safa Shoaee |
2024
|
2028
|
PDI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
We live in an electronic world. Displays for smartphones and curved television screens are just but a few examples of the increasing presence of disordered electronics in our daily lives. Economy, health, and national security rely on such electronic technologies. This project wants to investigate next-generation semiconductors aiming for state-of-the-art environmentally benign solar cells and over the horizon ideas such as quantum computing. In a project in the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors, the project leader is planning to produce a new generation of complex semiconductor materials. The proposed research tackles fundamental questions concerning the physics of organic semiconductor solar cells, and also more applied aspects that will ultimately impact technology roll-out by studying the electro-optics of these systems.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
New selective synthesis methods on supported metals: Hydrogen transfer reactions, to challenge the boundaries of asymmetric possibilities
|
Dr. Eszter Barath |
2024
|
2029
|
LIKAT
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Transfer hydrogenation is the process by which hydrogen is transferred from a donor molecule to other compounds. The process is extremely important in the chemical industry as it opens new possibilities for selective synthesis methods. The project in the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors aims to establish a new process chain for the transfer hydrogenation of unsaturated compounds. Alkyl amines are supposed to act as hydrogen sources. The project combines theoretical and experimental research, and the results promise to make significant contributions both to the scientific understanding of the reaction cascade and to future technical applications.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Intersectoral Impact Attribution to Climate Change
|
Dr. Katja Frieler |
2024
|
2029
|
PIK
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Humans already have a deep impact on earth through e.g. land use changes, water management or pollution. In addition, the influence of climate change is increasing. To quantify the damages already caused by today’s levels of climate change, its impacts have to be separated from the contribution of the other socio-economic drivers. In this way you can e.g. quantify the contribution of climate change to observed changes in the occurrence of extreme events such as droughts, wildfires and flooding and assess its influence on associated displacement and economic damages. These questions are addressed by the project funded by the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors. The project uses satellite data and latest simulations by climate impact models to quantify the damages already caused by observed climate change.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Digital Ephemera and the Challenges of Preserving Collective Memories from the Web
|
Prof. Dr. Katrin Weller |
2024
|
2029
|
GESIS
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project aims to investigate the question of how discussions in social media on topical issues that are difficult to grasp and by their very nature are not intended to be permanent can be made fruitful for historiography. When utilising this data for research, there are various challenges in terms of data quality and data access, as well as the risk of data loss and changes in meaning. However, the preservation of this digital ephemera is necessary as it represents an important form of collective memory. The project aims to address the methodological challenges involved in working with ephemeral data for social science research and in archiving and documenting important contextual information. Cooperating University: Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Melting Mountains: Environment, Society and Vertical Climate Frontier in the Greater Altai (1950-2020)
|
Prof. Dr. Julia Herzberg |
2024
|
2029
|
GWZO
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The project headed by Prof. Julia Herzberg focuses on the Central Asian mountain region of the Altai. The region is one of the areas where climate change is progressing particularly rapidly and where the vulnerabilities of its ecosystems and social systems are apparent. Despite its central, transnational location, the history of the region has so far remained largely unexplored. The project examines how the indigenous populations in the mountain regions deal with the changes to the landscape and natural environment caused by climate change. By focussing on adaptation efforts and coping strategies, the project aims to bring together empirical and structural history. Cooperating University: Leipzig University
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Investigating MLT Processes with Atmospheric modelling from Ground to lower Thermosphere
|
Prof. Dr. Claudia Stephan |
2024
|
2029
|
IAP
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
It is a relevant task to better understand the interactions of different layers of the atmosphere. Not only because the number of satellites (and their debris) in space is constantly increasing, but also because climate change phenomena extend across different layers of the atmosphere. Recent advances in computing capacity allow for high-resolution modelling of the lower atmosphere, but extending these models to the upper atmosphere and the overlying ionosphere remains a challenge. The aim of this project in the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors is to achieve high-resolution modelling of the upper atmosphere and to link this to existing measurements. This will enable novel simulations from the Earth's surface to near-Earth space and close an important gap in our understanding of the atmosphere. Cooperating University: University of Rostock
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Rooting for Resilience: Root Systems for Stress Tolerance and Soil Resource Capture
|
Prof. Dr. Hannah Schneider |
2024
|
2029
|
IPK
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The anatomical characteristics of roots - the arrangement and composition of the root tissue - influence the transport of nutrients and the search for food in the soil. In this project, the root characteristics of barley under different stress conditions, such as drought and elevated temperatures, are genetically and functionally analysed in order to improve their stress tolerance. This project will not only achieve a better understanding of root characteristics under different stress conditions, but also contribute to improving the yield of crops under changing climatic conditions in general. Cooperating University: University of Göttingen
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Atomic Scale Processing of Materials and Integration Platforms for 2D Electronics
|
Prof. Dr. Anjana Devi |
2024
|
2028
|
IFW Dresden
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Atomic layer deposition (ALD) has become an emerging technology to deposit very thin layers with precise thickness control over complex geometries and high conformality. The aim of the project is to establish a unique platform for ALD processing of advanced functional materials for future technological applications employing novel precursor chemistries. External cooperation partner: Technische Universität Dresden
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Keeping the brain engaged: sensory & motor circuits during active learning
|
Dr. Janelle Pakan |
2024
|
2028
|
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Information from our environment is constantly taken in through our senses and used to guide our behavior. This is evident in actions as simple as walking down the street to more complex behaviors like driving a car. These sensory-motor interactions modify the neural circuits of our brains as we learn. Using advanced brain imaging techniques, this project in the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors aims to uncover how active sensory engagement can optimize ongoing motor behaviors, and how these perception-action loops are integrated across distributed brain networks. A better understanding of these processes will have therapeutic relevance for disorders where these perception-action loops are interrupted, such as Parkinson’s disease. External cooperation partner: Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Evolutionary Ecology of Zoonotic Pathogens during Agricultural Transformations (EcoPath)
|
Prof. Dr. Jörg Overmann |
2024
|
|
DPZ,
DSMZ
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Pathogenic bacteria and viruses in the environment, typically in domestic and wild animals, can cause dangerous infections in humans – so-called zoonoses. So far, little is known regarding their occurrence outside of humans and animals. The aim of the Leibniz ScienceCampus EcoPath is to obtain more information about the spread and survivability of zoonosis-causing pathogens in the environment and thus learn more about their ecology.
This new research program will help to elucidate the evolutionary mechanisms that enable these pathogens to adapt to the environment and facilitate the transition to humans. State-of-the-art molecular ecology and systems biology methods, modelling, and data science analyses will be employed. Three pathogens that are often highly resistant to antibiotics are in the focus: Clostridioides difficile (pathogens that cause severe diarrhoea), enterococci (urinary tract and wound infections, including sepsis) and porcine coronaviruses (rare acute respiratory diseases).
External cooperation partners: Braunschweig University of Technology; University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover; Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research; Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute; Ministry of Science and Culture of Lower Saxony
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Resiliencies: Comparing and Integrating Methods, Methodologies, Narratives, and Theories
|
Prof. Dr. Alexandra W. Busch |
2024
|
|
LEIZA (formerly RGZM),
LIR
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Ausstehend. External Cooperation partners: Universtität Trier; Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Sonopharmacology - Activation of drugs by ultrasound
|
Prof. Dr. Andreas Herrmann |
2024
|
|
DWI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Treating patients with medicines is one of the most important and frequently used medical therapies available to us. However, their use is often a compromise between desired treatment and undesirable side effects. The associated disadvantages often have to be accepted due to the limited possibilities of only delivering the active ingredients to the necessary location in the body.
It is therefore all the more important that drug treatments are designed to be as precise and controllable as possible in order to administer the active ingredients at the site of action in the body. This requires new technologies, such as the control of bioactive substances "from a distance".
This is precisely where the Leibniz ScienceCampus "ACTISONO" comes in. The aim is to use ultrasound to control the activity of drugs and therapeutically active nucleic acids. An interdisciplinary team of researchers from the fields of polymer chemistry, medicine, biology and engineering are working together on various scientific and methodological projects. Among other things, they are developing so-called microbubbles for the activation of antibiotics by ultrasound or researching how the regeneration of the liver after an operation can be improved by ultrasound.
Their aim is to revolutionize the activation of active substances deep within the body and to establish the research field of "sonopharmacology". External Cooperationpartners: RWTH Aachen; Universitätsklinikum Aachen
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Europe and America in the Modern World. Transformations and Frictions of Globality since the 19th Century
|
Prof. Dr. Ulf Brunnbauer |
2024
|
|
GWZO,
IOS
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Relations between Europe and both North and South America are currently undergoing dramatic transformations. It is thus all the more important to explore the complex entanglements of multiple regions on both sides of the Atlantic. This is the main objective of the interdisciplinary Leibniz-ScienceCampus “Europe and America in the Modern World”. The relationship between Europe and America has been constitutive of globalisation, its inherent tensions and its fault lines since the late eighteenth century. The research programme of the Regensburg ScienceCampus therefore focuses on the key sites of globalisation – and resistance to it, something that is manifested in migration processes and cultural identities, for example. The Campus thus seeks to contribute to improving understandings of the history of globalisation while also tracing current developments in transatlantic relations and encounters. Following the interdisciplinary approach of contemporary area studies, the Regensburg ScienceCampus brings together researchers from various fields, including history, cultural studies, linguistics, literary studies, economics and the social sciences. A significant feature of the Campus is the extensive international network of partners involved. They are based across North and South America, and Eastern and Western Europe. “Europe and America in the Modern World” will thus work towards making Regensburg a leading centre for transregional area studies. The blog journal Frictions offers insight into research and discussions on the core regions and themes explored in the ScienceCampus. External cooperation partner: Universität Regensburg; University of California, Berkeley; University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; University of Kansas, Lawrence; University of Toronto; Arizona State University, Tempe; University of Alberta, Edmonton; Antioquia University, Medellin; Charles University of Prague; Central European University, Vienna; Complutense University, Madrid; Université Clermont Auvergne; University College London; University of Gdansk; Universidad Alberto Hurtado ; Bundeswehr Center for Military History and Social Sciences, Potsdam; Center for Advanced Study, Sofia; New Europe College, Bucharest
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Leibniz Science Campus Living Therapeutic Materials
|
Prof. Dr. Aranzazu del Campo |
2024
|
|
INM
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
In the treatment of chronic diseases, biologically produced drugs are often used where it is important that they can be administered to the patient in long term and in individually tailored form. The Leibniz ScienceCampus Living Therapeutic Materials in Saarbruecken has set itself the goal of preparing materials in which bacteria produce drugs that can be released into the human body in a controlled manner over a long period of time. For this purpose, the bacteria are genetically “programmed” for their task and enclosed in implantable carrier material. This material is permeable to the active ingredient, but prevents the bacteria from entering the human body. Nevertheless, they are permanently available as active ingredient producers. The bacteria-based implants are also provided with sensory functions that release active substances in response to specific physiological changes. The tasks of the ScienceCampus also include the investigation of medical scenarios in which living therapeutic materials enable cost-effective applications of advanced biopharmaceuticals, preclinical studies, and the investigation of possible risks with the development of strategies for their prediction and minimization. Such a demanding and complex project naturally requires know-how and competence from many different specialist areas. That is why the ScienceCampus combines material competence with pharmaceutical expertise and specialist knowledge in the fields of medicine, life sciences and bioinformatics through its partners. A total of 16 research groups are involved in the three partner institutions. External cooperation partners: Saarland University; Helmholt Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS); Saarbrücken, Saarland
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
SOEP RegioHub - Leibniz ScienceCampus Bielefeld
|
Dr. Jan Goebel |
2024
|
2028
|
SOEP
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Living conditions in Germany today show evidence of increasing and rapidly changing regional disparities in structural, demographic and economic domains. These disparities often take the form of an adverse access to health care facilities, childcare provision, education and other public services as well as regional labour market opportunities, business climate, housing and transportation infrastructures.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus researchers investigate how these regional social and economic opportunities influence social cohesion, expectations, political attitudes, preferences and behavior and thereby exacerbate or mitigate social inequality, social cohesion, political conflicts and radicalization. External cooperation partners: University Bielefeld
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
PROMPT 1.0 - A mobile intervention that improves children's self-regulated learning skills
|
Prof. Dr. Garvin Brod |
2024
|
2026
|
DIPF
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The project deals with self-regulated learning (SRL), that is, skills and strategies with which learners control and influence their own learning processes. This core competence for adapting to a rapidly changing environment and technological advancements is also increasingly expected of pupils. The goal of the project is therefore to develop and evaluate a mobile intervention that supports 10 to 12-year-old children in the development and application of skills for independent learning and time management in a long-term and individualised way.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
An open cloud platform for first principles electronic structure calculations powered by FPLO
|
Dr. Klaus Koepernik |
2024
|
2026
|
IFW Dresden
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Density functional theory (DFT) is used to describe quantum mechanical interactions of many particles. Materials can be treated quantum mechanically as well, therefore DFT can be used to model and design novel functional materials. There is a clear demand for DFT software packages, but currently available packages are difficult to use and require complicated local infrastructure and installation. This is where this transfer project starts: the already existing DFT package FPLO will be made available to users worldwide as a cloud-based solution, which will make it much easier and more inclusive to use.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Assisting the remote video learner with self-regulation support: A study on the responsible use of machine learning approaches in education
|
Prof. Dr. Peter Gerjets |
2023
|
2025
|
IPN,
IWM,
TIB
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Online video learning is becoming increasingly important in educational contexts. However, remote video learning challenges not only students’ self-regulation, but also teachers‘ abilities to detect these self-regulation problems. The project addresses this problem at the interface of psychology, educational science, and computer science. To this end, potential problems of self-regulation will be automatically detected and measures to support them, for example by optimizing instructional videos, shall be developed. The focus of the project is on the use of instructional videos in the subject of mathematics with different age groups and levels of difficulty. External cooperation partner: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Paleo-obstetric Understanding via Simulation and Heuristic Artificial Intelligence Tools
|
Dr. Nicole Webb |
2023
|
2025
|
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Human birth is risky, presenting hazards for both mother and child. This is due in part to the tight fit between the infant's head and the birth canal. The project will investigate the timing and evolutionary trajectory of this precarious birth process by investigating the size and shape of the hip bones, maternal metabolism, and bio-cultural factors (e.g., position of the mother’s body during labour). Through the application of machine learning methods, and via combining MRI scans, birth simulations and metabolic data derived from isotope-labeled water, the study plans to elucidate the complex origins of modern birth difficulty. Accordingly, the project offers the potential for novel evolutionary and clinical insights. External coopperation partners: Universität Zürich; Universität Aix-Marseille; Duke University
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Crafting Entanglements: Afro-Asian Pasts of the Global Cold War
|
Dr. Anandita Bajpai |
2023
|
2025
|
IRS,
ZMO,
ZZF
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
In the history of the Cold War, the global South often appears only as a theater of bloc politics between the East and West. Recent research has taken note of voices from Africa and Asia, yet little is known about their interconnections. To shed light on these, this project engages with students’ and women's networks, media entanglements enabled by radio stations and film festivals, and the divided city of Berlin as an arena of South-South interconnections. The focus will be on the entangled trajectories of Asian and African actors and how these were embedded in, but also, how they shaped the global Cold War. The aim is to contribute to a more inclusive historiography by relying on the framework of global-entangled histories.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
NewOrder - Understanding the erosion of the traditional knowledge order in scientific online discourse and its impact in times of crisis
|
Prof. Dr. Stefan Dietze |
2023
|
2025
|
GESIS,
IWM
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project examines the changing knowledge order of the digital society, in particular motivated through the increasingly controversial discourse about science in online news and social media. Especially in times of crisis, risks arise from over-simplification, generalization and instrumentalization of scientific knowledge. The experts from the fields of science communication, psychology and computer science analyze these phenomena with the help of big data and methods from the broader field of artificial intelligence. External cooperation partner: Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Excellence in Photonic Crystal Surface Emitting Lasers
|
Dr. Paul Crump |
2023
|
2025
|
FBH,
WIAS
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Semiconductor lasers are used in many areas of our daily lives, for example in printers, for reading and writing CDs, but also in microscopes or in communication devices. One problem with common semiconductor lasers is that they are now reaching their technical limits. In particular, it would be desirable to combine the advantages of the most commonly used types of these lasers, namely the high power of edge-emitting lasers (EEL) with the narrow vertical beam of vertical cavity surface emitting lasers (VCSEL). This is exactly what the collaborative project is planning. The "photonic crystal surface emitting laser (PCSEL)" will take the technology beyond its current limitations; the PSCEL promises to deliver many kilowatts of optical power in one beam directly from a semiconductor device. External cooperation partners: Center of Excellence (COE) for Photonic-Crystal Surface-Emitting Laser (PCSEL), Kyoto University, Japan
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Digital Inequalities. Divides, Hierarchies, and Boundaries in Germany, 1970s to 1990s
|
Dr. Michael Homberg |
2023
|
2025
|
GEI,
ZZF
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The digitalization of society with its far-reaching social, political, economic and cultural consequences is often told as a story of emancipation. However, this process has also created new dividing lines and hierarchies, which reproduce or exacerbate social inequalities and power imbalances. The project aims to explore these dark sides of digitalization that have been little addressed up to now and to analyze how partially hidden biases of technological systems play out in working worlds, in gender relations, in the education system and in migration regimes. External cooperation partner: Hochschule des Bundes für öffentliche Verwaltung (HS Bund)
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
The Senegal Migration Panel: Understanding Mobility in a Climate-Stressed Population
|
Dr. Maximiliane Sievert |
2023
|
2025
|
IfW Kiel,
PIK,
RWI
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
In an interdisciplinary team of economists, sociologist, and political scientist, the project plans to analyze the influence of climate change on attitudes towards migration and actual migration decisions using the example of Senegal. Via comprehensive surveys of individuals and households in 150 Senegalese villages, different factors influencing migration decisions will be analyzed: the relevance of extreme weather events, the role of local networks and their narratives about climate change, economic pressures as well as a change in the demand for skills by the labor market due to climate change. External cooperation partners: Universität Potsdam; Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel; Université Gaston Berger, Saint-Louis, Senegal; University of Washington; California Institute of Technology; Columbia University, New York City, New York; Initiative Pros-pective Agricole et Rurale (IPAR), Ngor, Dakar
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Adjustment and Radicalisation. Dynamics in Popular Culture(s) in Pre-War Eastern Europe
|
Dr. Matthias Schwartz |
2023
|
2025
|
GWZO,
ZZF,
ZfL
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine raises the question of how this escalation can be explained. The project starts from the observation that phenomena of popular culture such as pop music and television shows indicated political radicalization at an early stage. Thus, the project takes a look at the developments of popular cultures in five Eastern/Central European countries to examine how populist and nationalist worldviews and resentments spread, enabling political radicalization processes not only in Russia. The analysis focuses on different genres of popular culture in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Poland and Hungary from the 1980s until today. The dynamics of adaptation and protest as well as the instrumentalization of seemingly apolitical cultural products and practices - including those in the realm of counter-publics – by state and non-state actors will be analyzed. External cooperation partner: Universität Potsdam
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Imprinting of Adaptive Immunity by Cross-Reactivity
|
Dr. Andrey Kruglov |
2023
|
2025
|
DRFZ,
DSMZ,
FMP
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The microbiome - all microorganisms that live in a larger organism, for example humans - influences a large number of the physiological processes that take place in this larger organism. The collaborative project investigates whether and how the microbiome affects both how a protective immune response is triggered (using the example of a vaccination) and how it influences pathological reactions of our immune system (using the example of an autoimmune disease). The project promises insights into immune responses with potential applications in the therapeutic field, as well as possible fundamental explanations of how individual variations in immune responses can come about.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Stranded assets, financial constraints, and the distributional impacts of climate policy
|
Loriana Pelizzon |
2023
|
2025
|
SAFE
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Political measures that aim to reduce the private transport sector’s greenhouse gas emissions may have different economic effects on individuals from different socioeconomic backgrounds. These measures may, for example, reduce the value of emission-intensive used cars that are disproportionately owned by lower-income households. If climate protection measures pose a bigger burden on poorer households than on wealthier ones, this reduces their legitimacy and their acceptance. Quantifying these distributional effects helps to design distributional policies that better mitigate adverse effects for those affected and increase the social acceptance of the inevitable change. External cooperation partner: Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC) gGmbH
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
BIodiversity decline's Genomic FOOTprint
|
Dr. Astrid Böhne |
2023
|
2025
|
LIB (formerly ZFMK),
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The threat status or decline of animal species is usually recorded by classical censory approaches, but whether this decline has an impact on the genetic diversity of the threatened population remains an open question. Genetic information, however, could help to make predictions about species that are (yet to become) endangered. The collaborative project BIGFOOT plans to make these predictions by sequencing the genomes of threatened animal species in Germany. By analysing a taxonomically broad range of taxa - vertebrates, molluscs and insects - it should not only be possible to better understand the genetic causes of population collapse, but also to extrapolate predictions about biodiversity from Germany to a global scale. The project thus promises new and important information for the conservation and rescue of biological diversity. External cooperation partners: Universität zu Köln; Max Planck Genomzentrum Köln; Landesamt für Umweltschutz Sachsen-Anhalt, Halle; Bund für Umwelt- und Naturschutz Deutschland (BUND e. V.), BUND Landesverband NRW; Michael-Otto-Institut im NABU – Forschungs- und Bildungszentrum für Feuchtgebiete und Vogelschutz; Nationalpark Niedersächsisches Wattenmeer; Estación Biológica de Doñana (Doñana Biological Station)
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Uncovering the hidden biosynthetic potential of actinomycetes by SARP activation for drug discovery
|
Prof. Dr. Yvonne Mast |
2023
|
2025
|
DSMZ,
IPB
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Bacteria that develop resistance to today’s antibiotics are a major medical problem and although the need for new antimicrobial agents is high, their discovery and development is often difficult. The collaborative project at the interface of microbiology and biochemistry aims to discover and biochemically characterise new antibiotics. To this end, bacteria of the order Actinomycetales are to be studied. These bacteria produce antimicrobial agents themselves, the majority of antibiotics known today are produced by Actinomycetales. Their production is strongly regulated by the bacteria. By investigating these regulatory processes, the researchers hope to find unknown bioactive substances, which they then want to examine for their effect as potential new antibiotics. External cooperation partners: Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (HZI); BASF SE
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Stable isotope and AI supported model development for high frequency, cross scale water partitioning
|
Dr. Maren Dubbert |
2023
|
2025
|
IGB,
ZALF
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Soil, plants and the atmosphere form a continuum for transport processes. Studies on water transport must therefore take all these elements into account. An important factor is also the temporal dimension - for example, when analysing water transport in the soil and water uptake by plants after a heavy rainfall. The question is highly relevant, especially in view of an increase in extreme weather events due to climate change. However, research to date does not adequately cover temporal dimensions of few hours. This is where the project comes in: a combination of isotope methods, machine learning and hydrological modelling is used to examine feedbacks between hydrological events and reactions of the components of the water balance across scales. This should improve the identification of scale-dependent drivers of the water balance and their hierarchical understanding and allow extrapolation to larger systems and their reaction prediction. External cooperation partner: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Advanced Biomass-Treatment for Value-Added- Refinement
|
Prof. Dr. Jürgen F. Kolb |
2023
|
2025
|
ATB,
INP
|
Section E - Environmental Research,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Biological resources that can be used and reused sustainably have increasingly come into focus, especially in times of scarce raw materials and also with a view to climate change. The collaborative project, which brings together environmental science, physics and (bio)chemistry, plans to treat organic material from agriculture with a combination of physical plasma and ultrasound. This should allow the material to be broken down and fermented better, which in turn means improved fertiliser quality or a more efficient energy yield (for example in the production of biogas). The project can thus make a significant contribution to an improved circular bioeconomy. External cooperation partner: Universität Rostock
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Landscape Criticality in the Anthropocene - Biodiversity, Renewables and Settlements
|
Dr. Martin Behnisch |
2023
|
2025
|
IÖR,
PIK,
SGN
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
A key challenge in the transformation of society towards sustainability is land competition between human needs for settlements, energy and food while maintaining a functional biosphere. In the project, the permeability of built-up areas, in particular of wind and solar power plants, for wildlife is to be investigated. Data on the movement behavior of wildlife will be linked to the locations of energy plants and thus impermeability will be identified and ideas for increasing permeability will be developed. In a collaboration between spatial planning, physics and ecology, the project aims to contribute to identifying land use concepts that reconcile biodiversity conservation and climate mitigation.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
MAchine learning for Test Automation and Design-Optimization of Rf power transistors
|
Dr. Olof Bengtsson |
2023
|
2026
|
FBH
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Information and communication technology is responsible for a significant portion of global energy consumption. Particularly the power amplifier of the transmitter consumes a lot of energy, therefore there is a high demand for more efficient and less energy-consuming transistor technologies there. The development of such technologies is, however, slow. To speed up the development, the collaborative project will use methods of machine learning to automatize and improve several optimization steps within the process. The project will therefore contribute to speed up the development and eventually the market release of more efficient communication technologies. External cooperation partner: Technische Universität Berlin
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Modeling multiphase media in and around galaxies in a cosmological context
|
Dr. Rainer Weinberger |
2023
|
2027
|
AIP
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Galaxies are the large-scale building-blocks of the Universe. Their formation and evolution depend critically on internal, small-scale feedback: energetic processes in massive stars and active galactic nuclei drive a cycling of gas, both spatially and in its state, thereby affecting the overall evolution of the host galaxy. Making use of novel computational techniques, the Leibniz Junior Research Group led by Dr Rainer Weinberger studies this gas cycling in global models of galaxy formation. Using large-scale computer simulations, the group connects the complex physics of galactic gas with observational results, revealing how the Universe evolved into the state we can observe today.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Optical Lab for Lidar Applications
|
Dr. Moritz Haarig |
2023
|
2027
|
TROPOS (formerly IfT)
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
The project led by Dr Moritz Haarig deals with measurements of desert dust using LIDAR technology. Such mineral dust particles play an important role in atmospheric processes such as cloud formation and precipitation and influence the radiation budget of the Earth. The irregular shape of mineral dust particles makes it difficult to describe and predict their scattering properties. The project will establish a specialized laboratory to enable novel and highly relevant measurements in the exact backscatter direction, thus making important contributions in the areas of climate change and air quality.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Neural Mechanisms and Environmental Modifiers of Empathy and Prosocial Behaviour
|
Dr. Sanja Bauer Mikulovic |
2023
|
2027
|
LIN (formerly IfN)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Empathy and prosocial behaviour are centuries-old psychological concepts, traditionally attributed solely to humans. However, increasing research evidence shows that also animals and even rodents are capable of displaying empathy and prosocial behavior. Using tools of modern neuroscience, the junior research group led by Dr Bauer Mikulovic will first determine the factors that promote innate and learned prosocial behavior in mice, second identify the neural circuits that control cognitive and emotional aspects of prosocial behavior and third examine how stress and fear influence prosocial behavior in mice on a neuronal basis.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Following Complex Spin Structures in Time and Space
|
Dr. Daniel Schick |
2023
|
2027
|
MBI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
While magnetic nanostructures are at the heart of current and future data storage applications, already today researchers are incorporating ultrashort light pulses to increase the speed of these devices by a factor of 1000 and beyond. However, understanding and controlling the underlying processes requires access to magnetization profiles with high temporal and spatial resolution. Based on unique laser-driven soft X-ray sources, the Leibniz Junior Research Group of Dr Daniel Schick can now investigate such complex spin structures in small-scale laboratories as opposed to large-scale facilities, as was previously the case. This allows studying fundamental aspects of photoinduced spin dynamics in a variety of relevant nanostructures in a more systematic way than ever before.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
From phenome to genome: How exceptional novelties open the mechanisms of evolution
|
Prof. Dr. Julia Sigwart |
2023
|
2028
|
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
It is a central dogma of biology that the genetic information (the genome) of an organism constrains its morphological appearance (the phenome). Molluscs are the most diverse animal phylum, including forms from snails less than 1 millimeter to squids with a length of more than 15 meters, and many remarkable body forms. It is unclear what the genetic determinants of this disparity are. This project, led by Julia Sigwart, aims to use whole-genome sequencing to study how a limited genetic spectrum can give rise to such an astonishing morphological diversity. It will therefore generate new knowledge in the field of evolutionary biology and start answering the question of why organisms look the ways they do. Cooperating university: Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Ultrafast charge, spin, and nuclear dynamics in complex magnetic materials
|
Prof. Dr. Sangeeta Sharma |
2023
|
2028
|
MBI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The senses of smell and taste are crucial for food perception. Off-flavors, for example, warn us of the consumption of toxic and spoiled food. However, unpleasant or bitter tastes also often occur with plant proteins or health food additives, with a negative impact on their acceptance. This is a major problem for the food industry and the sustainable production of food. Dr. Antonella Di Pizio is therefore researching the molecular functions of odorant and taste receptors as part of the project she is leading, using the latest computer-aided analysis methods to find new ways of reducing off-flavors in health-promoting foods.
Technological advances are often presaged by the discovery of fundamental physics at smaller time and length scales. As a theoretical physicist, Sangeeta Sharma employs time-dependent density functional theory to explore magnetic solids at femtosecond time scales – one femtosecond is the billionths part of a millionths second. The goal is to establish key theoretical concepts and computation methods relevant for the emerging field of ultrafast magnetism. This will both lead to fundamental new knowledge in the field of theoretical physics, but also address key technological needs such as faster and more environmentally sustainable memory storage. Cooperating university: Freie Universität Berlin
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Leibniz Professorship for Computational Pharmacology at the Technical University of Munich
|
Prof. Dr. Antonella Di Pizio |
2023
|
2028
|
LSB (formerly DFA)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The senses of smell and taste are crucial for food perception. Off-flavors, for example, warn us of the consumption of toxic and spoiled food. However, unpleasant or bitter tastes also often occur with plant proteins or health food additives, with a negative impact on their acceptance. This is a major problem for the food industry and the sustainable production of food. Dr. Antonella Di Pizio is therefore researching the molecular functions of odorant and taste receptors as part of the project she is leading, using the latest computer-aided analysis methods to find new ways of reducing off-flavors in health-promoting foods. Cooperating university: Technische Universität München
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
nanoengineering of SUstainable PERovskites for SOLar cells
|
Prof. Dr. Yana Vaynzof |
2023
|
2028
|
IFW Dresden
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
External cooperation partner: Technische Universität Dresden
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Postdigital Participation (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Eckhardt Fuchs |
2023
|
|
DSM,
GEI
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The Leibniz ScienceCampus „Postdigital Participation (LSC PdP)“ focuses on societal participation in today’s ‘postdigital’ world, i.e. one in which our lives are embedded in hybrid assemblages of analogue and digital technologies and practices. A Social Living Lab will bring together cultural, social and technical sciences with local citizens to collaboratively design, explore and reflect on participation in education and urban life.
The LSC aims to establish a new and multidisciplinary research area, develop international scholarly networks, impact the local digital skills ecology and establish an active knowledge exchange programme to enliven public debates on the digital world. External cooperation partners: Technical University of Braunschweig; Braunschweig University of Art; Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences, Wolfenbüttel; Haus der Wissenschaft Braunschweig; Lower Saxony Ministry of Science and Culture Hannover
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
MannheimTaxation (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Christoph Spengel |
2023
|
|
ZEW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The MannheimTaxation Leibniz ScienceCampus draws on the combined expertise of the ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research and the University of Mannheim in the fields of company taxation, public finance and tax law. It intensifies the sharing of ideas between the participating researchers, promotes dialogue with academics and practitioners, and contributes to the training of young researchers.
A central topic is fiscal policy of the future in the context of European and global integration and the new challenges facing the economy and society as a whole. The aim of the interdisciplinary collaboration between economists, business management specialists, legal experts and political scientists is to develop policy options to help solve these challenges, while taking account of economic, legal, political and business concerns.
The MannheimTaxation Leibniz ScienceCampus provides for a close link between high-quality research work and the preparation and communication of research results for a range of audiences. External cooperation partner: University of Mannheim; Ministry of Science, Research and Arts
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Integrative Analysis of Pathogen-Induced Compartments (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Kay Grünewald |
2023
|
|
BNITM,
FZB,
LIV (formerly HPI)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The Leibniz ScienceCampus „InterACt“ investigates the interaction between pathogens such as viruses, bacteria and parasites and the affected host. During the cellular infection cycle, pathogens use the existing reaction spaces of the host or create new ones. These reaction spaces or „compartments“ protect the pathogens from the host's defenses and concentrate factors that contribute to the pathogen's multiplication. The dynamics, structure and function of these diverse reaction spaces is extremely complex and can only be analysed and understood in situ.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus has state-of-the-art imaging techniques at its disposal to analyse these processes. The resulting complex datasets are supplemented with data from complementary methods and integratively merged. The novel insights gained into pathogen compartments will ultimately help enable the discovery of innovative therapeutic approaches. InterACt provides the platform for combining Hamburg's expertise in the fields of infection, structural and systems biology with in situ imaging and bioinformatics methods. External cooperation partners: University of Hamburg (UHH); University Medical Center Hamburg Eppendorf (UKE); Centre for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB); The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Digital Transformation of Research
|
Prof. Dr. Franziska Boehm |
2023
|
|
FIZ KA
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Research results are increasingly being shaped by digitalisation processes - this applies both to research methods and to their communication in science and society. At the Leibniz ScienceCampus "Digital Transformation of Research (DiTraRe)", we are investigating the effects and potential of the increasing digitalisation of scientific work.
In four different research clusters, we investigate approaches based on use cases from different disciplines, and develop concrete solutions, which are then generalised together. The "Protected Data Spaces" cluster is dedicated to the handling of sensitive data in sports science. "Smart Data Acquisition" deals with intelligent data acquisition using the example of "smart laboratories" in chemistry. The "AI-based Knowledge Realms" cluster is researching the effects of artificial intelligence in biomedical engineering. We are furthermore investigating the influence of new forms of publications based on large amounts of data using the example of climate research in the "Publication Cultures" cluster. At a meta-level, we reflect on the effects of digitalisation on the security of scientific work as well as the changed perception within and outside the scientific system. External cooperation partner: Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
GeoGenomic Archaeology Campus Tübingen: Diachronic impacts of humans on ecosystems using caves as models
|
Prof. Dr. Cosimo Posth |
2023
|
|
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Caves provided early humans with easily accessible living space and protection from rain, wind and cold. But numerous species - from microbes to large mammals - also found shelter here. Caves were probably the first ecosystems to be profoundly altered by human activity. The Leibniz ScienceCampus "Geogenomic Archaeology Campus Tübingen (GACT)" investigates the interaction of humans with cave ecosystem from the Pleistocene to the present day.
Archaeological and palaeoecological studies have shown that even ancient hunter-gatherer groups played a substantial role in the global distribution of species and in the shaping and management of their environments. GACT brings together archaeologists, geneticists, microbiologists, geochemists, geoecologists, paleontologists, and paleoclimatologists, among others, with the ultimate goal of using ancient DNA recovered from cave deposits to investigate human interaction with, and impact on, past ecosystems through time.
In order to achieve this goal, GACT will establish new molecular, computational, geochemical and geoarchaeological methods to analyze sedimentary sequences recovered from the investigated caves. The topic is also attracting general interest among non-scientists, as climate change and biodiversity loss are currently the subject of increasing public debate. External cooperation partners: University of Tübingen; Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen; Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities; Baden-Württemberg State Ministry for Science, Research and the Arts
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Leibniz ScienceCampus Bremen Digital Public Health (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Hajo Zeeb |
2023
|
|
BIPS
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
‘Digitalisation permeates every aspect of life and will transform public health’. Such phrases are ubiquitous and underline the key challenge in digital public health: the use of digital technology is driven by technical opportunities rather than by demands. While this can lead to useful applications, it can also lead to technologies that fail to realize the key objectives of evidence-based public health and pose novel ethical, sociocultural and equity-related challenges.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus "Digital Public Health" aims to develop a much-needed public health perspective on these challenges. Its activities focus on three key outcomes: a systematic framework to integrate digital technology into public health, guidance on developing digital technology for public health problems as well as the scope and methods for the systematic evaluation of digital technology in public health. After our first phase, in which we focused on researching concepts and applications of digital public health, we are now entering a new chapter: in the second phase, we will focus on putting our findings into practice. We are also continuing our successful Early Career Researcher Academy. External cooperation partners: University of Bremen; University of Oldenburg; OFFIS - Institute for Information Technology; Fraunhofer MEVIS: Institute for Digital Medicine; Federal State of Bremen, The Senator for Science and ports Bremen
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Targeted delivery of therapeutics to the brain: advancing translational nanomedicine to decode, prevent, and fight mental disorders
|
Prof. Dr. Marianne Müller |
2023
|
|
LIR
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Globally, an estimated five percent of the adult population suffer from depression. In addition to the acute mental limitations of depressive disorders, they can also have a negative impact on physical health as well, for example, increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. The health-economic consequences associated with such conditions pose significant challenges, particularly in current times of crisis. However, the development of novel therapeutic approaches is complicated by challenges such as unexplored molecular mechanisms in the brain and overcoming the so-called blood-brain barrier.
This is precisely where the Leibniz ScienceCampus "Targeted delivery of therapeutics to the brain (NanoBrain)" comes into play: The goal is to develop conceptually new, innovative, and highly specific approaches for the prevention and treatment of central nervous system disorders. In pursuit of this goal, specific questions are at the forefront of research activities: Which mechanisms in the brain are responsible for depressive disorders and are suitable to be targeted? Can these mechanisms be targeted by mRNA-based therapies? How can novel therapeutics be successfully delivered to the brain in a targeted manner? Is it possible for them to act only in selected brain regions, thereby reducing side effects? External cooperation partners: Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz; University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz; Max-Planck-Institute for Polymer Research; TRON Translational Oncology Mainz; The Institute of Molecular Biology (IMB)
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
(Leibniz-)Platform for Advancing and Supporting Visitor Research in Museums
|
Prof. Dr. Olaf Köller |
2023
|
2025
|
DBM,
DIE,
DM,
DSM,
GNM,
IPN,
IWM,
LEIZA (formerly RGZM),
LIB (formerly ZFMK),
LifBi,
MfN,
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Surveys of museum visitors are necessary so that museums can assess which population groups use their offerings in which way and how attractive and effective their exhibitions and other activities are. In collaboration with the eight Leibniz Research Museums a digital platform for planning, conducting and evaluating visitor research is developed. It is planned as an overarching infrastructure that also enables cross-museum comparisons. External cooperation partners: Technische Universität München; KulMon - KulturMonitoring zur Besucher*innenforschung; The Collaboration for Ongoing Visitor Experience Studies (COVES); Institut für Museumsforschung, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin – Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz (IfM); DASA – Arbeitswelt Ausstellung
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Leibniz-Operations of the Incubator for Antibacterial Therapies in Europe (INCATE) - A Transnational Initiative to Promote Innovation and Ecosystems in the Fight against Antimicrobial Resistance
|
Dr. Sina Gerbach |
2023
|
2025
|
HKI
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Resistant bacterial pathogens pose a major threat to health systems worldwide. In order to fight infectious diseases effectively also in future, there is an urgent need for new active substances and concepts. However, their development is a challenge; only few substances actually make it to market. As a transnational incubator for antimicrobial therapies, the transfer project plans to support researchers on their way to develop novel assets and eventually build spin-offs. The project is intended to make a significant contribution to closing the gap between the identification of new potential therapeutics and their clinical use. External cooperation partners: Universität Basel; Deutsches Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (DZIF)
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Communication toolbox for engaging and aiding women in pension planning
|
Andreas Hackethal |
2023
|
2025
|
SAFE,
ZEW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
In Germany, women currently obtain 40 percent less pension income than men. In collaboration with media companies, corporate partners and financial institutions, the project aims to create a communication toolbox that will inform women on the state of their retirement income and incentivise them to boost their pension planning activities. Academic insights on financial literacy and investment biases of women, especially with regard to pension decisions, shall be used to create the toolbox. In addition, a retirement planning app will be used in the field studies. The toolbox and app will be used to suggest a range of strategies that women can pursue to close the high income gap in retirement. External cooperation partner: Universität Mannheim
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
GreenProtect - a Sustainable Release System to Produce More Healthy Food with Less Pesticide
|
Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schwaneberg |
2023
|
2025
|
DWI,
IPB
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering,
Section C - Life Sciences
|
In order to be able to feed the world's population in the future, crop yields must be significantly increased in the coming decades. To sustainably preserve livelihoods and produce healthy food, the use of fungicides and herbicides must be significantly reduced as well. This requires new approaches that allow active substances to be specifically attached to plant surfaces and to adjust their release according to application demands. This is where the transfer project comes in, by bringing together fundamental findings from materials science, chemistry and biotechnology: thereby biodegradable containers, so-called microgels, which are decorated with adhesion binding peptides and can universally be loaded with active ingredients such as fertilisers or pesticides, enable a rainfasten binding and targeted application to desired plant organs. In this way, the absolute consumption of active ingredients and the required application cycles can significantly be reduced. Complete biodegradability is also ensured so that no microplastic is released into the environment. After the scientific concepts have been secured, a technology transfer up to commercial implementation is to take place.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Adaptive Laser Additive Manufacturing of Novel Steels for Customized Tooling and Bearing Applications
|
Prof. Dr. Julia Kristin Hufenbach |
2023
|
2025
|
IFW Dresden
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Metallic components can be produced by additive manufacturing processes such as the widely used "Laser Powder Bed Fusion" (LPBF). In this process, the layer-by-layer application of a powder, local melting by a laser and subsequent solidification of the material enables the toolless manufacturing of near-net-shape components. The transfer project plans to develop forming tools and rolling bearings by LPBF from novel high-carbon steel powders, which is supported by various industrial partners. This new approach would make it possible to realize geometrically complex components with integrated functionality and to largely do without extensive forming processes that are practically unfeasible for some materials.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Learning Resilience: Supporting neuronal network state transitions to foster stress resilience
|
Prof. Dr. Albrecht Stroh |
2022
|
2024
|
LIN (formerly IfN),
LIR
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Resilience as the ability to prevail in the face of hardships and to adapt to change is a key factor determining the individual's welfare. The initial assumption of the project is that resilience is not a characteristic of specific individuals, but a general ability of brains to return from an unbalanced state to a balanced state. For this purpose, the brain's ability to learn is crucial. The collaboration will determine the influence of learning on resilient behavior by generating molecular, neurophysiological and behavioral data in combination with functional imaging of the brain in mice. These highly complex data sets will be analyzed by artificial intelligence methods and will form the basis for subsequent pharmacological interventions. External cooperation partners: Universitätsmedizin der Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz; Max-Planck-Institut für Hirnforschung, Frankfurt am Main; Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg; Universitätsklinikum Bonn
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Memristive Materials by Design
|
Dr. Martin Albrecht |
2022
|
2024
|
IKZ
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
We are encountering applications of artificial intelligence in more and more areas of everyday life. Requirements of such products for computer architecture are a challenge for developers and researchers: computers, for example for self-driving vehicles, should be efficient, compact in size and sustainable. This project combines classical materials science with the latest methods of data-based science and machine learning to develop tailored materials for these applications or to optimize existing materials. They will enable a revolutionary computer architecture that mimics the neural structure of the human brain, contributing to the sustainable application of novel technologies. External cooperation partners: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck Gesellschaft
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Transnational Families, Farms and Firms: Migrant Entrepreneurs in Kosovo and Serbia from the 1960s to today
|
Prof. Dr. Ulf Brunnbauer |
2022
|
2024
|
IAMO,
IOS
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Serbia and Kosovo, like the entire former Yugoslavia, are consistently shaped by migration. The socio-economic effects of emigration and return are usually studied using quantitative methods and mainly in terms of their influence on the overall economic development of the sending states. This project will employ a qualitative-exploratory approach and a focus on entrepreneurial activities to explore how the economic strategies of migrants and their families in Serbia and Kosovo have changed since the 1970s and differ regionally as well as along different social milieus. This will allow for a more nuanced and comprehensive analysis of migrant activities and their connection with political interventions. External cooperation partners: Europa-Universität Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder); Institute of Economic Sciences Belgrade, Center for Economic History (CEI), Serbia; Riinvest College, Prishtine, Kosovo; Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, Bonn und Eschborn; Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia, Budapest, Hungary
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Unlocking Collection Treasures: Accessing Museum Samples for Long Read Sequencing and Genomic Analyses
|
Prof. Dr. Michael Hiller |
2022
|
2024
|
IZW,
LIB (formerly ZFMK),
MfN,
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
DNA sequencing has become an indispensable tool for answering questions about the evolution of species as well as the changes occurring in single genes over long periods of time. Sequencing technology has made enormous progress within the last years, however access to samples remains a bottleneck, especially when the study subjects are endangered or already extinct species. Museum samples might provide a solution to this problem, but the variable conditions of such samples pose new challenges to research. This project aims to overcome these challenges. By an in-depth characterization and standardization of best practices and methods researchers will fundamentally contribute to making museum samples accessible for genetic analysis, which will allow to find answers to open questions in evolution biology. External cooperation partner: Max-Planck-Institut für molekulare Zellbiologie und Genetik, Dresden
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
(Si,Ge,Sn)O2-based ultra-wide bandgap semiconductors for power electronics
|
Dr. Oliver Bierwagen |
2022
|
2024
|
FBH,
IKZ,
PDI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
A major challenge for a sustainable society is to ensure an economical consumption of energy. Electrical energy is a major part of today’s energy consumption and its fraction will continue to grow with increasing electromobility and digitalization of societies worldwide. This project aims to investigate novel semiconductor materials and their applications in power electronics for the development of more efficient high voltage transformers. Such devices are ubiquitously used in the electrical grid as well as electro mobility. By increasing their efficiency this project might constitute a pathway to energy saving and thus provide a significant contribution to a sustainable digital society.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
A translational non-human primate model for preclinical testing of gene therapy of OTOF-related deafness
|
Prof. Dr. Rüdiger Behr |
2022
|
2024
|
DPZ
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Gene therapy summarizes processes where the delivery of nucleic acids into a diseased organism can correct or replace a malfunctioning gene and thereby cure diseases with a genetic cause. Gene therapy is precise and offers sustained rescue of cellular function. Such therapies therefore have enormous medical potential. This project will fundamentally contribute to the endeavour to cure hereditary deafness. The researchers will perform pre-clinical studies where they replace a mutated version of the gene Otoferlin (whose mutation is responsible for a prominent form of genetic deafness) with a functional copy in deaf non-human primates. By doing so they will restore hearing capacity of the animals and pave the way for gene therapy in deaf patients. External cooperation partners: Max-Planck-Institut für Experimentelle Medizin; Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Universitätsmedizin Göttingen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
UV Lasers: From Modeling and Simulation to Technology
|
Dr. Thomas Koprucki |
2022
|
2024
|
FBH,
IKZ,
WIAS
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
We see examples of optical technologies in many aspects of everyday life, including communication technology, medical diagnostics, or microscopy. Specifically, lasers emitting in the UV-C spectral range have a huge potential for novel applications in those fields. The existing UV-C laser systems are bulky, short lived and rely on time-consuming maintenance. However, robust and compacted-sized UV-C-emitting laser diodes as a disruptive technology would change paradigms in many areas of life sciences and medicine. External cooperation partners: Technische Universität Berlin; Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Political polarization and individualized online information environments: A longitudinal tracking study
|
Dr. Lisa Merten |
2022
|
2024
|
GESIS,
HBI
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Discussions on "filter bubbles" and echo chambers have gained in importance with Web 2.0, characterized by individualized and user-generated content. A frequent assumption is that individual media use of a person is related to the formation of political opinion and attitudes and that the high-choice environment of news coverage increases political polarization in a society. Empirically, however, this link is insufficiently substantiated. In the long-term study with 1500 persons, web tracking analyses are used to investigate the information behavior of the subjects and the effects on political opinion formation are explored through surveys. External cooperation partners: Universität Bremen; Universität Konstanz
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Linking pathology and lifestyle to epigenetic determinants of biological vs. chronological stem cell aging
|
Dr. Björn von Eyss |
2022
|
2024
|
DIfE,
FLI
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Ageing leaves traces in our DNA. These traces, co-called DNA methylations, can be read by researchers to accurately determine an organism’s age. However, the determination of an organism’s age alone is not a proof that methylation itself directly affects the process of ageing. This project aims to find exactly these causal connections between DNA methylation and ageing. The researchers will focus on hematopoietic stem cells, which give rise to immune cells. Immune cells are a particular example of cells that lose their functions in ageing organisms. Therefore, the project will contribute significantly to our understanding of ageing processes and to the development of therapeutic interventions. External cooperation partner: Universitätsmedizin Greifswald
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Confronting Decline: Challenges of Deindustrialization in Western Societies since the 1970s
|
Dr. Martina Steber |
2022
|
2024
|
DIE,
DIW,
IfL,
IfZ
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Deindustrialization, the massive decline of industrial production and thus of infrastructure and jobs in a region, is usually associated with loss and decline. The project will investigate which coping strategies actors have developed for dealing with the challenges of deindustrialization and how these strategies often gave rise to new, dynamic processes of transformation in the long term. The project will also scrutinize the interplay between local and global dynamics. To this aim, the Leibniz Institute for Contemporary History cooperates with three other Leibniz institutes and several national and international experts. External cooperation partners: University of Luxembourg, Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Abundance and Fate of Synthetic Materials in Atmospheric sub-10 µm Particles
|
Prof. Dr. Hartmut Herrmann |
2022
|
2024
|
IPF,
TROPOS (formerly IfT)
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Depositions of microplastics are a risk for ecosystems as well as our health. Many studies investigate the occurrence of microplastics in water. This project has the ambitious goal to analyze whether microplastics are also deposited in the atmosphere as aerosols and in what quantity this might be the case. Atmospheric microplastic particles might act as condensation cores which could influence atmospheric processes. Because this area is understudied, the researches will have to develop novel analysis methods. They will also identify the sources of atmospheric microplastic deposits and their results will contribute substantially to our understanding of the risks of microplastics in the atmosphere. External cooperation partners: Helmholtz-Zentrum für Umweltforschung - UFZ; Technische Universität Berlin; Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
The 20th Century in Basic Concepts
|
Prof. Dr. Ernst Müller |
2022
|
2024
|
IDS,
ZZF,
ZfL
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The 20th century is a terrain still to be measured in terms of conceptual history. In a lexicon of the basic concepts of this century, the political-social and cultural semantics in Germany are to be analyzed by a cooperation of historically working scholars of the cultural, linguistic and social sciences. The project sees itself as an interdisciplinary research endeavor oriented towards the history of knowledge and social history, which is by no means intended to merely codify established knowledge, but rather to experimentally serve basic research in the humanities, cultural studies, social sciences and history. For the first time, digital methods are to be applied on a broad scale in conceptual history research. External cooperation partner: Universität Hamburg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Raman-induced Attosecond Electronic Coherences
|
Dr. Arnaud Rouzée |
2022
|
2024
|
MBI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The understanding of dynamical processes in molecules relies on our ability to resolve the change of the electronic structure and the concomittant nuclear rearrangement with very high spatio-temporal resolution. Coherent electron dynamics in molecules occur on attosecond timescale (a billionth of a billionth of a second) and require very specific tools to be investigated experimentally. This project will develop and use novel laser-based technologies to trigger and observe in real-time ultrafast charge transfer processes in photoexcited molecules. These studies aim to provide new insights into the fundamental mechanisms underlying ultrafast chemical reactions.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Amorphous silica in soils and plants Improves Drought stress tolerance of crops
|
Dr. Jörg Schaller |
2022
|
2024
|
IPK,
ZALF
|
Section E - Environmental Research,
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Periods of extreme drought are increasingly becoming a threat to ecosystems and agriculture worldwide. It is possible to reduce drought stress in plants by supplementing fertilizers with amorphous silica. However, it is unclear how this silica reduces drought stress. The project will use a broad approach of field studies and laboratory-based experiments to study this question. Specialists from various fields – soil experts as well as plant physiology researchers – will join forces to find answers to the agriculturally as well as economically highly relevant question how plants resist drought. External cooperation partner: Institute of Applied Plant Nutrition (IAPN), Göttingen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Machine Learning for Simulation Intelligence in Composite Process Design
|
Dr. David May |
2022
|
2024
|
IPF,
IVW,
WIAS
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Fiber-reinforced polymers are composite materials made of fibers and a surrounding matrix. Due to their outstanding lightweight potential, they are applied in numerous areas of everyday life, from aerospace, automotive and construction to energy and medical technology. This wide range of applications seconds the importance of constantly improving the materials and the processes used to produce them. The project aims to achieve both by using machine learning methods in order to enable more efficient and accurate component or process simulations. External cooperation partners: Deutsche Forschungszentrum für Künstliche Intelligenz GmbH; Fraunhofer-Institut für Techno- und Wirtschaftsmathematik
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Rural well-being in transition: multidimensional drivers and effects on (im)mobility
|
Dr. Antje Jantsch |
2022
|
2026
|
IAMO
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Europe's rural areas are threatened by a vicious cycle of out-migration and ageing: as populations decrease, the well-being of those who stay back often declines, which further fuels out-migration. The junior research group led by Dr Antje Jantsch is investigating the link between (im)mobility and rural well-being by adding a new lens: the concept of place attachment. A multidimensional well-being index will be further developed and adapted to better capture the complexity of well-being through the inclusion of the concept of place attachment. In this way, (im)mobility in selected rural regions in Germany and Southeastern Europe can be better understood and explained.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Breaking the limits in faba bean (Vicia faba L.) research: improving its nutritional value for reduced dependence on imported protein and promoting eco-friendly farming in Europe
|
Dr. Murukarthick Jayakodi |
2022
|
2026
|
IPK
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Technological advances are often presaged by the discovery of fundamental physics at smaller time and length scales. As a theoretical physicist, Sangeeta Sharma employs time-dependent density functional theory to explore magnetic solids at femtosecond time scales – one femtosecond is the billionths part of a millionths second. The goal is to establish key theoretical concepts and computation methods relevant for the emerging field of ultrafast magnetism. This will both lead to fundamental new knowledge in the field of theoretical physics, but also address key technological needs such as faster and more environmentally sustainable memory storage. Cooperating university: Freie Universität Berlin
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Computational Study of Iron-Oxo Complexes: Reactivity of (Artificial) Metalloenzymes and Biomimetic Complexes
|
Dr. Olga Bokareva |
2022
|
2026
|
LIKAT
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Specific activation of Carbon-Hydrogen bonds (C-H bonds) represents an attractive opportunity for industrial applications, such as the synthesis of complex polymers or drug development, but it is a challenging task to achieve in a laboratory setting. Some enzymes existing in nature are able to do exactly this, they efficiently and specifically activate C-H bonds. The junior research group led by Dr. Milica Feldt will make use of such enzymes: by studying existing systems the group wants to gather information how to optimize the process of C-H activation in the laboratory. By using theoretical modelling approaches focusing on C-H oxidation systems the group aims to understand the underlying mechanisms of catalysis and will translate these findings into future applications.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Mouthfeel - How texture makes flavor: Probing and manipulating nanobiophysical properties of mouthfeel in flavor perception
|
Dr. Melanie Köhler |
2022
|
2026
|
LSB (formerly DFA)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Although the consumption of low-fat dairy products can be beneficial to health, their texture however, is often perceived as less pleasant. In addition to the specific taste and smell of a food, the perception of the texture is decisive for the comprehensive taste sensation. How exactly the texture influences the perception of taste and eventually makes flavor, however, has not yet been researched. The junior research group led by Melanie Köhler is therefore investigating the molecular foundations that influence the perception of food texture. This involves combining findings and methods from biophysics and food science. The results are intended to contribute to the development of novel low-fat and likewise tasty foods that promote healthy eating habits.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Additive manufacturing of graded structures from iron-based shape memory alloys
|
Dr. Anastasiya Tönjes |
2022
|
2026
|
IWT
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Shape memory alloys are metallic materials that return to their undeformed shape when heated after being plastically deformed. The project of the Junior Research Group led by Dr. Anastasiya Tönies is based on a novel 3D printing method for locally adjusting the alloy composition during the laser powder bed fusion process. This enables the production of components with a tailored, graded alloy composition and opens up entirely new possibilities for the manufacturing of cost-efficient, innovative, lightweight and smart components. The methodology will also be transferred to other functional materials in collaboration with partners from science and industry. Based on this project, a methodology will be provided to investigate a large number of alloy variations with unprecedented material efficiency.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
The Gender Wealth Gap: Participation in Financial Markets
|
Prof. Dr. Christine Laudenbach |
2022
|
2027
|
SAFE
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
A striking finding in household finance research is the low participation rate in capital markets, particularly in Germany, despite the high equity premium (“equity premium puzzle”). This cannot be explained by high relative risk aversion. Stock market participation is especially low among women, who are, at the same time, more financially fragile than men. In a project in the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors, Professor Christine Laudenbach wants to better understand the causes for the low participation rates in capital markets among women and to use the insights to test ways to overcome causes that are not motivated by differences in (risk) preferences, but by knowledge gaps and confidence, misperceptions or behavioral mistakes. Cooperating university: Goethe Universität Frankfurt
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Navigating the digital everyday life: Elderly participants’ use of mundane technologies in and for social interaction
|
Prof. Dr. Florence Oloff |
2022
|
2026
|
IDS
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Digital technologies have the potential to support the everyday lives of older people in a number of different ways by, for instance, opening up new ways of participating in society. The project is investigating how older people actually use these technologies and the associated social interactions. For instance, the researchers plan to find out what appropriation strategies are used by older people and what problems they encounter when using digital technologies. The selection of case studies makes it possible to compare usage in social, learning and family contexts. Cooperating university: Universität Mannheim
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Integrated cropping systems analysis: methods and models for climate risk and adaptation assessments
|
Prof. Dr. Heidi Webber |
2022
|
2026
|
ZALF
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Across world regions, farmers are exposed to a range of risks due to extreme weather events, pest infestations, price shocks and labour shortages. Managing these risks requires that farmers reduce their impacts as well as have sufficient savings or insurance to allow them to withstand shocks. However, given the range of challenges facing agriculture, they must also be able to take prudent and informed risks as they try new practices supporting sustainable development of farming operations. This project plans to carry out a detailed investigation of methods and models for identifying risk management options to support farmers in making their farms more sustainable in the context of climate change. Cooperating university: BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Leibniz Professorship for Evolutionary Ethology at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
|
Prof. Dr. Mirjam Knörnschild |
2022
|
2027
|
MfN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Culture, that is, socially learned behaviors that are passed on from generation to generation, is not unique to humans but also found in non-human animals. Mirjam Knörnschild is interested in the question of whether animal culture can have an influence on speciation. The extensive animal sound archive of the Museum für Naturkunde – Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science will be used in the project to investigate acoustic communication in bats. This promises insights into culturally transmitted song in bats and the relationship between social and vocal complexity. Machine learning methods will be applied to detect and analyze acoustic patterns in bat songs. Cooperating university: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
|
| Leibniz Research Alliances |
Leibniz Research Alliance Resilient Ageing
|
Prof. Dr. Oliver Tüscher, Prof. Dr. Helen Morrison |
2022
|
2026
|
BIPS,
DDZ,
DIW,
DIfE,
FLI,
IGB,
IUF,
IZW,
IfADo,
IfW Kiel,
LIN (formerly IfN),
LIR,
SGN,
WZB
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering,
Section E - Environmental Research,
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
How can people remain healthy into old age and continue to take part in the life of society? In view of demographic trends, this is a highly relevant challenge in terms of health science and socioeconomics. Until now, ageing research in Germany has concentrated on understanding and treating diseases associated with ageing. By contrast, the Leibniz Research Alliance on Resilient Ageing takes a health-oriented view, pursuing a paradigm shift towards researching mechanisms that will allow people to remain as functionally healthy as possible, despite advancing ageing processes, so that they can continue to play a part in life physically, mentally and socially into old age. The research of resilience mechanisms in old age focuses on investigating adaptive plasticity phenomena and metabolic processes during ageing. The idea is to bring together highly complex research data from a wide range of areas within the institutes and to make it usable with the help of a joint digital analysis platform. Researchers from the fields of medicine, psychology, the natural sciences, sociology and economics bring their own perspectives to the interdisciplinary alliance.
|
| Leibniz Research Alliances |
Leibniz Research Alliance Advanced Materials Safety
|
Prof. Dr. Andreas Fery |
2022
|
2025
|
DM,
DWI,
FIZ KA,
INM,
IPB,
IPF,
IPN,
IUF,
IWM,
IWT,
IfADo,
ZMT
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section E - Environmental Research,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Advanced materials are key to the creation of innovative products and technologies ranging from catalysis, green hydrogen generation, energy storage to biomedical applications. These applications require materials which combine different nanoscopic and/or microscopic building blocks, e.g., doped and core-shell nanoparticles and high-performance fibres, into hierarchical hybrid materials. This combination of micro- and nanoscale sized building blocks as well as the compositional material heterogeneity can impose new risks during their life cycle, e.g., by decomposition into different nanoparticles, microplastic or hybrid components and subsequent release of harmful constituents. To ensure sustainable innovations, the potential risks imposed by such complex materials need to be identified and understood timely over the whole production-application cycle up to the end of their life cycle. Close collaboration between researchers from different disciplines is necessary for achieving safe and sustainable innovations. Specific case studies will be addressed in a joint framework of graduate training and exchange. The project will be supported by the development of a FAIR-compatible research data infrastructure that addresses the needs of materials safety research. In order to be able to do justice to the complexity of the project, the research alliance brings together researchers from Leibniz Institutes with different areas of expertise: Materials Science, Biology and Toxicology, Computer Science, Educational Science and Science Communication.
External cooperation partner: Universität Bayreuth
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Multiphasic hydrogels for high throughput human in vitro tissue and disease models
|
Prof. Dr. Carsten Werner |
2022
|
2024
|
DWI,
INM,
IPF
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Toxicological studies or drug development require adequate methodologies for testing compounds systematically for their toxicity or efficacy. This is a challenge for research: the infrastructure has to be cost efficient, allow a high troughput and still deliver medically meaningful conclusions. This transfer project aims to find solutions to these challenges. The project aims to create 3D tissue models by automated high throughput processes; these models will be useful for toxicological and pharmacological studies. The project therefore contributes to the reduction of animal testing and will provide highly valuable technology to use for various applications in the biomedical sector.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Inclusion of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in School
|
Prof. Dr. Marcus Hasselhorn |
2022
|
2024
|
DIPF
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
In German schools both knowledge of and resources for supporting children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are low compared to anglophone countries. To contribute to solving this problem, the project will develop three components for long-term use: A learning platform for teachers, a (self-)assessment tool that taps teachers’ knowledge, beliefs, and motivation regarding teaching students with ASD and a smartphone app for identifying individual barriers to learning. The project team is collaborating with a network and schools with ASD expertise to be relevant for and close to school practice.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Transfer of Urban Sustainability Transition Knowledge: Towards Climate-Neutral Cities 2030 - The City of Görlitz as a Pilot
|
Dr. Markus Egermann |
2022
|
2024
|
IÖR
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
In 2020, the city of Görlitz decided to achieve climate neutrality by 2030. The implementation of this goal requires fundamental, interrelated transformations in many different policy domains and sectors of society. The transdisciplinary project aims at co-producing visions, pathways and innovation-oriented experiments for this transformation-oriented change together with stakeholders from the public sector, businesses, civil society and science. The results shall be transferable to other cities. External cooperation partners: Stadt Görlitz; Stadtwerke Görlitz AG; Görlitz für Familie e.V.; Second Attempt e.V.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Transfer for Transformation - Knowledge Exchange with Global Reach
|
Prof. Dr. Amrita Narlikar |
2022
|
2024
|
GIGA (formerly DÜI)
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Among the harsh lessons of the pandemic, a powerful one is on the importance of effective knowledge transfer. How governments make use of scientific findings, and whether electorates accept policy measures, depends on the exchange between scholars, policy-makers, media, and the public. The German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA)/ Leibniz-Institut für Globale und Regionale Studien seeks to get to the heart of this process. Besides innovating in the practice of knowledge transfer through its target-group-integration and novel access strategies (including translation and visualization), the project also contributes to scholarship on this subject. The T4T application lab will enable the GIGA to categorize and analyze why, and under what conditions, some forms of transfer are more impactful than others. External cooperation partner: Auswärtiges Amt
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Novel ultrafast and versatile two photon excitation microscope for imaging of BSL3 pathogens
|
Dr. Roland Thünauer |
2022
|
2024
|
BNITM,
HKI,
LIV (formerly HPI)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Multiphoton microscopy led to a breakthrough in imaging of living organisms by providing enhanced penetration depth into tissue and high three-dimensional resolution. Multiphoton microscopes allow for example the investigation of infection processes in living organisms in real time, which is extremely useful for biomedical research. Currently available multiphoton microscopes require time-consuming maintenance, which makes their operation in laboratories of higher biosafety levels difficult. This transfer project will develop an ultrafast two photon excitation microscope that is optimized for biosafety level 3 (BSL3) labs. This will advance studies of highly infectious pathogens and therefore lead to important new discoveries and potential treatment options. External cooperation partners: Universität zu Lübeck; Medizinisches Laserzentrum Lübeck GmbH
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Learning Progression Analytics - Analyzing Learning for Individualized Competence development in mathematics and science Education
|
Prof. Dr. Knut Neumann |
2021
|
2023
|
DIPF,
IPN,
IWM
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The Covid-19 pandemic has made online teaching necessary in many places. But irrespective of the pandemic, digital formats offer new possibilities for teaching and learning. The project will investigate how data produced through the use of digital tools in mathematics and science instruction can be used obtain information about individual students’ learning trajectories and its relevance for their competence development. Such information would allow for individualizing instruction and hence an optimised competence development. The project combines basic with applied research. External cooperation partners: Ruhr-Universität Bochum; Carnegie Mellon University; University College London
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Defect-engineering in graphene via focused ion beam for tailored van der Waals epitaxy of h-BN
|
Dr. J. Marcelo Lopes |
2021
|
2023
|
FBH,
PDI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Electronic components and sensors have become an indispensable part of everyday life: mobile phones, televisions and cars all need precise, lightweight, stable and inexpensive electronics. Two-dimensional, ultra-thin (atomically thin) layers are essential for these applications and the controlled manufacture of them is indispensable for the functionality and progress of our digital world. This basic research project looks at a novel manufacturing method for atomically thin, defect-free layer systems using focused ion beams supported by computer-based predictions of their electronic properties, as well as first attempts to implement them in electronic components. External cooperation partners: Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf; Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Light-driven molecular machines in active materials
|
Prof. Dr. Aránzazu del Campo Bécares |
2021
|
2023
|
DWI,
INM
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Biological motion has been researched in increasing detail over time: from physiological motion studies to research into muscle building and biochemical signalling pathways in individual cells. Simulating systems like these that react to external stimuli first requires the development of novel biomechanics methods and synthetic subcellular machines that – like muscle fibres, for instance – react to impulses and switch between two states. The team is focusing on synthetic light-driven materials to answer numerous fundamental biological research questions from mechanoreception in biology to drug development. External cooperation partner: University of Strasbourg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Distributional effects of macroeconomic policies in Europe
|
Prof. Dr. Alexander Kriwoluzky |
2021
|
2023
|
DIW,
IWH
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Policy measures at EU level are intended to secure the stability of the European Economic and Monetary Union, among other things. This includes, for example, the establishment of the European Reconstruction Fund, which can be a first step towards a fiscal union in the eurozone. The project is investigating how this and other economic policy measures impact inequality between households. The results will lead to practical conclusions that can inform European policies, including in relation to the debate concerning how to deal with the economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic. External cooperation partners: Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn; Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Functional architecture of the nucleus of malaria parasites
|
Dr. Tobias Spielmann |
2021
|
2023
|
BNITM
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
With around 200 million cases each year, malaria is one of the most common infectious diseases in the world. The symptoms, which include high, recurrent (remittent) fever, chills, gastrointestinal complaints and cramps, are caused by single-celled parasites that enter the human body through mosquito bites. The team wants to understand the structure of the parasite, in particular the architecture of the cell nucleus, the organism’s 'control room'. The findings from this research that will be gained from the study of living malaria parasites, is expected to significantly increase our understanding of this disease, with a view to future therapeutic approaches. External cooperation partner: Radboud University Nijmegen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
China in Africa: Exploring the Economic and Social Consequences
|
Prof. Dr. Rainer Thiele |
2021
|
2023
|
IfW Kiel
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project investigates the economic and social impacts of China’s many different activities in Africa in the areas of bilateral trade and investment relations, development aid and Chinese migrant workers. It combines statistical analyses of large volumes of data at the level of subnational regions and individual citizens with experimental and survey-based methods. On-site field studies are used to investigate how China’s engagement is perceived and appraised by African citizens. The resulting data will be publicly accessible. The idea is for the results to help European decision-makers adapt their policies to China’s increasing presence in Africa. External cooperation partners: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen; University of Hong Kong; Addis Ababa University; University of Ghana; Zambia Institute for Policy Analysis and Research (ZIPAR); Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Predicting the future from signatures of the past: using living sediment archives and ancient DNA to understand responses of marine primary producers to environmental changes
|
Dr. Anke Kremp |
2021
|
2023
|
IOW,
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Phytoplankton are microscopic photosynthetic algae responsible for half of the world’s atmospheric carbon fixation. They provide the base of aquatic food webs and biogeochemical cycles in the oceans. The project investigates how these primary producers are, and will be in the future, affected by Climate Change. An interdisciplinary network of scientists will reconstruct the history of Baltic Sea phytoplankton stored in sediment archives and use this information to project their future function. The central hypothesis of project is that phytoplankton communities are able to recover from biodiversity loss and restore their function following climate-related shifts in species composition. External cooperation partners: Universität Konstanz; Universität Hamburg; Lund University; University of Gothenburg; Michigan State University; Södertörn University; University of Helsinki; Helsinki Commission HELCOM
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Digitale Kartenwerkstatt Altes Reich: historische Räume neu modellieren und visualisieren
|
Prof. Dr. Johannes Paulmann |
2021
|
2023
|
IEG,
IOS,
IfL
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Maps depicting historic regions of the Holy Roman Empire are usually based on clearly defined borders and do not sufficiently address territorial interconnections and fragmentation. This collaborative project involving historical research, information science and geography therefore develops new concepts of data collection, data modelling and linked data to experimentally visualise fluid borders. Especially the investigation of the mobility of actors and objects opens up new perspectives on early modern territoriality. The interdisciplinary project makes processed data, sample visualisations, workflow documentation and tutorials accessible to researchers, memory institutions and the more general public. External cooperation partners: Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz; École des hautes études en sciences sociales
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Beyond Species: Predicting biodiversity change by integrating genetic diversity into ecological niche models
|
Dr. Frieder Mayer |
2021
|
2023
|
MfN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Biodiversity loss as a result of climate change is one of the major challenges of our time. The Museum für Naturkunde Berlin is focusing on this issue in a research network involving German, Turkish, Israeli and Armenian researchers with wide-ranging expertise, from fundamental science to policy advice. The team is investigating the influence of climate change on genetic diversity among bat species in the Anatolian-Caucasus region. The combination of genome research and ecological niche modelling means novel findings are to be expected. External cooperation partners: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; Universität Potsdam; Istanbul Technical University; Yerevan State University; Tel-Aviv University
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Supporting Climate Protection - From Renewable Hydrogen and Aerobic CO2 to Methanol
|
Prof. Dr. Matthias Beller |
2021
|
2023
|
INP,
IWT,
LIKAT
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Methanol, the simplest chemical alcohol, is one of the most important basic materials in the chemical industry. It also has the potential to take on a leading role as a fuel and energy feedstock, thereby advancing the energy transition worldwide. In this context, the research project addresses the development of a viable methanol production process that takes advantage of the capture and utilization of the climate-damaging greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) from the ambient air. The LIKAT research team is meeting this major challenge in catalysis research by using novel catalyst materials and non-conventional methods from plasma and photochemistry. External cooperation partners: Hochschule Stralsund; APEX Energy Teterow GmbH
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Ion Selectivity and Conduction Mechanism of Cation Channels Investigated by Molecular Dynamics Simulations and Solid-State NMR Spectroscopy
|
Prof. Dr. Adam Lange |
2021
|
2023
|
FMP
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Ion channels are tiny tunnels within the cell wall of every cell and are one of the most important communication pathways in our cells. This makes them universally important and their far-reaching biological functions include passing on electrical signals to the brain and muscle contraction in the heart. Basic understanding of how these channels work and their control mechanisms is therefore especially significant for investigating diseases and developing new drugs. The team is focusing on researching the control mechanisms of ion channels using a combination of cutting-edge measuring techniques and computer-aided model calculations. External cooperation partner: Max-Planck-Institut für biophysikalische Chemie, Göttingen
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Hybrid swarm evolution of native and invasive Phoxinus spp. to the river Sieg, Germany
|
Dr. Madlen Stange |
2021
|
2025
|
LIB (formerly ZFMK)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
In biodiversity research, little is known so far about how hybridizations of a native and a non-native species can lead to the evolution of an invasive hybrid. A group of researchers led by Dr Madlen Stange is now studying this aspect in a project at the Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig – Leibniz Institute for Animal Biodiversity (ZFMK). The group is investigating the spread of Phoxinus, an ecologically important schooling fish, in the River Sieg, a 155 km tributary of the River Rhine. The researchers are investigating the native and hybridized invasive populations on ecological, morphological, and genetic level to understand mechanisms and impact of hybridisation-invasions.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Cosmic Choreographies: Studying Systems of Satellite Galaxies and Their Phase-Space Correlations
|
Dr. Marcel Pawlowski |
2021
|
2025
|
AIP
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
According to a widespread assumption in astronomy, the cosmos consists to a large extent of unknown particles: dark matter. However, new research into the movement of satellite galaxies indicates that this assumption could be false, and researchers are drawing up alternative theories for understanding our universe. The Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam (AIP) has recruited a scientist with expertise in this new field of research: Dr Marcel Pawlowski. He has chosen an innovative approach that combines simulation and observational studies. His junior research group combines theoretical calculations of correlations in the movements of galaxies with broader observational studies.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Probabilistic Methods for Dynamic Communication Networks
|
Prof. Dr. Benedikt Jahnel |
2021
|
2025
|
WIAS
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
In our increasingly connected world an overwhelming amount of data must be rapidly transmitted through highly complex networks. This requires a revolution in many aspects of the network architecture. In this context, device-to-device communication is becoming a key technology pervading a highly diverse set of use cases, ranging from coverage extensions in emerging markets to network robustness and green networking, the systems however become less controllable. Here, the junior research group led by Dr Benedikt Jahnel is developing possible solutions for stable and more secure dynamic communication networks with the help of probabilistic methods.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Neuropathology of Lassa fever NEULA
|
Dr. Till Omansen |
2021
|
2025
|
BNITM
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
In West Africa, hundreds of thousands of people are infected with the Lassa virus every year. In some patients life-threatening courses of the disease occur. So far little is known about the exact cause of these severe disease courses. There is currently no approved treatment and no vaccine. The junior research group led by medical doctor/clinician Dr Till Omansen will be performing clinical studies with patients in Nigeria, as well as laboratory experiments at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine in Hamburg. The researchers hope to gain important insights into the pathology of the disease for the diagnosis and treatment of Lassa fever.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Broad Adaptations to Brain Connectivity due to Maternal Influences on Neurocircuits caused by Diet
|
Dr. Rachel Lippert |
2021
|
2025
|
DIfE
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
An unhealthy diet and excessive body weight gain of the mother during pregnancy increases the risk of long-term health problems in children, e.g. diabetes or obesity, but behavior patterns controlled by the brain can also be influenced. However, it is not yet clear exactly how maternal eating habits and changes to a mother’s metabolism affect the baby’s developing brain, especially the connections between nerve cells. The junior research group led by Dr. Rachel Lippert is addressing this complex of topics using neurodevelopmental studies in mouse models, nutritional interventions and highly efficient analytical methods.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
2D Heterostructures for fermionic and bosonic topological phases
|
Dr. Louis Veyrat |
2021
|
2025
|
IFW Dresden
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The behaviour of some new materials – such as graphene, which was only discovered in 2004 – when subjected to powerful magnetic fields and low temperatures reveals some surprising phenomena. In particular, extremely thin materials - sometimes down to a single atom thickness - have revealed a variety of new phenomena. The researchers hope that exploitation of these phenomena can lead to progress in lossless electrical transport, in the development of quantum computers and the manufacture of more efficient electronic components. The junior research group led by Dr Louis Veyrat is focused on the manufacture and analysis of these thin 2D materials, with the aim of developing and describing new and exotic material states.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Geobiodiversity: assessing the impacts of mountain building and climate change on evolution and ecology of mammals and birds
|
Prof. Dr. Susanne Fritz |
2021
|
2026
|
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
To address the fundamental global challenges of biodiversity protection and sustainable use of natural resources by humankind, we need to understand and model the distribution of biological diversity in time and space. Diversity patterns and their underlying processes are studied in evolution and ecology with living species in the present-day environment, whereas the fields of paleontology and paleoecology study the same processes but use extinct species and a deep-time, geological perspective. Until recently, there has been very little overlap and communication between these fields. Therefore, it is not fully understood how evolution and ecology of organisms are influenced by Earth-system processes such as mountain building and climate change, and how human activities modify such interactions. The core goal of the proposed geobiodiversity professorship is to provide a much-needed integration across geology, paleontology, evolution, and ecology, to understand and model the specific impacts of Earth-system dynamics and anthropogenic impacts on biodiversity in time and space. The candidate, Dr Susanne Fritz, has excellent qualifications for this professorship. She has a high-impact publication record, including integrative work at the intersection of paleontology with evolution and ecology, and core expertise in macroevolution and biogeography of mammals and birds. As an Emmy Noether research group leader, she has acquired prestigious third-party funding, and she has five years of international research experience. The proposal aims to establish an institutionalized cooperation professorship at Goethe University Frankfurt and Senckenberg Gesellschaft für Naturforschung, which would be embedded in an existing strong cooperation and provide a crucial conceptual and methodological bridge between the Senckenberg mission and major focal research areas across the Departments of Geosciences/Geography and Biosciences at Goethe University. Cooperating university: Goethe-Universität Frankfurt
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Democratic Institutions in the Global South. The Limits of Presidential Accountability
|
Prof. Dr. Mariana Llanos |
2021
|
2026
|
GIGA (formerly DÜI)
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project investigates presidential regimes in Latin America and their vulnerability to a relapse into authoritarian forms of government. Despite the focus on Latin American states and the Global South, implications for other nations will also be highlighted. In the context of more recent developments in countries like Russia, Turkey and even the USA, the issue of the resilience of presidential democracies is particularly pressing. Cooperationg university: Universität Hamburg
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Behavioural Insights Research Center on Preventive Health
|
Prof. Dr. Cornelia Betsch |
2021
|
2026
|
BNITM
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The project will focus on interdisciplinary basic and applied research in behavioral science and psychological health communication, with the aim of developing interventions and strategies to improve preventive health behaviors. Based at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, the project collects and compares data in different cultural contexts, including with partners on the African continent. The three main topics being addressed are understanding protective behavior regarding infectious diseases, prudent use of antibiotics and promoting sustainable food and nutrition behaviors. The results are expected to help improve health policies and health communication.
Cooperating university: Universität Erfurt
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
ImmunoPROteasomes in LUNG health and disease
|
Prof. Dr. Silke Meiners |
2021
|
2026
|
FZB
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
A promising approach to treating chronic diseases is to combat chronic inflammatory processes by the therapeutic use of immunoproteasome inhibitors. These are drugs that inhibit the breakdown of proteins in immune cells by specialized immunoproteasomes. Building on basic research into the activity of the various forms of the immunoproteasome in the diverse immune cells of the body, the team will explore their impairment in chronic diseases and the potential of therapeutic targeting of the immunoproteasome in lung diseases. Cooperating university: Christian-Albrechts-Universität zu Kiel
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Dehumanization Online: Measurements and Consequences
|
Prof. Dr. Claudia Wagner |
2021
|
2026
|
GESIS
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Social media harbours a risk of dehumanisation – the extreme devaluation of people with other opinions, backgrounds or lifestyles – as a result of phenomena like hate speech. The aim of the project is, first of all, to measure the extent of dehumanisation on various social media platforms using new automated text recognition methods. In a second step, this data will be used to investigate which channels and individuals are most affected. The findings of this interdisciplinary collaborative project involving the social sciences and computer science may be of great significance for the development of government policy, for example the regulation of social media. Cooperating university: RWTH Aachen
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Leibniz Professorship for Empirical Environmental Economics at the University of Mannheim
|
Prof. Dr. Kathrine von Graevenitz |
2021
|
2026
|
ZEW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Germany’s manufacturing sector is an important part of the national economy and is responsible for a large share of the country’s energy consumption and emissions of CO2 and local pollutants. In order for Germany to reach its climate goals, this sector must also lower emissions significantly – something that has not been achieved so far. The project will investigate the impact of environmental policy and international trade on the economic success and emissions of German manufacturing companies. The aim is for the results to help adjust regulations to make them more effective while also maintaining the companies’ competitive strength. Cooperating university: Universität Mannheim
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
A Framework for Knowledge Graphs based on Semantic Integration, Representation, and Curation of Scientific Data to enable Trustable and Interpretable Knowledge Exploration and Discovery
|
Prof. Dr. Maria-Esther Vidal |
2021
|
2027
|
TIB
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Research projects around the world produce a tide of data every day. The potential lies primarily in connecting the pieces of information and extends far beyond the individual project results. The project will develop computational methods for transforming biomedical data into semantically rich and linked knowledge graphs. These methods will enable interpretable large-scale data integration to empower Artificial Intelligence with semantic descriptions and transparency. The project will use these computational tools as building blocks for supporting individual treatment approaches in lung and breast cancer, and Covid-19 patients. Cooperating university: Leibniz Universität Hannover
|
| Leibniz Research Alliances |
Health Technologies
|
Prof. Dr. Jürgen Popp |
2021
|
|
AIP,
DWI,
FBH,
FZB,
HKI,
IHP,
INM,
INP,
IPF,
IPHT,
ISAS,
IWH,
IfADo,
WIAS
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The member institutes of the Leibniz Health Technologies Research Alliance work on specific technological solutions to urgent medical challenges. Using an interdisciplinary approach, the alliance aims to draw together prevention, diagnostics and therapy. Expertise is pooled from a wide range of scientific disciplines: from photonics and medicine to microelectronics, materials research, economic research and applied mathematics. In this way, innovative health technologies are guided to market maturity along a seamless innovation chain, with the help of industry, hospitals, insurance companies and policymakers. The Leibniz Health Technologies Research Alliance follows a holistic concept, which includes research into the economic, social and ethical consequences of new technologies.
|
| Leibniz Research Alliances |
Leibniz Research Alliance Wert der Vergangenheit
|
Prof. Dr. Martin Sabrow |
2021
|
2025
|
DBM,
DI,
DM,
DSM,
GEI,
GNM,
GWZO,
HBI,
HI,
IDS,
IEG,
IRS,
IWM,
IfZ,
LEIZA (formerly RGZM),
LIB (formerly ZFMK),
PRIF (formerly HSFK),
SGN,
ZMO,
ZZF,
ZfL
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Today, more than ever before, attitudes to the past are characterised by an intense striving for historical authenticity. In practical terms, this manifests itself, for example, in the value attached to "authentic objects" in museums, collections and archives or to "authentic places" - be they historic buildings, urban architectural ensembles or memorial sites. This desire for historical authenticity and past "reality" goes hand in hand with an attachment to "tradition" and a longing to experience history "first hand". It is bound up with a quest for things regarded as "genuine" and with a wish to reconstruct and preserve the "true" and "original". The Leibniz Research Alliance "Historical Authenticity" seeks to explore how historical and contemporary conceptions of authenticity affect the way we deal with our cultural heritage by examining the reconstruction and conservation of historical artefacts, by studying the function of language as a cultural repository and instrument, by tracing the development of school textbooks and maps, and looking at the conception of museums, archives, monuments and memorial sites. The Leibniz Research Alliance "Historical Authenticity" is a new form of cooperation and includes historical, educational, social sciences and spatial research institutes as well as research museums. It will take a interdisciplinary and international approach, drawing on the full range of competence and expertise at the participating research museums and institutes. This ranges from cultural studies to the social and life sciences. Nineteen Leibniz Institutes and three external partners are currently involved in the project.
External cooperation partners: American University, Washington D.C., History Department; Center for Urban History of East Central Europe, Lviv (CUH); Centre d’Études et de Recherches Comparatistes (CERC) – Université de la Sorbonne Nouvelle; DAAD‐University of Cambridge, Research Hub for German Studies; Deutsches Historisches Museum (DHM), Berlin; Deutsch‐Kolumbianisches Friedensinstitut (CAPAZ); Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich, Institut für Denkmalpflege und Bauforschung (IDB); Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst, Leipzig (HGB); International Centre of Advanced Studies (ICAS: MP), Delhi; jugendschutz.net; Károli Gáspár University Budapest – Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences; Ludwig‐Uhland‐Institut für Empirische Kulturwissenschaft, Universität Tübingen; Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History (C²DH); Max Weber Stiftung – Deutsche Geisteswissenschaftliche Institute im Ausland; Deutsches Historisches Institut London; Deutsches Historisches Institut Paris; Deutsches Historisches Institut Rom; Deutsches Historisches Institut Warschau; Deutsches Historisches Institut Washington; Deutsches Institut für Japanstudien Tokyo; Orient‐Institut Beirut; Orient‐Institut Istanbul; Museum der Kulturen Basel; Museumsakademie Joanneum, Graz; Naturhistorisches Museum Wien; Newcastle University, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences; Pädagogische Hochschule Bern; Rachel Carson Center for Environment & Society; Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; Slowakische Akademie der Wissenschaften – Institut der Weltliteratur, Bratislava; Staatliche Museen zu Berlin – Institut für Museumsforschung (IFM/SPK); Stiftung Brandenburgische Gedenkstätten (SBG); Stiftung Preußische Schlösser und Gärten Berlin‐Brandenburg (SPSG); Universität Erfurt, Erfurter RaumZeit‐Forschung; University of Cambridge, Faculty of History; University of Ibadan, Department of History; University of Leeds, School of Fine Art, History of Art, Cultural Studies; Universität Leipzig, Institut für Kunstgeschichte; Universität Wien, Fakultätszentrum für transdisziplinäre historisch‐kulturwissenschaftliche Studien; University of Seoul, Department of History
|
| Leibniz Research Alliances |
Leibniz Research Alliance Infections in an Urbanizing World – Humans, Animals, Environments
|
Prof. Dr. Ulrich Schaible |
2021
|
2025
|
ATB,
BNITM,
DPZ,
DSMZ,
FZB,
GESIS,
GIGA (formerly DÜI),
HKI,
IGB,
IPHT,
ISAS,
IZW,
IfW Kiel,
IÖR,
LIV (formerly HPI),
PIK,
TROPOS (formerly IfT),
ZALF
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Improved hygiene and better prevention and treatment have diminished the incidence of infectious diseases particularly in industrialised countries. However, increasing antibiotic resistance, emergence of new pathogens, together with changes in pathogen distribution due to altered climate and mobility are global challenges for humankind. Infectious diseases can be spread and transferred to humans in many ways. A holistic approach is required to better understand transmission and to achieve optimal infection control strategies. Biomedical, ecological, socio-economic and political aspects all need to be considered. The Leibniz Research Alliance “INFECTIONS in an Urbanizing World" aims to establish an interdisciplinary research agenda and opens up new avenues of communication across disciplines. New strategies and methods for early warning and outbreak management systems will be developed to control spread of pathogens. This effort will also include public involvement through citizen science projects.
External cooperation partners: Externe Kooperationspartner: Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut Bundesforschungsinstitut für Tiergesundheit, Greifswald - Insel Riems; Robert Koch-Institut, Berlin; Tiermedizinisches Zentrum für Resistenzforschung, FU Berlin
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Digital Materialities. Virtual and analogue forms of exhibiting museum artefacts
|
Prof. Dr. Ruth Schilling |
2021
|
2023
|
DSM,
IWM
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Virtual and digital possibilities are playing an increasingly important role for museums. This project focuses on the 2D and 3D digitisation of maritime exhibits. It investigates which aspects of an object can be experienced and analysed only with the help of digitisation. It also researches the role of museum exhibitions in the epistemological process that takes place between observer, object and the object’s ‘digital twin’. The findings from this project can be applied to similar interdisciplinary projects and to experimental applications in everyday exhibition practice. External cooperation partner: Universität Bremen
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Economic Insights: Transfer and Capacity Building (BSE Insights)
|
Prof. Dr. Dorothea Kübler |
2021
|
2023
|
DIW,
WZB
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
There is a major deficit in Germany in the communication of cutting-edge research findings to policymakers and the general public. Using innovative formats, such as involving policymakers in joint research projects and offering them fellowships, the project aims to help ensure that research results from the field of economics inform political decision-making processes and are made available to the general public. Among other things, the team is developing training sessions for communicating complex subjects in a transparent and effective manner. All the major economic research institutions in Berlin are involved in the project. External cooperation partners: European School of Management and Technology (ESMT), Berlin; Freie Universität Berlin; Hertie School, Berlin; Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; Technische Universität Berlin; Universität Potsdam; University College London
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Selective depletion of plasma cells secreting pathogenic autoantibodies in chronic autoimmune diseases - a potentially curative therapeutic approach
|
Prof. Dr. Falk Hiepe |
2021
|
2023
|
DRFZ,
FMP
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Using B-cell-depleting antibodies has led to promising results in the past in the treatment of autoimmune diseases. However, a drawback of these therapies is the depletion of plasma cells that secrete autoantigen-specific antibodies. The leader of the transfer project will continue to work on an affinity matrix he developed that can isolate antigen-specific plasma cells and deplete them. If this method, thought by experts to be almost impossible, succeeds, it would represent a key breakthrough in the treatment of B-cell-mediated autoimmune disease. External cooperation partner: Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Klimate Enhanced Tomato breeding Capturing Heat-resilience Using integrative Phenotyping
|
Prof. Dr. Philip A. Wigge |
2020
|
2022
|
IGZ,
IPB,
IPK
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Tomato plants are very sensitive to heat stress but the molecular processes involved are poorly understood. The project will use simulation experiments to identify the genetic basis for stress reactions. It will also investigate genetic variations in terms of their role in heat stress tolerance. Molecular biological datasets will be evaluated using machine learning methods to identify genetic signatures that indicate resistance to heat stress. Ultimately, the aim is to increase the resistance of tomato plants to heat stress using genome editing techniques.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Digital Approaches for the Synthesis of Poorly Accessible Biodiversity Information
|
Prof. Dr. Jörg Overmann |
2020
|
2022
|
DSMZ,
TIB
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering,
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The aim of the project is to improve the integration, accessibility and manageability of information relating to the biodiversity of bacteria. Existing information from numerous sources – including more than 150 scientific journals – will be collected and processed. An existing database will be used to combine the data in machine-readable form and offer innovative search options. In parallel, new bioinformatic tools will be developed for multidimensional analyses of the heterogeneous data. Ultimately, the aim is to enable predictions of bacterial properties. External cooperation partner: ZB MED Informationszentrum Lebenswissenschaften
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Multiscale Modeling and Engineering Simulation of Next Generation Multifunctional Microstructures for Handling Applications
|
Prof. Dr. Eduard Arzt |
2020
|
2023
|
INM
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Micropatterned surfaces with switchable adhesive properties are revolutionising robotic gripper systems. Handling of a wide range of objects has already been demonstrated successfully – including in a vacuum and in micro dimensions. However, the handling of more complex components is not yet reliable. The project will build the foundations for the next generation of smart adhesive structures. The focus is on the development of theoretical models for contact with surfaces that are naturally rough, or with microscopic objects, supplemented with modelling experiments. External cooperation partners: University of California Santa Barbara and Leibniz Chair at INM; Universität des Saarlandes; Harvard University; ESPCI Paris; Cambridge University
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Identification and modulation of new immune targets in juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA)
|
Prof. Dr. Chiara Romagnani |
2020
|
2022
|
DRFZ
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis, a rheumatic disease in children, can disappear spontaneously in some cases, unlike rheumatoid arthritis, the most widespread inflammatory disease affecting the joints in adults. The reasons for this are unknown. The project will research which cells and genes are associated with remission of the inflammation using molecular biological analyses involving cutting-edge technology. As well as discovering how the chronic inflammation is resolved, the project aims to identify biomarkers to predict disease progression and develop intervention targets for treatment. External cooperation partners: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin; Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
FOur dimensional Research applying Modelling and Observations for the Sea and Atmosphere
|
Prof. Dr. Franz-Josef Lübken |
2020
|
2022
|
IAP,
IOW
|
Section E - Environmental Research,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
External cooperation partners: Tromsoe University; Stockholm University; Utah State University Logan; Colorado Research Association, Boulder; Global Atmospheric Technologies and Science, Boulder
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
A risk index for health effects of mineral dust and associated microbes
|
Dr. Khanneh Wadinga Fomba |
2020
|
2022
|
DSMZ,
FZB,
IUF,
TROPOS (formerly IfT)
|
Section E - Environmental Research,
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Mineral dust can cause or exacerbate respiratory illnesses such as asthma, rhinitis and pneumonia. The project will investigate adverse health aspects of mineral dust in combination with attached microbes. The aim is to go beyond risk assessments for respiratory illnesses based on mass concentrations of dust, and incorporate dust composition to develop a dust health risk index that can be updated regularly for at-risk patient groups. The project will combine atmospheric, clinical, epidemiological, toxicological and microbiological studies within measuring programmes and long-term studies. External cooperation partner: University of Cape Verde
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Understanding the “Anthropocene”: human alteration of ecosystems in our deep history
|
Prof. Dr. Sabine Gaudzinski-Windheuser |
2020
|
2022
|
LEIZA (formerly RGZM)
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Debates about the role of humans in climate change generally focus on relatively recent developments. However, humans have been influencing nature and the environment for a long time. An interdisciplinary research team will investigate human influence on nature and landscape long before the Anthropocene Epoch. Using scientific, palaeontological and archaeological analyses of finds from a unique excavation area in Saxony-Anhalt, the project will investigate the temporal reach of anthropogenic changes to past ecosystems. The project will, for the first time, evaluate the human ecological footprint in a Palaeolithic context so that it can inform current debates. External cooperation partners: Leiden University; Universität Mainz; Universität Potsdam; Landesamt für Denkmalpflege und Archäologie Sachsen-Anhalt, Landesmuseum für Vorgeschichte
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
The Historicity of Democracy in the Arab and Muslim Worlds
|
Dr. Nora Lafi |
2020
|
2022
|
IEG,
ZMO,
ZZF
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The Arab Spring brought democratic movements in Muslim nations into the global public eye. The project will investigate its historic roots. Using case studies from various periods, regions and contexts, the aim is to reconstruct traditions and concepts of democratic procedures in Muslim societies. The time period covered runs from the early modern practices of deliberation and collective decision-making in the Ottoman Empire to the recent revolution in Tunisia. The project aims to trace the historicity of democratic practices in the Middle East.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
On-chip Laser-written Photonic Circuits for Classical and Quantum Applications.
|
Dr. Alexandre Mermillod-Blondin |
2020
|
2022
|
MBI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The project contributes to current research into the second quantum revolution. It aims to develop novel controllable, reconfigurable photonic circuits for use in sensor systems and quantum computing. The focus is on the development of novel optical conductors and the use of electroactive polymers instead of the established thermal methods. External cooperation partners: Fraunhofer-Institut für Zuverlässigkeit und Mikrointegration; Humboldt Universität zu Berlin
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Neurophysiological mechanisms of primate interactions in dynamic sensorimotor settings
|
Prof. Dr. Stefan Treue |
2020
|
2022
|
DPZ
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The project will investigate the neuronal basis of core cognitive functions such as attention, perception, decision-making and action planning in social contexts to improve understanding of how they function with regard to their evolutionary origins. It will test the hypothesis that processing of social and non-social information in primates relies on overlapping neural circuitry, not only at the level of brain regions and networks, but also at the scale of single neuron computations. The team will use an experimental platform that enables two agents (humans or macaques) to observe one another and interact. External cooperation partners: European Neuroscience Institute; Universitätsmedizin Göttingen; Georg-August-Universität Göttingen; Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self Organization
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Regional Inequality in Germany: Assessment, Drivers and Consequences
|
Prof. Dr. Sebastian Siegloch |
2020
|
2022
|
ARL,
DIW,
ZEW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project investigates regional inequality within Germany. The aim is to describe the current extent of these inequalities and their evolution over time, to investigate the causal drivers of inequality and assess the political and social consequences of the documented trends. In terms of the political and social consequences, the focus will be on the relationship between actual and perceived deprivation and political radicalisation. The project combines the quantitative methods used in economics with the qualitative approaches used in geography. External cooperation partners: Universität Hamburg; Universität Bochum; University of Bristol
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Urban Authenticity: Creating, contesting, and visualizing the built heritage in European cities since the 1970s
|
Prof. Dr. Christoph Bernhardt |
2020
|
2022
|
HI,
IRS,
IfZ,
ZZF
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The project will investigate how certain parts of the built heritage in European urban societies have been leveraged and labelled ‘authentic’ in public debate, media presentations and urban planning practices. It will make a contribution to the broad debate in the historical and cultural sciences that questions the increasing importance of authenticity as the apparently ‘true’ character of individuals, objects and practices, and looks into the mechanisms of the social construction and function of authenticity. The focus is on public debates and practices regarding construction policy, tourism and migration since the 1970s in cities in West and East Germany, Poland and France. External cooperation partners: Institut für Zeitgeschichte, München; Brandenburgischer Museumsverband
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Perceptions of Inequalities and Justice in Europe
|
Dr. Sandra Bohmann |
2020
|
2022
|
SOEP
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Wealth and income inequality have increased significantly in Europe over recent decades. The project will use current data from the European Social Survey to investigate relationships between perceptions and evaluations of social inequalities, notions of fair distribution of goods and charges, and political attitudes and actions in the population. Rather than focusing on individual resources and income distribution, the project looks at the perception of inequalities and whether they are seen as fair or unfair. External cooperation partners: Helmut-Schmidt-Universität Hamburg; Universität Konstanz; Universität Wien; Radboud University; New York University; Max-Planck-Institut für Sozialrecht und Sozialpolitik; Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Defective microtubuli in the pathogenesis of neurological phenotypes in patients with nucleotide excision repair (NER) syndromes
|
Prof. Dr. Jean Krutmann |
2020
|
2022
|
IUF
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Cockayne syndrome B (CSB) is a hereditary disease characterised by premature aging. There is no effective treatment and most patients die during childhood. The project will investigate the hypothesis that the neurological symptoms of Cockayne syndrome B, which has traditionally been seen as a nucleotide excision repair (NER) syndrome, are caused by defects in the acetylation of microtubules and other proteins. Experiments will establish whether and how acetylation of these proteins is influenced, how these changes impact the development of neurological symptoms, and whether the symptoms can be improved using small molecules. Cell lines, neurospheres, brain organoids and animal models will be used to help answer these questions. External cooperation partner: Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Ex vivo expansion of functional human HSCs to improve therapies of age-associated diseases
|
Prof. Dr. Claudia Waskow |
2020
|
2022
|
FLI,
IPF
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering,
Section C - Life Sciences
|
A key step in the use of stem cell-based therapeutic methods is the culture and expansion of haematopoietic stem cells. The project will produce 3D biohybrid hydrogels that imitate the natural extracellular matrix to cultivate and expand stem cells. By pooling stem cell and hydrogel expertise, the project will conduct basic research that will have immediate impacts for clinical application, e.g. for the treatment of tumour patients. External cooperation partners: Universitätsklinikum Jena; Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Design and Control of Patterned Large-Area Molecule-Surface Interfaces for Multiple-State Data Storage Technologies
|
Prof. Dr. Bernd Abel |
2020
|
2022
|
IOM
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The increasing digitalisation of all areas of everyday life requires ever greater data storage and information processing capacity. At the same time, there is a goal to increase energy efficiency and lower production costs. The project will research complex, nano-structured hybrid surfaces for future data storage and processing. Experimental studies on oxidation state-dependent structure, electronic structure and stability will be supported by quantum mechanics-based calculations, with the aim of developing molecule-based memristive-state nano-platforms. External cooperation partner: TU Dresden
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Contested Waterway. Governance and Ecology on the Lower Danube, 1800-2018
|
Dr. Luminita Gatejel |
2020
|
2022
|
GWZO,
IOS
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The project will focus on the impact of two centuries of human intervention in the Lower Danube area. It will analyse various aspects of the multi-layered, often contested histories of this region from 1800 to the present day under the influence of various empires, nation states, state socialism and the European Union. The aim is to make a contribution to various ongoing debates surrounding e.g. environmental degradation, Europeanisation and economic development. There will also be a practical impact, with the research results being shared with the local communities and government agencies. External cooperation partners: Center for Advanced Study Sofia; New Europe College Bukarest; Central European History Budapest; Slovenian Academy of Sciences; Romanian Academy of Science
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
The Short Life of Soviet Yiddish Literature
|
Prof. Dr. Yfaat Weiss |
2020
|
2022
|
DI,
GWZO,
IDS,
ZfL
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The project will examine modern Yiddish literature in the Soviet Union in the first half of the 20th century. The interdisciplinary investigation focuses on poets and prose writers who found themselves, personally and artistically, negotiating the tense relationship between tradition and modernism, Jewish identity and commitment to the creation of a ‘new’ Soviet man. Their lives and writings will be viewed in the context of experiences of Stalinism and the Holocaust. Questions of belonging, homogenisation, universalism and particularism promise new insights into the history of Eastern Europe and its Jewish peoples, but also findings of relevance to the present-day challenges of globalised diaspora and migration experience. External cooperation partners: Universität Regensburg; European University at St. Petersburg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Digital Formative Assessment (DiFA) - Unfolding its full potential by combining psychometrics with learning analytics
|
Prof. Dr. Frank Goldhammer |
2020
|
2022
|
DIPF,
LifBi
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The project deals with the evaluation and optimisation of learning processes. The aim is to develop digital methods that can capture characteristics of learners, their abilities and learning progress in a better, automated way. It will bring together two separate research traditions: theory-driven psychometric evaluation methods and data-driven learning analyses. The interdisciplinary collaboration between computer science, psychology and educational science will use the basic research to develop and implement an online course for teacher training. External cooperation partner: Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Calcium control of brain function: Role of the synaptic endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and its association with other membranes
|
Prof. Dr. Volker Haucke |
2020
|
2022
|
FMP,
LIN (formerly IfN)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Core functions like learning and memory depend on communication between nerve cells in the brain. This communication takes place through chemical signalling at highly specialised cell contacts: the synapses. The role of various organelles in synapses for neurotransmission is not yet sufficiently understood. The project will investigate the importance of the endoplasmic reticulum and its functional interaction with other cell organelles for the release of calcium in synaptic neurotransmission. The topic is of importance both to basic science and clinical application. External cooperation partner: Universität Mainz
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Language and social action across Europe: Rules and norms in informal interaction
|
Dr. Jörg Zinken |
2020
|
2022
|
IDS
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The project will analyse informal communication in five European languages in order to investigate how speakers formulate and enforce social rules and standards at the linguistic level. The Leibniz Institute for the German Language (IDS) is working in a very international team with partners in the USA, Finland, Switzerland and Poland. The interdisciplinary team includes experts in the fields of conversation analysis and interactional linguistics. The aim is to produce a publicly accessible corpus that will make an important contribution to open science. External cooperation partners: University of California; University of Helsinki; University of Basel; University of Bydgoszcz
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Contentious Mobilities: rethinking mobility transitions through a decolonial lens
|
Dr. Wladimir Sgibnev |
2020
|
2024
|
IfL
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Mobility forms and cultures need to change if global sustainability goals are to be met. The project led by Dr Wladimir Sgibnev will investigate mobility reforms and conflicts. Empirically, the group is focusing on post-socialist cities where mobility transformations have been particularly evident in recent decades. The project takes a decolonial perspective to allow more complex interpretations of social change. The hypothesis is that previous – technocratic and Eurocentric – political strategies will need to become more inclusive and sensitive to the everyday experience of transport users for lasting changes to be made to mobility cultures.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Urban human-nature resonance for sustainability transformation
|
Dr. Martina Artmann |
2020
|
2024
|
IÖR
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
To what extent do people in cities have a responsive connection with the environment and nature? To find this out, the project led by Dr Martina Artmann will develop and test an innovative concept of urban human-nature resonance. Her team will investigate whether strengthening this resonance can increase the probability of staying within planetary boundaries, in view of rapid urbanisation. The project will include the previously neglected spiritual dimension of the relationship between humans and the environment, making it an interdisciplinary undertaking involving environmental psychology, sociology, philosophy, urban planning and other disciplines.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Numerics for innovative semiconductor devices
|
Dr. Patricio Farrell |
2020
|
2024
|
WIAS
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
To improve the efficiency of standard solar cells and reduce costs, alternative materials are being investigated for semiconductor elements, such as perovskites and resource-efficient nanowires. However, with these materials, physics often dictates that electrons and holes diffuse nonlinearly, e.g. several orders faster when highly concentrated. This nonlinearity severely complicates simulations because classic numerical methods violate basic physical principles. So there is a need for new numerical methods to be developed, analysed and optimised, which is the aim of this project led by Dr Patricio Farrell.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Freshwater Megafauna Futures: Diversity, Functions, Threats, and Implications for Biodiversity Conservation
|
Prof. Dr. Sonja Jähnig |
2020
|
2026
|
IGB
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Despite their extraordinary biodiversity and their importance for human use, inland waters are not managed sustainably, with serious consequences for biodiversity and ecosystem balance. Large fresh-water species in particular, such as hippos and giant salamanders, are at serious risk because of worsening conditions. The project will investigate the biodiversity of these species. Cooperating university: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
The Cellular Interactome in Health and Disease
|
Prof. Dr. Fan Liu |
2020
|
2026
|
FMP
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The project deals with proteomic mass spectrometry and, in particular, with the use of chemical cross-linkers, which can enable new insights into the quantitative and qualitative architecture of protein complexes. Cooperating university: Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Chronische Entzündung - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Berlin (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Andreas Radbruch |
2020
|
|
DRFZ
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Arthritis, multiple sclerosis, colitis, type-2 diabetes – millions of people in Germany suffer from chronic inflammatory diseases. Those affected have constant pain of the joints, skin, nervous system or gut – any organ can be affected. Patients suffer a severe negative impact on day-to-day life. Some of these illnesses even prove to be fatal. Modern therapies have so far only managed to suppress the symptoms. In most cases, they are unable to actually cure the illness.
This is precisely what the researchers at the Leibniz ScienceCampus Berlin “Centre for Chronic Inflammatory Disease” are seeking to change. To this end, doctors and scientists from various specialist fields such as rheumatology, gastroenterology, neuropathology and dermatology are working together at the Charité Hospital and the German Rheumatism Research Centre Berlin. Working across different disciplines, they research and contrast the causes and mechanisms of chronic inflammatory diseases.
Their work pursues several long-term objectives. If a successful treatment already exists for a certain illness, the aim is to transfer it more rapidly to other diseases and thereby help more of those affected. Another objective is to optimally tailor therapies to individual patients and potentially even find a cure for the respective illness. Those interested can learn about this research by attending the public “LeibnizCharitéCampus Lectures”. The “LeibnizCharité-Entzündungssprechstunde” is another new offering, where doctors from different fields jointly consult with patients. External cooperation partners: Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin; Max-Planck-Institut für Infektionsbiologie, Berlin
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Evolutionary Medicine of the Lung (EvoLUNG) - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Borstel/Kiel (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Stefan Niemann |
2020
|
|
FZB
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Despite great advances in diagnostics and treatment, lung diseases are still on the rise globally and are one of the most common causes of death. The Leibniz ScienceCampus “Evolutionary Medicine of the Lung (EvoLUNG)” is working towards a better understanding of how chronic lung diseases such as tuberculosis and asthma arise and develop.
To this end, the EvoLUNG researchers are working together in interdisciplinary teams to study not only the origins and proliferation of multi-resistant pathogens in the lungs, but also the evolution of genetic variations in humans that foster lung disease. They are also investigating the complex interactions between disease genes, micro-organisms, pathogens and environmental factors in the development of lung diseases.
In the long term, EvoLUNG seeks to develop better diagnostic tools and improve therapies for diseases such as asthma, tuberculosis, cystic fibrosis and chronic bronchitis. The researchers will particularly focus on the avoidance of resistance development in the progression of tuberculosis and cystic fibrosis, and to create a better understanding of the role played by the body’s own microbiota in the development of asthma. External cooperation partners: Christian-Albrechts-Universität Kiel; Max-Planck Institut für Evolutionsbiologie
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Primatenkognition - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Göttingen (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Julia Fischer |
2020
|
|
DPZ
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Both humans and nonhuman primates live in complex and multi-layered environments. Advanced cognitive capacities are required to encode and process different and diverse sources of information, bring them together in decision-making processes and translate them into action. Beyond that, human and nonhuman primates must also perceive the relationship between their behaviour and the resulting consequences.
The aim of the Leibniz ScienceCampus "Primate Cognition" in Göttingen is to develop a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms involved in information processing and decision-making in nonhuman primates and humans. Research is focused on questions such as: how is information from various sources integrated and how are actions controlled. A special focus is on the study of social interactions. A comparative approach is used to assess how nonhuman primates and humans differ in their communicative and cognitive abilities.
In the ScienceCampus the expertise of behavioural biologists, psychologists, neuroscientists and cognitive scientists is brought together. New methods of data collection, processing and analysis are developed through close cooperation with data and computer scientists. External cooperation partners: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen; Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience (BCCN), Göttingen
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
SOEP RegioHub - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Bielefeld (funding phase 1)
|
Dr. Jan Goebel |
2020
|
|
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Living conditions in Germany today show evidence of increasing and rapidly changing regional disparities in structural, demographic and economic domains. These disparities often take the form of an adverse access to health care facilities, childcare provision, education and other public services as well as regional labour market opportunities, business climate, housing and transportation infrastructures.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus researchers investigate how these regional social and economic opportunities influence social cohesion, expectations, political attitudes, preferences and behavior and thereby exacerbate or mitigate social inequality, social cohesion, political conflicts and radicalization. External cooperation partner: Universität Bielefeld
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Growth and Fundamentals of Oxides (GraFOx) - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Berlin (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Henning Riechert |
2020
|
|
IKZ,
PDI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Metal oxides are amongst the materials with the broadest spectrum of physical properties. These can be purposefully altered to make them insulating, semi-conductive, metallically conductive, super-conductive, ferro-electric and antiferro-electric. Oxides are therefore especially suitable for the development of a new generation of electronic devices and energy applications with outstanding properties. They can be found in solar cells, touch-screens and data storage devices, for example.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus “Growth and Fundamentals of Oxides (GraFOx) for electronic applications” combines the work and expertise of its five Berlin-based partner institutions in the field of oxide research. GraFOx aims to optimally utilise the application potential of oxides. The primary focus is on synthesizing oxides to the highest material quality and thoroughly studying them in terms of their surface structure, microstructure, and optical as well as optoelectronic properties. In combination with intensive theoretical work, this will lead to a comprehensive understanding of oxides.
Together with the research results, the oxide materials thus manufactured will be used towards the development of UV detectors, power electronics and memory devices, which will then be produced by associated partners. External cooperation partners: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; Universität Leipzig; Otto-von-Guericke-Universität Magdeburg; Fritz-Haber-Institut der Max-Planck-Gesellschaft
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Resources in Transformation (ReForm) – Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Bochum
|
Prof. Dr. Thomas Stöllner |
2020
|
|
DBM
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Humans are confronted with changes all the time. To gain a deeper understanding of societies and their living environments, it is informative to see how people react to, initiate or are involved in transformative processes. Resources usually play a key role here: they indicate the things that people regard as relevant for their lives, for instance those things that satisfy physical, social or religious needs, and are therefore integrated in a society’s structures in a number of ways.
ReForm aims to research the transformative potential of resources, which is estimated to be significant, not just for the history of humanity but also for contemporary society, particularly in relation to socio-ecological aspects. Taking a multi-perspective approach, the project partners in the fields of the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences and economics plan to investigate, by way of example, how humans are interconnected with their material environment through various practices and how social institutions emerge and change during these processes. The aim is to develop middle range theories and to test them, for example using agent-based modelling of various datasets. External cooperation partners: Ruhr-Universität Bochum; FernUniversität in Hagen; Technische Hochschule Georg Agricola; Stiftung Geschichte des Ruhrgebiets
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Eastern Europe — Global Area - Leibniz WissenschaftsCampus Leipzig – Halle – Jena (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Sebastian Lentz |
2020
|
|
DI,
GWZO,
IAMO,
IfL
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The Leibniz ScienceCampus »Eastern Europe – Global Area« (EEGA) is committed to developing new research perspectives on Eastern Europe, engaging in knowledge exchange activities on the region with stakeholders, and promoting young researchers. It follows the idea tha the multi-disciplinary and multi-faceted examination of processes of globalisation are a key for a better understanding of societal developments. The focus is on Eastern Europe’s diverse, tension-filled, and sometime paradoxical globalisation projects »from within« and »from the outside«, and thus, on the self-positioning of Eastern European societies under the global condition.
Together with partners from the region, EEGA explores the fields of migration and mobilities, business strategies and political economies, cultural and intellectual perspectives and identities, and political integration in a changing global arenas.
Overcoming prejudices and clichés, some of which are rooted in the era of the Cold War, and promoting an informed understanding of Eastern Europe in ist diverse traditions and positions, developments and internal dynamics are the primary mission. EEGA is committed to disseminate this paradigm not only amongst a new generation of international researchers, but also within the German media and wider public discourse. It does so by supporting postdocs, contributing to PhD-training, developing an emphasis in a Master’s degree course on Eastern Europe in a global perspective and seeking targeted dialogue with journalists. External cooperation partners: Universität Leipzig (UL); Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena (FSU); Martin-Luther-Universität Halle Wittenberg (MLU); Fraunhofer-Zentrum für Internationales Management und Wissensökonomie (IMW), Leipzig; Max-Planck-Institut für ethnologische Forschung (MPI), Halle
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Living Therapeutic Materials – Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Saarbrücken (funding phase 1)
|
Prof. Dr. Aranzazu del Campo |
2020
|
|
INM
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
In the treatment of chronic diseases, biologically produced drugs are often used where it is important that they can be administered to the patient in long term and in individually tailored form.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus Living Therapeutic Materials in Saarbruecken has set itself the goal of preparing materials in which bacteria produce drugs that can be released into the human body in a controlled manner over a long period of time. For this purpose, the bacteria are genetically “programmed” for their task and enclosed in implantable carrier material. This material is permeable to the active ingredient, but prevents the bacteria from entering the human body. Nevertheless, they are permanently available as active ingredient producers. The bacteria-based implants are also provided with sensory functions that release active substances in response to specific physiological changes.
The tasks of the ScienceCampus also include the investigation of medical scenarios in which living therapeutic materials enable cost-effective applications of advanced biopharmaceuticals, preclinical studies, and the investigation of possible risks with the development of strategies for their prediction and minimization.
Such a demanding and complex project naturally requires know-how and competence from many different specialist areas. That is why the ScienceCampus combines material competence with pharmaceutical expertise and specialist knowledge in the fields of medicine, life sciences and bioinformatics through its partners. A total of 16 research groups are involved in the three partner institutions. External cooperation partners: Universität des Saarlandes (UdS), Saarbrücken, Homburg; Helmholtz-institut für Pharmazeutische Forschung Saarland (HIPS), Saarbrücken
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Herausforderungen im Gesundheitswesen - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Ruhr (funding phase 2)
|
Dr. Dörte Heger |
2020
|
|
RWI
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The German population is projected to decline by more than 10 percent until 2050. At the same time, the number of old people will continue growing. Thus, the ratio between old and working-age people will keep on increasing — which leads to challenges for the social insurance systems for pensions, health care, and long-term care.
However, the changing size and composition of the population is not affecting all parts of Germany in a uniform way. Some regions are facing particular challenges due to a rapidly ageing population and dwindling human resources in the care sectors. The Leibniz ScienceCampus "Health care challenges in regions with declining and ageing populations" will address these challenges and focus on the provision of health care in areas which are particularly hard hit by demographic change, such as rural areas and the Ruhr metropolitan region.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus has three main goals:
1. Explore causes of regional variation in the demand and supply of health care and assess their consequences for health policy
2. Analyse different arrangements for the supply of health care and LTC which encourage a more efficient use of scarce resources
3. Evaluate measures that reduce the demand for health care and LTC, thus alleviating scarcities of resources in demographically declining regions. External cooperatiom partners: Universität Duisburg-Essen; Universität Tilburg; Universität Paderborn; Techniker Krankenkasse
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Transferring the Nuremberg topographical and temporal model into the public
|
Matthias Razum |
2020
|
2023
|
FIZ KA
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The project will combine computer science and the humanities to produce a 3D digital model of the Nuremberg urban area in four time layers, from the baroque period to the present day. The aim is to allow a wider lay public to take a virtual tour of the city, which was largely destroyed in the Second World War. At the same time, the project will develop a model-making template that can be applied to any other geographic area. There are also plans to allow the participation of citizens in the project (citizen science).
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Micro-scale resonators for nuclear and electron spin resonance spectroscopies
|
Prof. Dr. Bernd Büchner |
2020
|
2024
|
IFW Dresden
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Portable non-invasive analytical systems are extremely valuable when it comes to product quality assurance and medical diagnostics. This project will develop a highly innovative, portable device for non-invasive nuclear and electron spin resonance spectroscopy to analyse various samples. Potential fields of application include science, industry and medicine. In detail, the project aims to develop cylindrical micro-coils as resonators for lab-on-chip NMR and ESR sensors. It combines expertise in integrated nanotechnology and solid-state research.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Heritage Conservation Center Ruhr - Transferring knowledge about historic material’s complexity for a sustainable future
|
Prof. Dr. Stefan Brüggerhoff |
2020
|
2022
|
DBM
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The project will develop a modular communications and networking toolset for the preservation of industrial heritage objects. Internet-based knowledge transfer will be used alongside analogue formats like conferences, workshops and a citizens advice bureau. The idea is to bring together specialists, provide facts, identify unresolved conservation issues relating to technology and ethics, and enable interaction between different expert communities and relevant institutions. There is a deliberate focus on developing an exchange of ideas with the general public.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Post-translational modifications of the synaptic scaffold controlling age-induced memory impairment
|
Prof. Dr. Albert Sickmann |
2019
|
2021
|
ISAS,
LIN (formerly IfN)
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The ability to form new memories declines with age. Since aging processes are particularly associated with changes in the post-translational modification of synaptic proteins, this could be a key to understanding the phenomenon. For this reason, scientists from the Leibniz Institute for Analytical Sciences (ISAS), Freie Universität Berlin and the Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology in Magdeburg will investigate the molecular mechanisms of this process in order, ultimately, to open up new possibilities for therapeutic interventions. External cooperation partner: Freie Universität Berlin
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Segregation and Regional Mobility
|
Prof. Dr. Thomas Bauer |
2019
|
2022
|
RWI
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The spatial segregation of different population groups in individual towns and cities or neighbourhoods can exacerbate existing social inequalities. The phenomenon of moving to or away from certain areas has long been a focus of political attention for this reason. The project will investigate the causes of this development and is able to make use of a unique longitudinal dataset for the years 2007 to 2014 with granular regional information on population structure and property prices. External cooperation partners: Universität Düsseldorf; University Pompeu Fabra Barcelona; Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung, Nürnberg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Optical Control of Nanoscale Spin Textures
|
Prof. Dr. Stefan Eisebitt |
2019
|
|
MBI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The project addresses how magnetism can be controlled at lengths of less than 10-7 m and time scales of less than 10-10 s. It will explore the possibilities of ultrafast optical switches for magnetisation, while also investigating novel topological magnetic structures. Researchers with complementary expertise in the experimental and theoretical sides of magnetisation dynamics will be brought together for the project. External cooperation partners: Max-Planck-Institut für Intelligente Systeme; Forschungszentrum Jülich
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Efficiency and Equity in Education: Quasi-Experimental Evidence from School Reforms across German States
|
Prof. Dr. Jutta Allmendinger |
2019
|
2023
|
DIPF,
WZB,
ifo
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
How efficient and equitable have the educational reforms been in Germany since the 1950s? What impacts did individual reforms have on the curriculum, grading and teaching? What exactly were the effects of reforms on grading in primary school, religion as a compulsory subject and options to opt out of STEM subjects? These are the questions that the project seeks to answer. It makes use of the fact that educational sovereignty of the federal states makes Germany a unique research area, in which these questions can be investigated not only over time but also across states. External cooperation partners: Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Northwestern University, Evanston; University of Bologna; University of Wisconsin-Madison; University of Heidelberg; Stanford University; Hebrew University of Jerusalem; University of Warwick; University of Oslo; London School of Economics; University of Chicago; Aarhus University; Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; University Erlangen-Nuremberg; Norwegian School of Economics, Bergen; Jyväskylä University; University of California Los Angeles; University of Konstanz
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Development of a predictive solid state tool for improved pharmaceuticals safety
|
Dr. Torsten Beweries |
2019
|
|
LIKAT
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Being able to predict a drug’s shelf life as accurately as possible is a key factor in ensuring the safety of pharmaceutical products. The project will therefore develop an industry-ready method for analysing and quantifying aging processes in pharmaceutical drugs. The aging process will be triggered using ball mills and (photo)catalytic processes. The project is not only pursuing a new route towards fast and reliable shelf life measurement for medicines, which will be extremely relevant to the pharmaceutical industry, but is also paving the way for a new research field in pharmaceutical chemistry. External cooperation partners: Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen; Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Novel metastable thin film materials through potential energy dissipation during subplantation of multiply charged ions
|
Prof. Dr. Andre Anders |
2019
|
2023
|
IOM
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The microstructure and properties of films are determined by the film material, the conditions of the substrate surface and the deposition process parameters. The project will explore theoretically and experimentally an alternative approach for the growth of novel metastable materials. The new materials include certain nitrides and oxides that will have properties that are of great interest for numerous electronic and optical applications, but also for micromachines. External cooperation partner: Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
High-definition crystalline Silicon-Germanium structures for Quantum circuits
|
Dr. Torsten Boeck |
2019
|
2023
|
IHP,
IKZ
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The project will grow, evaluate and optimise 28Si-enriched highly pure, low-defect crystalline Si-Ge layer structures and use them as qubit hosting material for quantum computing. It will make an important contribution in the current race to build a (solid-state) quantum information processing computer. The project will bring together a group of high-calibre researchers and engineers from the IKZ, the Leibniz Institute for Innovations for High Performance Microelectronics (IHP) and RWTH Aachen. External cooperation partner: Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Competencies of school teachers and adult educators in teaching German as a second language in linguistically diverse classrooms
|
Prof. Dr. Josef Schrader |
2019
|
2023
|
DIE,
DIPF,
IPN
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Language learning is a key prerequisite for the integration of people with a migrant background. In Germany, German as a second language is generally taught in schools and in adult education, in classrooms that are increasingly culturally and linguistically diverse. For teachers, this means new requirements in terms of their professional theoretical and practical skills. The further development of teacher training in this area is still in its infancy – not least because there is no empirical data on the type and function of the relevant competencies. This is what the project seeks to deliver. External cooperation partners: Universität zu Köln; Universität Bonn; Universität Tübingen; Universität Zürich
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Legacies of Communism? Post-Communist Europe from Stagnation to Reform, between Autocracy and Revolution.
|
Dr. Jan Claas Behrends |
2019
|
2023
|
IOS,
WZB,
ZZF,
ZfL
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Recent political and social developments in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union call into question whether post-communist countries are on a path towards stable democracy. The project will investigate how the transformation of these countries since the 1990s can be understood, and will make use of new research methods. The project tests the hypothesis that informal networks are of greater significance for the continuance or decline of a democracy than the democratic institutions themselves. Qualitative historical case studies will be carried out on the social and cultural practices of elites and their networks. They will focus on the Ukraine, Georgia, Estonia, Poland and Hungary. External cooperation partners: University of Bristol, UK; National University ""Kyiv-Mohyla Academy""; Zentrum für Osteuropa- und internationale Studien, Berlin; European University Institute, Florenz; Europa-Universität Viadrina, Frankfurt (Oder); University of Florida; Centre Marc Bloch, Berlin; University of Exeter; The University of Dublin; Tallinn University; The Center for Urban History of East Central Europe, Lviv; University of Warsaw; Ilia State University, Tbilisi
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Volatilome of a Cereal Crop-Microbiota System under Drought and Flooding
|
Prof. Dr. Steffen Kolb |
2019
|
2021
|
IGZ,
IPK,
ZALF
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Climate change is leading to an increase in extreme weather events, which are endangering global food production. Abiotic stress factors like floods and droughts reduce yields and make crops more susceptible to pathogens and herbivores. Against this background, the project will investigate the functional relationships between plants and mycorrhizal fungi, in particular the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) they emit, which are important for communication between plants and for protection against herbivores. The project will investigate these relationships, using wheat as an experimental model, and will identify VOCs that promote beneficial biotic communities and, in turn, increase the fitness of the plant. External cooperation partner: German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research, Leipzig
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Powering endurance: Fuel selection in migratory bats
|
Dr. Christian Voigt |
2019
|
2023
|
IZW
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The energy balance of mammals is fundamentally different from that of birds. Whereas mammals usually experience sudden fatigue during strenuous exercise as soon as their glycogen reserves are depleted, birds can fly long distances using their fat reserves. Migrating bats present an exception among mammals. How do they manage to fly long distances without suddenly becoming exhausted? What physiological strategy do they use? Is their energy metabolism closer to that of birds than that of mammals? These are the questions that the research project seeks to answer. External cooperation partners: Technische Universität München; Helmholtz Zentrum München
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Drifting Apart: International Institutions in Crisis and the Management of Dissociation Processes
|
Prof. Dr. Nicole Deitelhoff |
2019
|
2021
|
GIGA (formerly DÜI),
IfZ,
PRIF (formerly HSFK),
ZZF
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Events like Brexit and Donald Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement have made the public aware of the possibility of international institutions fracturing, potentially with dramatic consequences. The Leibniz Research Association on Crises in a Globalised World has developed a collaborative project with four Leibniz institutes to analyse dissociation processes from a political science and contemporary history perspective. The project brings together peace researchers, historians and area studies specialists. External cooperation partners: German Institute of Global and Area Studies; Institut für Zeitgeschichte; Zentrum für Zeithistorische Forschung Potsdam
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Chronic quiescence - maintenance of hematopoiesis and immunological memory in health and latent infection, and its disruption in chronic inflammation.
|
Prof. Dr. Fritz Melchers |
2019
|
2021
|
DRFZ,
FZB
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Which cell-intrinsic and cell-extrinsic factors control the cell cycle and metabolic activity of haematopoietic cells and lymphocytes? The longevity, self-renewal and memory of the immune system are controlled via quiescence. The project focuses on this central but still poorly understood aspect of the immune system. It aims to decode the underlying molecular mechanisms for the first time. The expected findings will be significant not only for understanding the immune system, but also for fundamental aspects of cell biology, including regenerative processes, and may generate options for treating chronic illnesses like tuberculosis or rheumatism. External cooperation partners: University of Leeds; Max-Planck-Institut für Infektionsbiologie, Berlin; Allgemeines Krankenhaus Wien; Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg; Helmholtz-Zentrum für Infektionsforschung, Braunschweig
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Integrative analysis of the influence of pesticides and land use on biodiversity in Germany
|
Dr. Livia Schäffler |
2019
|
2021
|
LIB (formerly ZFMK),
MfN,
ZALF
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Not much research has been carried out into the dramatic loss of biodiversity, especially among insects, and into its causes and consequences. The project will test the hypothesis that the loss of biodiversity is largely a side effect of agricultural land use, especially the use of pesticides. The consequences of agricultural practices will be examined at various sites in eastern and western Germany for a large number of insect species. As well as looking at taxonomic units, the researchers will consider pesticide levels in soil, plants and insects, as well as plant associations and landscape structure. External cooperation partners: Senckenberg Museum für Naturkunde Görlitz; Universität Koblenz-Landau; Universität Bonn; Entomologischer Verein Krefeld; Landesamt für Umwelt Brandenburg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Improving School Admissions for Diversity and Better Learning Outcomes
|
Dr. Thilo Klein |
2019
|
2023
|
DIPF,
DIW,
WZB,
ZEW
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The allocation of school places follows very different rules in different European countries. While some countries work with admissions criteria, others use mathematical algorithms that allocate thousands of places in seconds. But which social groups benefit from the different rules? Are there allocation systems that can be regarded as particularly fair and help reduce social segregation and improve learning success? These are the questions that the project seeks to answer. It is expected to make an effective contribution to resolving problems associated with the allocation of school places within the EU. External cooperation partners: Freie Universität Berlin; Technische Universität Berlin; Universität Wuppertal; Paris School of Economics; London School of Economics; New York University; Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Hungarian Education Authority, Budapest; Deutscher Städtetag, Köln; Landesjugendamt, Stuttgart
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Names change, places too. The Challenge of Developing Geodata-based Gazetteer Research Technologies and Methods
|
Dr. Christian Lotz |
2019
|
2021
|
HI,
IOS,
IfL
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project will create a web application that provides access to multiple analogue and digital gazetteers of place names for the whole of eastern Central Europe to allow a comparison of their contents and the generation of metadata. There is a high demand for this data in various disciplines such as history, geography, archaeology and climate change research. The project also aims to develop methods to ensure that the geographic and statistical information can be made available for research on a sustainable basis. This is an important step towards further advancing the spatial turn in the digital age. External cooperation partners: Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen; digiCULT-Verbund; Verein für Computergenealogie, Das Geschichtliche Orts-Verzeichnis; Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Berlin; Eötvös-Universität, Budapest; Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Wien; Canterbury Christ Church University; Maria Curie-Skłodowska University Lublin; Geonames/Deutschland; Universität Gießen; Lithuanian Institute of History, Vilnius; Universität Leipzig; Deutsche Nationalbibliothek; Charles University Prague; Polish Academy of Science, Warszawa; Université Laval, Québec; Universität Gießen
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Cognition and Motivation in Educational Testing
|
Dr. Marlit Annalena Lindner |
2019
|
2023
|
IPN
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Educational tests are used both in the context of large-scale assessments and in everyday school settings. However, little is known about the psychological processes that take place when students respond to test questions. Dr Marlit Annalena Lindner and her research group will investigate the cognitive, metacognitive and motivational effects of tests. The focus is on the use of text-picture combinations in test materials and the impact of instant digital feedback.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Correlated materials from first principles: solving the nexus of charge, orbital and spin
|
Dr. Oleg Janson |
2019
|
2024
|
IFW Dresden
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The properties of various modern functional materials, such as high-temperature superconductors, are based on interacting electrons. So far, it has not been possible to calculate the ensuing electronic correlation, even in very simple systems. The research group led by Dr Oleg Janson will focus on investigating these correlations using computer-based methods with predictive power. The researchers will use a combination of new theories: DFT code fplo combined with current many-body methods (DMFT and DGA). This will allow them to make predictions about correlation even in complicated materials in actual use.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Pathological host responses to Lassa virus infection - from mice to man
|
Dr. Lisa Oestereich |
2019
|
2023
|
BNITM
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Lassa virus is a virus spread by rodents that is endemic in several West African countries and causes annual outbreaks of Lassa fever with a high fatality rate. Dr Lisa Oestereich and her research group are studying the virus. In her previous work, she developed a mouse model that simulates key features of Lassa fever in humans. The model makes it possible, for the first time, to carry out mechanistic studies of the host response to the virus. In addition to the molecular immunological studies with the mouse model, the project will also conduct clinical trials in Nigeria. In this way, it will make a contribution to the development of medical countermeasures.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
The Economics of Violence Against Women: Understanding Causes and Identifying Remedies
|
Prof. Dr. Helmut Rainer |
2019
|
2023
|
ifo
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
It is estimated that one in five women in the European Union experiences domestic violence at some point in her life, and the figure for many developing countries is even higher. Violence against women not only produces health and social problems, but also has a negative impact on economic development. The global costs of domestic violence are estimated to be over five per cent of global GDP, making it more expensive than any other form of violence. Against this background, the Junior Research Group led by Dr Sofia Amaral will investigate the cultural and socioeconomic causes and consequences of violence against women, and will also examine the effectiveness of various intervention options.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
“Man hört, man spricht”: Informal Communication and Information “From Below” in Nazi Europe
|
Dr. Caroline Mezger |
2019
|
2023
|
IfZ
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
How did individuals in Nazi Germany and its occupied territories interpret information under conditions of censorship, repression and state propaganda? What does the emergence and perception of informal information reveal about practices of inclusion and exclusion, gender relations, ethnic categorisations and the distribution of power in a society? The focus of Dr Caroline Mezger’s project is on the formation of rumours and legends in a totalitarian system. With her Junior Research Group she will investigate the interface between official and informal communication in Nazi Germany and occupied Europe. The research programme will involve various case studies for Germany, France and Poland.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Global freshwater biodiversity, biogeography and conservation
|
Dr. Sami Domisch |
2019
|
2023
|
IGB
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Global biodiversity is declining across all ecosystems, and freshwater biodiversity is particularly at risk. There has not been much research into its significance and distinctiveness, however, compared with terrestrial and marine ecosystems. A number of anthropogenic pressures, such as climate change, land use changes and chemical pollution have been shown to affect freshwater habitats. A comprehensive picture is needed of the current situation before appropriate countermeasures can be found to prevent a further decline in biodiversity. Dr Sami Domisch and his Junior Research Group are therefore focusing their research on freshwater organisms and their habitats.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Combined Evolution of Star-Planet Systems
|
Prof. Dr. Katja Poppenhäger |
2019
|
2024
|
AIP
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The project is in the field of stellar physics and exoplanets. It makes use of an observational method for star activity developed by the project leader that will be applied to current observational data. Cooperating university: Universität Potsdam
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Europa und Amerika in der modernen Welt - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Regensburg (funding phase 1)
|
Prof. Dr. Ulf Brunnbauer |
2019
|
|
IOS
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Relations between Europe and both North and South America are currently undergoing dramatic transformations. It is thus all the more important to explore the complex entanglements of multiple regions on both sides of the Atlantic. This is the main objective of the interdisciplinary Leibniz-ScienceCampus “Europe and America in the Modern World”.
The relationship between Europe and America has been constitutive of globalisation, its inherent tensions and its fault lines since the late eighteenth century. The research programme of the Regensburg ScienceCampus therefore focuses on the key sites of globalisation – and resistance to it, something that is manifested in migration processes and cultural identities, for example. The Campus thus seeks to contribute to improving understandings of the history of globalisation while also tracing current developments in transatlantic relations and encounters.
Following the interdisciplinary approach of contemporary area studies, the Regensburg ScienceCampus brings together researchers from various fields, including history, cultural studies, linguistics, literary studies, economics and the social sciences. A significant feature of the Campus is the extensive international network of partners involved. They are based across North and South America, and Eastern and Western Europe. “Europe and America in the Modern World” will thus work towards making Regensburg a leading centre for transregional area studies.
The blog journal Frictions offers insight into research and discussions on the core regions and themes explored in the ScienceCampus. External cooperation partner: Universität Regensburg
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Phosphorforschung Rostock - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Rostock (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Ulrich Bathmann |
2019
|
|
FBN (former member institute),
INP,
IOW,
IPK,
LIKAT
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
The world’s reserves of phosphorus, an essential element, are limited. Without radical changes to the way phosphorus is extracted and used, there are likely to be geopolitical distribution problems. Low resource use efficiency, the absence of closed-loop material cycles and the resulting environmental pollution currently present a major problem for the use of phosphorus and its compounds throughout the economy. When large quantities of unused phosphorus enter the material cycles of ecosystems, it can lead to over-fertilisation, which brings the whole system out of balance. One example of the effects of high volumes of phosphorus entering ecosystems are the blue algae blooms seen in the Baltic Sea in the summer months.
The overarching aim of the interdisciplinary collaboration within the Leibniz ScienceCampus in Rostock is to use its topic-based network to develop the scientific basis for more sustainable phosphorus management. The ScienceCampus pools existing expertise in various aspects of research into phosphorus, its diverse chemical compounds and specific modes of action in agricultural and environmental ecosystems, as well as in technical and industrial processes. Key focus areas of the research are "P in the environment", "efficiency and sufficiency of phosphorus utilisation, phosphorus recycling, "P in catalysis and synthesis", "P in molecular Biology" and, as a cross-sectional research topic, "P governance". External cooperation partner: Universität Rostock
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Postdigitale Partizipation - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Braunschweig (funding phase 1)
|
Prof. Dr. Eckhardt Fuchs |
2019
|
|
DSM,
GEI,
IWM
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The Leibniz ScienceCampus „Postdigital Participation (LSC PdP)“ focuses on societal participation in today’s ‘postdigital’ world, i.e. one in which our lives are embedded in hybrid assemblages of analogue and digital technologies and practices. A Social Living Lab will bring together cultural, social and technical sciences with local citizens to collaboratively design, explore and reflect on participation in education and urban life.
The LSC aims to establish a new and multidisciplinary research area, develop international scholarly networks, impact the local digital skills ecology and establish an active knowledge exchange programme to enliven public debates on the digital world. External cooperation partners: Haus der Wissenschaft Braunschweig; Ostfalia Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften; Technische Universität Braunschweig
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Nachhaltige Chemo-BioKatalytische Produktion (ComBioCat) – Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Rostock
|
Prof. Dr. Jennifer Strunk |
2019
|
2023
|
INP,
LIKAT
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The Leibniz ScienceCampus ComBioCat is dedicated to one of the major challenges facing society: the transformation from fossil resources to renewable raw materials for the production of chemicals and energy sources. Here, catalysis is the key technology. The task is complex and requires an interdisciplinary approach. Only the cooperation of the four partner institutions can cover all the necessary catalytic disciplines. With their combined expertise in bio-, chemo- and photocatalysis, innovative plasma-based catalysis and process engineering, the aim is to harness previously inaccessible biomass and develop catalyst systems for sustainable chemical and energy production. This also includes the development of concepts for the conversion of waste materials into high-quality chemical products. External cooperation partners: Universität Greifswald; Universität Rostock
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Steuerpolitik der Zukunft (MannheimTaxation) - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Mannheim (funding phase 1)
|
Prof. Dr. Christoph Spengel |
2019
|
|
ZEW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The MannheimTaxation Leibniz ScienceCampus draws on the combined expertise of the ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research and the University of Mannheim in the fields of company taxation, public finance and tax law. It intensifies the sharing of ideas between the participating researchers, promotes dialogue with academics and practitioners, and contributes to the training of young researchers.
A central topic is fiscal policy of the future in the context of European and global integration and the new challenges facing the economy and society as a whole. The aim of the interdisciplinary collaboration between economists, business management specialists, legal experts and political scientists is to develop policy options to help solve these challenges, while taking account of economic, legal, political and business concerns.
The MannheimTaxation Leibniz ScienceCampus provides for a close link between high-quality research work and the preparation and communication of research results for a range of audiences. External cooperation partner: Universität Mannheim
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
InfectoOptics - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Jena (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Marc Thilo Figge |
2019
|
|
HKI,
IPHT
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Infectious diseases are one of the most common causes of death worldwide. More than 20.000 people die of infections only in Germany every year. Moreover, pathogens, resistant against available antibiotics, make the battle against life-threatening diseases difficult. In the Jena Leibniz ScienceCampus InfectoOptics scientists from different fields combine their expertise to investigate infections and microbial pathogens.
On the one hand, physicists and engineers develop novel optical and photonic technologies for the investigation and diagnostics of infections. Methods like Fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS), i.e. sorting of cells based on their specific light scattering and fluorescent characteristics, and the combination of microfluidics with spectroscopic approaches show an enormous potential for the fast analysis of cells, e.g. directly in the blood of infected individuals.
On the other hand, natural product researchers and infection biologists work on the elucidation of molecular mechanisms of infections and on the development of novel antiinfective compounds. The knowledge and methods of the different scientific fields are merged within joint research projects to push discovery processes and explore novel topics. External cooperation partners: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena; Universitätsklinikum Jena; Ernst-Abbe-Hochschule; Fraunhofer-Institut für Angewandte Optik und Feinmechanik; Institut für molekulare Pathogenese im Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Byzanz zwischen Orient und Okzident - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Mainz/Frankfurt (funding phase 2)
|
Dr. Alexandra Busch |
2019
|
|
IEG,
LEIZA (formerly RGZM)
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The Greek-influenced Byzantine Empire played a vital role in the formation of modern Europe and the Mediterranean states. Between the 4th and the 12th century, Byzantine culture set standards in all areas of life and had a key influence on all neighbouring states. Byzantium formed a bridge between Antiquity and the Modern Age and, at the same time, between Europe and the Orient. The Byzantine heritage is still present today in many countries in the form of the Orthodox Church. Despite its historical significance, research into Byzantine history and culture in Germany occupies a niche area, although the Byzantine element is gaining a new importance against the backdrop of the European unification process.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus Mainz aims to establish a broad platform for interdisciplinary Byzantine studies within an institutional framework. The various cultural processes of reception, transfer and exchange which took place in the reception of Antiquity and the continued existence of Byzantine culture as well as between Byzantium and the Latin West, the Slavic North and the Islamic South are examined in a uniform approach. The Leibniz ScienceCampus promotes the integration of dispersed scientific disciplines dedicated to Byzantium, and enables multidisciplinary, historical and cultural research to be conducted under one roof. External cooperation partners: Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz; Goethe Universität Frankfurt
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Berlin Centre for Consumer Policies - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Berlin (funding phase 2)
|
Prof. Dr. Tomaso Duso |
2019
|
|
DIW,
WZB
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The promotion of consumer rights is a core value of the European Union. A whole spectrum of laws, institutions and regulations has been put in place to protect consumers and ensure that appropriate information is available on the market and that business are prevented from engaging in unfair and anti-competitive practices.
Some of these economic policies directly affect consumers, such as consumer protection laws and dissuasive taxation. Others provide an indirect benefit by controlling market processes via regulation and competition policy. The aim of the Leibniz ScienceCampus “Berlin Centre for Consumer Policies (BCCP)” is to examine and understand the complex interactions between these various measures.
Against this background, the intention is to create a permanent international platform for competition and consumer policy with the BCCP. Excellent interdisciplinary research – economists, lawyers, and political and computer scientists all work together at the campus – is carried out with the aim of actively and effectively advising policy-makers on highly relevant current issues. This strong political focus makes Berlin the perfect location for the Leibniz ScienceCampus. External cooperation partners: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; Technische Universität Berlin, European School of Management and Technology; Hertie School of Governance; Alexander von Humboldt Institut für Internet und Gesellschaft (HIIG)
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Digital Public Health - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Bremen (funding phase 1)
|
Prof. Dr. Hajo Zeeb |
2019
|
|
BIPS
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
‘Digitalisation permeates every aspect of life and will transform public health’. Such phrases are ubiquitous and underline the key challenge in digital public health: the use of digital technology is driven by technical opportunities rather than by demands. While this can lead to useful applications, it can also lead to technologies that fail to realize the key objectives of evidence-based public health and pose novel ethical, sociocultural and equity-related challenges.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus "Digital Public Health" aims to develop a much-needed public health perspective on these challenges. Its activities focus on three key outcomes: a systematic framework to integrate digital technology into public health, guidance on developing digital technology for public health problems as well as the scope and methods for the systematic evaluation of digital technology in public health. After our first phase, in which we focused on researching concepts and applications of digital public health, we are now entering a new chapter: in the second phase, we will focus on putting our findings into practice. We are also continuing our successful Early Career Researcher Academy. External cooperation partners: Universität Bremen; Fraunhofer-Institut für Digitale Medizin MEVIS
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Integrative analysis of pathogen-induced compartments (InterACt) - Leibniz-WissenschaftsCampus Hamburg (funding phase 1)
|
Prof. Dr. Kay Grünewald |
2019
|
2023
|
BNITM,
FZB,
LIV (formerly HPI)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The Leibniz ScienceCampus „InterACt“ investigates the interaction between pathogens such as viruses, bacteria and parasites and the affected host. During the cellular infection cycle, pathogens use the existing reaction spaces of the host or create new ones. These reaction spaces or „compartments“ protect the pathogens from the host's defenses and concentrate factors that contribute to the pathogen's multiplication. The dynamics, structure and function of these diverse reaction spaces is extremely complex and can only be analysed and understood in situ.
The Leibniz ScienceCampus has state-of-the-art imaging techniques at its disposal to analyse these processes. The resulting complex datasets are supplemented with data from complementary methods and integratively merged. The novel insights gained into pathogen compartments will ultimately help enable the discovery of innovative therapeutic approaches. InterACt provides the platform for combining Hamburg's expertise in the fields of infection, structural and systems biology with in situ imaging and bioinformatics methods. External cooperation partners: Universität Hamburg (UHH); Universitätsklinikum Hamburg Eppendorf (UKE)
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Enhancing the Visibility within the Research Region: Leibniz-GWZO in Prague
|
Prof. Dr. Christian Lübke |
2019
|
2023
|
GWZO
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Imparting research results relating to Eastern and Central Europe is a core concern of the Leibniz Institute for the History and Culture of Eastern Europe (GWZO) at Leipzig University. It not only conducts research about the region, but also works with and in the region – through numerous collaborative partnerships and networks. In order to strengthen networking in one of the target countries (the Czech Republic) and, in turn, across the entire region, and to continue to promote the dissemination of scientific knowledge, the GWZO plans to establish a branch office in Prague. The aim is knowledge transfer, in close collaboration with the National Gallery in Prague, involving large-scale international exhibitions, public talks, workshops, publications and social media activities.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Transfer of evidence-based and co-produced knowledge for human-wolf coexistence
|
Prof. Dr. Thomas Müller |
2019
|
2023
|
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Wolves were once extinct in Germany but have shown a remarkable recovery since the 1990s. Populations are currently established in seven federal states, and numbers are predicted to rise to hundreds of wolf packs in Germany in just a few years. This raises questions in society about the conditions for coexistence, and the issue has led to major debates. However, evidence-based information is often either absent or inadequately applied. The aim of the project is therefore to ensure the population has robust knowledge about wolves. A digital transfer tool will be developed to enable a two-way exchange between scientists and society.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Electricity Network Analysis
|
Dr. Sabine Auer |
2019
|
2023
|
PIK
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
The stability of electricity networks is a key requirement for the energy transition and climate protection. Many states across the world limit their shares of renewable energy sources because they identify static and especially dynamic power grid stability as a bottleneck for the energy transition. To counteract this problem, the project plans to develop a service for dynamic, heavy-duty, high-voltage grids. The aim is to offer a holistic service, based on new analysis methods for assessing dynamic stability that can contribute to a more realistic modelling of fluctuations in the use of renewables.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
ParasiteWeb: A web-based platform for training and quality management of microscopic parasite diagnostics
|
Prof. Dr. Egbert Tannich |
2019
|
2023
|
BNITM
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The project will develop an innovative web-based platform for interactive training and quality management relating to the microscopic diagnosis of parasites in clinical samples. Clinical samples will be digitised and high-quality images of parasites will be presented to allow realistic simulation of microscopic analyses. The aim is to enable reliable, low-cost diagnosis of parasitic diseases like malaria and bilharzia.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Structures of Viral Proteins Essential for Replication and Transcription
|
Prof. Dr. Stephan Günther |
2018
|
2023
|
BNITM
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
In 2016, the World Health Organization initiated the R&D Blueprint as a global strategy to enhance preparedness to future epidemics. It is to focus R&D on under-researched pathogens with epidemic potential for which there are no, or insufficient, countermeasures. The Blueprint list includes several negative-strand RNA viruses (NSV) such as Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus, Ebola and Marburg disease virus, Lassa fever virus, Nipah virus, and Rift Valley fever virus. They occur in Low and Middle Income Countries and outbreaks have devastating consequences to their society and economy. A major gap in knowledge is the structure and function of the replication machinery of these viruses. A key component is the large (200-250 kDa) L protein (polymerase), an attractive drug target harbouring several enzymatic activities essential for virus replication. Our aim is to produce ultra-pure full-length L proteins of NSV prioritized by the Blueprint, characterize their enzymatic activities, and solve their atomic structures using a range of innovative technologies. This collaborative project involves three excellent partners with complementary expertise in tropical virology, biochemistry, X-ray crystallography, and cryo electron tomography. The integrative approach will yield structural data and technological platforms that will greatly facilitate the future development of drugs against human-pathogenic RNA viruses. External cooperation partners: HPI; Outstation of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL)
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Search as Learning - Investigating, Enhancing and Predicting Learning during Web Search
|
Prof. Dr. Ralph Ewerth |
2018
|
2022
|
IWM,
TIB
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Established information retrieval approaches address the relevance of search results to an information need, whereas the actual learning scope of a user is usually disregarded. Recent research in the search as learning area has recognized the importance of learning scopes and focused on observing and detecting learning needs. However, it has often been restricted to limited and isolated feature sets or specific learning tasks. High-dimensional feature spaces, (audio)visual information, or the generalizability of previous work to support various learning needs by retrieval, ranking, and recommendations have not been investigated yet. The proposed interdisciplinary project aims at closing this gap by researching methods to improve retrieval performance and individuals' learning through (a) an accurate detection and prediction of learning needs and knowledge gains during search by means of query logs, navigation logs, eye-tracking and thinking-aloud data, which serve as a basis for (b) supporting users in their learning tasks through an enhanced retrieval and ranking process and recommendations, as well as for (c) suggesting appropriate and personalized recommendations including multimodal information (diagrams, slides, videos, etc.). Next to providing contributions to information retrieval and Web search, the project goes beyond previous work by also addressing semi-informal learning scenarios that involve search for scholarly and scientific (multimodal) information, literature, and videos in digital library portals, e.g., as offered by TIB's main web portal and the TIB AV-Portal for scientific videos. Since different kinds of learning tasks are associated with significantly different user behaviors and preferences, a thorough understanding of learning needs and cognitive and behavioral learning patterns from a psychological perspective is required. Results will be evaluated in a variety of scenarios and will lead to generalizable models and methods. External cooperation partner: L3S Research Center
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Kritischer Katalog der Luther-Bildnisse (1519-1530)
|
Prof. Dr. Daniel Hess |
2018
|
2022
|
GNM
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Die Bedeutung Martin Luthers für die Religions- und Kulturgeschichte ist unbestritten. Anders als seine Werke sind die für seine Wirkungsgeschichte ebenso wichtigen Porträts weder vollständig gesammelt noch kritisch erschlossen. Viele der bislang als authentische Schlüsselwerke geltende Gemälde und Druckgraphiken haben sich als spätere, seriell gefertigte oder posthume Werke erwiesen, die der Überhöhung des Reformators nach 1555 dienten. Ein kritisches Werkverzeichnis der frühen Luther-Bildnisse (1519-1530) ist daher ein wissenschaftliches und kulturpolitisches Desiderat. In seiner Verbindung von Kunstgeschichte, Kunsttechnologie, Reformationsgeschichte und Digitaler Mustererkennung schafft das interdisziplinäre Projekt dafür die methodischen und inhaltlichen Voraussetzungen. Für das Vorhaben unter Leitung von Dr. Daniel Hess kooperieren Wissenschaftlerinnen und Wissenschaftler vom Germanischen Nationalmuseum (GNM) mit der Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg und der Technischen Hochschule Köln. Alle Lutherporträts des Untersuchungszeitraums werden digital erfasst und durch unüberwachte bzw. semi-überwachte Analyseverfahren in ihren relativen Ähnlichkeitsverhältnissen bestimmt und dargestellt. Alle Bildnisse werden mit physikalischen Analyseverfahren und naturwissenschaftlichen Methoden systematisch untersucht und soweit möglich datiert. Auf dieser Basis lassen sich dann belastbarere kunsthistorische Zuschreibungen und eine zuverlässigere Bewertung ihrer Authentizität und ihres reformationsgeschichtlichen Quellenwertes vornehmen. External cooperation partner: Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Epigenetic regulation of ImmuneAging: Heterochromatic DNA methylation as a regulator of T cell senescence
|
Dr. Julia Polansky-Biskup |
2018
|
2023
|
DRFZ,
FLI,
FMP,
IZW
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Eines der größten Probleme des Alterns ist die reduzierte Wirksamkeit des Immunsystems, die zu verschiedensten altersbedingten Erkrankungen, einem erhöhten Infektionsrisiko und reduziertem Impferfolg führen kann. T-Lymphozyten sind essentiell am Alterungsprozess des Immunsystems beteiligt und zeigen dabei eine charakteristische chemische Veränderung (De-Methylierung) der DNA. Diese sogenannte "epigenetische" Veränderung wirken sich nicht auf die DNA-Sequenz, wohl aber auf die Struktur der DNA aus. In dem Projekt, das im Leibniz-Wettbewerb 2018 gefördert wurde, werden daher die Mechanismen und funktionellen Konsequenzen der DNA-De-Methylierung in T-Lymphozyten während des Alterungsprozesses des Immunsystems untersucht. Die Ergebnisse sollen nicht nur die internationale Grundlagenforschung voranbringen, sondern auch potentielle Biomarker für die Prävention und Behandlung der altersbedingten Immunschwäche identifizieren. Das Vorhaben führt somit das Leibniz-Thema „Gesundes Altern“ in exzellenter Weise weiter. Das interdisziplinäre Konsortium vereint die Kompetenz von vier Leibniz-Instituten und zwei universitären Partnern und verbindet zelluläre Grundlagenforschung mit klinischer Forschung. External cooperation partners: Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin; Universität des Saarlandes
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Terahertz Detection of Atoms in Plasma Processes
|
Prof. Dr. Holger Grahn |
2018
|
2022
|
INP,
PDI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The proposal Terahertz Detection of Atoms in Plasma Processes aims at the development of spectroscopic methods in the terahertz (THz) spectral range for the determination of the absolute density of atoms and ions for a variety of species in technologically relevant plasma processes such as plasma-aided deposition of AlN and Si-based films. The joint proposal brings together the expertise of the Paul-Drude-Institut für Festkörperelektronik in the field of customized THz quantum-cascade lasers for spectroscopic applications and of the Leibniz-Institut für Plasmaforschung und Technologie in the field of spectroscopic plasma diagnostics. Our novel approach is based on the detection of hyperfine transitions of the ground state in metal atoms and ions in the THz spectral range using quantum-cascade lasers. These lasers can be conveniently used in coolant-free Stirling coolers allowing for a compact setup. For the detection of Si, Al, N+, and O, single-mode quantum-cascade lasers emitting at 2.31, 3.36, 3.92, and 4.75 THz, respectively, will be developed. Frequency combs spanning the spectral range from 3.3 to 4.0 THz will be developed for the simultaneous detection of Al and N+ allowing for a compact process control system based on dual-comb spectroscopy for the deposition of AlN films.
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Using “signatures of selection” to decipher key mechanisms regulating fe/male fertility
|
Dr. Jennifer Schön |
2018
|
2023
|
FBN (former member institute),
IZW
|
Section C - Life Sciences,
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Curative therapies for infertility are rare, because the complex network of mechanisms determining reproductive success is largely unknown. To decipher parts of this network we use worldwide unique mouse lines created by long-term selection (180 generations) for the integrative fertility traits “increased litter size and weightâ€. These traits comprise core reproductive processes (i. a. gonad development, gamete recruitment, ovulation, fertilization and embryonic/fetal development). In the selection mouse lines, 45 years of litter size maximization have carved the causal alleles out of the genome as patterns of genetic invariance, the so-called “signatures of selectionâ€. We aim to detect these characteristic frequency patterns of alleles causal for the selected traits and identify the affected genes and pathways. We test if the genomic patterns resulting from selection for increased litter size (a primarily female trait) are also relevant for male reproductive physiology and performance. Finally, we employ comparative animal models to verify their general significance. With this project we will provide substantial new knowledge about the network of genes and pathways actually relevant for controlling central reproductive processes in mammals. External cooperation partners: Bundeshybridzuchtprogramm GmbH; Geolifes; Institut für Fortpflanzung landwirtschaftlicher Nutztiere; Universität Kiel
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Taxation in the Era of Digital Transformation
|
Prof. Dr. Katharina Nicolay |
2018
|
2023
|
ZEW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The digital transformation is considered the major economic development since the industrial revolution. The intensive use of information and communication technologies (ICT) affects how firms produce and provide goods and services, gives rise to new business models and transforms traditional ones. The digital transformation is thus considered a key determinant of growth and innovation. It also entails massive challenges for the government sector and welfare state including the financing of public budgets through taxation. Major issues for existing tax systems are that (1) ICT enables firms to serve markets without physical presence (i.e. tax nexus), (2) new business models increasingly uncouple value creation from tax jurisdictions, (3) the massive use of data and intangible property amplifies transfer pricing problems. Policy endeavors to reform tax systems in view of these challenges (e.g. prominently in OECD actions against “base erosion and profit shiftingâ€: BEPS) have not yet been substantiated by empirical investigations of the role of digital transformation in tax sensitivity of decision making. Against this background, the aim of the proposed research project is to understand the impact of digital transformation on how firms create value, earn profits or design prices and how this could be linked to current or new principles of taxation. The empirical evidence derived from this project will help to clarify the role of digitalization in profit shifting activity, the potential side-effects of countermeasures, competition implications and opportunities for tax administration and enforcement and, finally, promising tax policy strategies for a digitally transforming economy. The project consortium reflects the multidisciplinarity needed and sets up sustainable collaboration of leading researchers and institutions from economics of information and communication technologies, public finance, business administration, law, and applied information science. External cooperation partners: Universität Mannheim; Universität Bochum; Karlsruhe Institute of Technology; Max-Planck-Institut für Innovation und Wettbewerb; Georgia Institute of Technology; OECD; PwC Deutschland
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Connectivity and synchronisation of lake ecosystems in space and time
|
Dr. Stella A. Berger |
2018
|
2023
|
IGB,
IOW,
ZALF
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
The project CONNECT will establish a collaborative network between experts in remote sensing and freshwater ecology. The combination of established in situ high frequency measurements with near and far remote sensing tools will bridge existing gaps in temporal and spatial resolution, enabling the parallel investigation of numerous lake ecosystems in a regional landscape context. Lakes are hotspots of biodiversity, play an important role in the global carbon cycle, and serve as sentinels of climate change. Despite their spatially well-defined and seemingly island-like location in the terrestrial landscape matrix, lakes are generally not isolated. Instead, their chemistry and biology is strongly controlled by aquatic-terrestrial coupling through lake catchment properties, often related to land-use, and connectivity to other lake ecosystems, both shaping aquatic community composition and ecosystem functioning. The goal of our study is to disentangle the influence of local and regional processes on the current state of lake ecosystems as well as on lake response patterns following strong environmental disturbances. Our highly interdisciplinary team aims to provide the scientific basis for future sustainable and integrative lake management of key ecosystem services, e.g. provision of drinking water, recreation and fisheries on local, to regional and global scales. External cooperation partners: FU Berlin; TU München; Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam (GFZ); Deutsches Zentrum für Luft und Raumfahrt (DLR); Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht (HZG)
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Climate Change Impacts on Migration and Urbanization
|
Dr. Diego Rybski |
2018
|
2022
|
PIK,
WZB
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research,
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Humanity is on the move: Around the world, people leave rural livelihoods behind and flock to the cities, move abroad temporarily or permanently in search of better lives and opportunities, or are forcibly displaced from their homes by disasters or conflicts. As different as the direct drivers of migration can be - economic, social, environmental - and the spatial scales - from urban to continental scale - they must be considered together to understand how they may change under future climatic and socio-economic changes. This project will assess international migration, domestic migration, and urbanization, under climate change. Economic development, diasporas, and policies will be considered as main drivers of international migration, and used to project changes in migration flows under climate change. On the national scale, population changes will be distributed taking into account scenarios of polycentrism vs. primate cities as well as direct climate impacts, extending existing gridded population scenarios on a 0.5° grid (SSPs) by the impacts of climate change and migration. On the city scale, migration activities will be translated into urban land-cover changes preserving features of urban form. The project combines interdisciplinary expertise from climate change, migration, and urban development, to better understand the major processes and linkages involved. External cooperation partners: Institut für Landes- und Stadtentwicklungsforschung (ILS); City University of New York
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Market Design by Public Authorities
|
Prof. Dr. Dorothea Kübler |
2018
|
2023
|
DIW,
WZB,
ZEW,
ifo
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Market design is one of the fields in economics where theory and practice are married harmoniously and where research has improved real-life markets. This was recognized by the 2012 Nobel Prize in Economics awarded to Alvin Roth and Lloyd Shapley "for the theory of stable allocations and the practice of market design". This project aims to advance our understanding of market design by focusing on the role and incentives of the market designer. We will study the objectives of public authorities when designing markets by taking into account political constraints such as re-election motives as well as corruption and favoritism. We ask how existing rules and outcomes of markets designed by public authorities can be explained, which leads to the question how the incentives of the policy makers can be adjusted to maximize welfare. We will focus on matching markets such as school choice mechanisms and the assignment of public services as well as on public procurement mechanisms. The project will strengthen the leading role of the two Leibniz Institutes WZB and ZEW in the area of market design and will establish a network that includes the DIW and Ifo as well as the international players in the field. External cooperation partners: Universität Lausanne; University of Texas; University of Tsukuba; Robert Bosch GmbH; TWS Partners AG; Carnegie Mellon University; University of California
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Resilience Factors in a diachronic and intercultural perspective
|
Dr. Alexandra Busch |
2018
|
2023
|
LEIZA (formerly RGZM)
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Since the beginning of mankind, humans have been exposed to situations of stress and crises. These include, for example, profound changes in the personal environment such as illness or death, social changes such as political, social or economic crises, but also ecological changes such as natural catastrophes or climate changes. Often such crises have led to decline and collapse but in many cases individuals, communities or even societies have proved to be resilient to such crises and threats or they were able to deal with these challenges. Today various scientific disciplines from life and social sciences to historical and archaeological disciplines examine which factors enable individuals, smaller or larger collectives to cope with stressful situations. The aim of “Resilience Factors in a diachronic and intercultural perspective” is to bring these disciplines together. The project investigates how current concepts of life and social sciences can be transferred to historical disciplines, and - vice versa - how they can benefit from long-term diachronic and cross-cultural perspectives. In synchronic and diachronic as well as in intercultural and intracultural comparisons, specific stress situations are analysed in order to examine whether and to what extent similar factors were relevant for individuals and collectives. Furthermore the project offers insights in cultural and chronological occurrence of resilience factors. This innovative approach will not only enrich current debates in human, economic and social sciences with a new perspective, but will also contribute to the controversial ongoing discussion of human behavioural universals. In addition to the identification of specific resilience factors, the project also highlights cultural differences, questioning research traditions and paradigms, but also evaluating new interdisciplinary approaches. Coordinated by the Romano-Germanic Central Museum - Leibniz Research Institute for Archaeology and the German Resilience Center (DRZ) the collaborative network combines following expertise: Social Psychology Department at Goethe University with the Center for Leadership and Behavior in Organizations, Department of Social and Legal Psychology, Institute of Ancient Studies with the Institutes of Classical Archaeology and Prehistoric and Protohistoric Archaeology all located at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Archaeology Department at Goethe University, Romano-Germanic Commission of the German Archaeological Institute and Technische Universität Darmstadt with its Department of Architecture, Classical Archaeology. External cooperation partners: Universitätsmedizin Mainz; Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz; Goethe Universität Frankfurt/Main; Technische Universität Darmstadt; Römisch-Germanische Kommission des Deutschen Archäologischen Instituts
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Epigenetic stability and plasticity of social environmental effects
|
Dr. Alexandra Weyrich |
2018
|
2023
|
IZW
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Social status significantly affects Darwinian fitness by altering health, life history, and physiological trade-offs. Because social status is usually stable throughout life and a behaviourally transmitted trait, social inequalities persist within and across generations. Even so, the molecular mechanisms underlying these social effects are poorly understood. We hypothesize that DNA-methylation is a main epigenetic pathway through which an individual’s social environment regulates gene expression and hence physiological responses and life-history trade-offs. We predict that methylation patterns in individuals experiencing social stability will promote status-specific trade-offs. We further predict that when the social environment results in status changes as when high (low) born offspring are reared by a low (high) status surrogate mother, plasticity in methylation patterns should match the gene regulatory pathways, life-history trade-offs and fitness to the new social conditions. We test our hypothesis in the spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta), a highly social mammal on which we accumulated detailed life-history data and biological samples from 30 years. To assess the impact of status-specific methylation patterns on health, we will measure faecal immunoglobulin, cytokine levels and eukaryome diversity, and will control for the possible confounding effect of gut microbiomes. By linking for the first time in a wild social mammal changes in social status to DNA-methylation, fitness and health, this project will shed light on gene pathways underpinning social inequalities, their plasticity, health consequences and potential implications for humans. External cooperation partners: Weizmann Institute of Sciences; University of Potsdam; McGill University
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Controlling and Switching of Function of Peptide and Protein based BioSurfaces: From Fundamentals to Applications
|
Prof. Dr. Bernd Abel |
2018
|
2023
|
IOM
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Biosurfaces are synthetic surfaces that are surface-modified with surface-linked biomolecules and they are designed to have a specific function or application. They are important in areas such as molecular sensing, bioanalytics, separation science, and biotechnology. In the present application an excellent team of interdisciplinary researchers aim at exploring the opportunities of the concept controlling and switching of function of peptide and protein based biosurfaces, i.e., covalently bound peptides/peptide aggregates and proteins at or near the hybrid material surface in order to change function or to unravel and shed light into hidden mechanisms of novel functions, and to develop these concepts towards applications. Since there are numerous 'man made' systems with dedicated or discovered functions possible, we focus here on two main representative systems, i.e., modified surfaces, in which supramolecular fibrillar peptide aggregates or a protein covalently bound or linked with molecular linkers to metal or inorganic surfaces, whose function can be switched or controlled by a non-thermal stimulus (e.g., light, charge, fields) in order to change or restore function or to unravel mechanistic details of its molecular function. The systems under investigation are i) a charge/current switchable enzyme near an electrode surface without the need for co-factors, and ii) functional peptide aggregates covalently linked to surfaces in interaction with viruses and membranes. In the project experimental as well as theory groups closely collaborate on the same supramolecular systems. Within the current proposal novel approaches of surface modifications, biosurface synthesis, biophysical probes, molecular dynamics theory, as well as non-thermal concepts of controlling and switching of functions of peptide and protein based hybrid biosurfaces will be explored - with the ultimate goal to transfer the fundamental insights into new applications, e.g., in biotechnology. External cooperation partners: University Leipzig; University Göttingen; Max Planck Institute for biophysical Chemistry Göttingen; Ulm University Medical Center
|
| Leibniz Collaborative Excellence |
Barium stannate based heterostructures for electronic applications
|
Dr. Martin Albrecht |
2018
|
2022
|
IKZ,
PDI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
To overcome the speed gap between logical and memory devices has become a critical issue in information and communication technology. Novel non-volatile memory concepts have been proposed and significant progress has been made in recent years. Among them the ferroelectric gate field-effect transistor has attracted much attention due to its potential advantages such as high speed, low power consumption, high density and non-volatility. However, several material issues have to be solved and fundamental questions that concern their performance are far from well understood. Mobile ionic charges, depolarization fields and gate leakage currents are critical issues that limit the retention time. In this project, we will develop BaSnO3 based heterostructures with ferroelectric gates as a promising materials system for ferroelectric field effect transistors. Therefore, we will explore a growth technology for BaSnO3 bulks crystals and will grow lattice matched single crystalline epitaxial structures by molecular beam epitaxy as well as metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. With crystalline material of highest structural quality at hand and ab-initio theory and characterization methods allowing monitoring processes on the atomic scale, we have best preconditions to enlighten these issues. This will allow the design of future devices with deliberate electronic properties. The project is initiated by the Leibniz ScienceCampus GraFOx - "Growth and fundamentals of oxides for electronic applications". It will take full advantage of the allocated knowledge and experiences within the existing projects and will focus the activities on complex oxides within GraFOx. External cooperation partners: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin; Technische Universität Berlin
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Prediction of T cell communication and differentiation dynamics by quantitative mathematical modeling
|
Dr. Kevin Thurley |
2018
|
2023
|
DRFZ
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The mammalian immune response depends on the efficient interaction and collaboration of many, highly individual cells. Given that complexity, it is not surprising that the effects of drugs targeting cell-to-cell communication remain incompletely understood: Despite success stories of -biologic therapies’, e.g. TNF-alpha blockers in rheumatoid arthritis, only a limited number of patients show a major treatment response. Analysis of complex networks requires mathematical methods. The junior research group will apply and develop advanced mathematical modeling and data analysis techniques to investigate the regulation of immune responses, drawing on quantitative single-cell technologies (multicolor FACS, single-cell sequencing, multiplexed histology, etc.) and ample collaborative opportunities available at the DRFZ. The group will investigate the effects of perturbations, such as inhibition of cell communication pathways, on the type and strength of an immune response, and thus pave the road for optimization of targeted therapies in the future. Dr Kevin Thurley is an outstanding candidate for heading a Leibniz Junior-research group. He worked at internationally renowned institutions, the Max-Delbrück-Center and the Charité-Universitätsmedizin in Berlin, the University of Cambridge UK, and the University of California San Francisco, and his pioneering work is documented in high-ranking scientific journals, including PNAS, Science Signaling, PLoS Biology. His core interest is elucidating biological complexity, and he has shown how stochastic intracellular calcium signals can reliably transfer information, how the mammalian circadian clock coordinates metabolic functions, and how diffusible cytokines can serve as local messengers between immune cells. With his track record of developing broad-ranging systems-biology models and quantitative data analysis methods in close collaboration with biologists, Dr Thurley is an ideal match for the scientific community at the DRFZ.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Shedding light on plasticity of monoaminergic circuits in the brain
|
Dr. Matthias Prigge |
2018
|
2023
|
LIN (formerly IfN)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Psychiatric disorders like attention deficit or major depression are thought to be associated with altered monoamine levels. The three major neuronal monoaminergic systems share similar structural principles with a confined subcortical neuron population which spreads axonal projections throughout the entire cerebral cortex. So far, psychiatric drug treatments mainly focus on the efferents of these monoaminergic systems. Only recently, the discovery of inhibitory neurons in close proximity to dopaminergic, serotonergic and noradrenergic nuclei raised the scientific interest in the input/output organization of these nodes. Further experimental evidence emerges for cortically driven postsynaptic plasticity in monoaminergic neurons. These findings shift the decade-lasting paradigm of local, synaptic control of monoamine release to more global, circuit-driven control. The here proposed lab under my supervision will shed light on this emerging paradigm using state-of-the-art optogenetic approaches. In the first instance we focus on the noradrenergic system and propose the following scientific program: • To characterize synaptic connections between newly discovered GABAergic nodes and noradrenergic cells • To investigate how cortical network activity controls firing patterns in a particular monoaminergic nucleus • To map brain-wide cortical innervation profiles of a given neuromodulator system and identify fiber tracts carrying most efferent neuromodulatory inputs to specific brain region • To alter monoamine levels in mouse models via chronic light stimulation of the identified fiber tracts to study plasticity changes evoked by local manipulations I will continue to apply and develop new optical technologies together with new genetic tools, which I have been fortunate to gain the necessary expertise in excellent labs from great mentors during my early scientific career to be ready to start my own lab in the scientific environment of the LIN Magdeburg.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Compliant Magnetosensory Systems: Enabling magnetic functionalities for e-skins, soft robots and healthcare
|
Prof. Dr. Bernd Büchner |
2018
|
2023
|
IFW Dresden
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Electronics of tomorrow will be compliant and will form a seamless link between soft or even living materials and the digital world. The current establishment of flexible and stretchable electronics systems is at the forefront of multidisciplinary research efforts all around the globe. Magnetic functionalities can provide a sense of displacement, orientation or proximity to this novel formulation of electronics, which are not available by other means. A variety of platforms for magnetic sensorics that may be arbitrarily reshaped on demand, had been developed in the IFW Dresden within the last years. These unique research activities have been vividly appraised by the scientific and industrial community and established shapeable magnetoelectronics as a novel research branch of soft functional systems. The novel junior research group `CompasS' will be headed by Dr. Michael Melzer, who pioneered the field of flexible and stretchable magnetic sensors during his PhD studies. In order to vitally enhance the capabilities of the available magnetoelectronic elements, they need to be combined with electronic circuitry on the same shapeable platform. Hence, the main goal of the junior research group is to extend the scientific findings of shapeable magnetic sensorics to active and passive TFT-based electronics, to be able to design and establish soft magnetosensory systems. Key features of the integration with equally flexible or stretchable electronic components would be multiplexing of large sensor arrays and on-site signal conditioning (e.g. amplification or A-D conversion) for effective data transfer. Furthermore, temperature drift compensation, wireless signal transmission and autarkic energy supply can greatly enhance the application potential. A variety of novel technologies, like electronic skins, smart textiles, soft robotics and actuators, active medical implants, magnetic bearings and soft consumer electronics will benefit from this new form of magnetoelectronics.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Optimization of Glucosinolate Degradation Pathways for Increased Quality and Health Benefit of Brassica Products
|
Dr. Franziska Hanschen |
2018
|
2024
|
IGZ
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Glucosinolates in Brassicales vegetables are precursors to cancer preventive isothiocyanates. Food preparation reduces glucosinolate levels due to degradation or leaching. Here, enzymatic and chemical degradation pathways are of importance and the formation of the products is highly dependent on the conditions (enzymes, pH, temperature-). However, the bioactivity as well as the follow-up reactivity of the products is very diverse and often genotoxic nitriles and reactive epithionitriles derive instead of isothiocyanates. Moreover, these compounds affect sensory vegetable quality and off-odors may occur. Therefore, the Junior Research Group will explore enzymatic and process-induced degradation pathways with the aim to optimize isothiocyanate formation and will characterize the bioactivity and sensory potential of newly identified products. For the first time, the interaction of other plant secondary metabolites (e.g. polyphenols) in glucosinolate degradation will be comprehensively investigated. Consequently, the Junior Research Group will systematically study the influence of biochemical and physicochemical parameters on enzymatic and non-enzymatic glucosinolate degradation using model as well as plant systems (for example tilling/ CRISPR/Cas mutants with defined polyphenol spectrum). Sensory attributes and bioactivity of newly identified compounds will be evaluated. The results will enable us to develop strategies to enhance glucosinolate stability and to optimize the formation of health preventive isothiocyanates in order to contribute to the development of healthy food.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Religion, Morality and Boko in West Africa: Students Training for a Good Life
|
Dr. Abdoulaye Sounaye |
2018
|
2022
|
ZMO
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
Once dominated by leftist movements and secular ideologies, universities in Africa have grown into arenas of religious activism. Religiosity is now crucial to identity formation, interactions and the hope to lead a good life. This is a shift not only in the moral references of universities, but also in the ways in which boko, usually taken to mean secular education, is perceived. In Niger and Nigeria, boko is criticized for being morally corruptive, culturally alienating and socially unfit because it supposedly lacks grounding in religious values. This raises the issue of the socio-cultural model of boko and its relation to religiosity. How is religiosity affecting attitudes towards learning, social interactions and campus regulations? How can the promotion of critical abilities and the enlightenment of students be reconciled with the effort to nourish and imbue souls with absolute certainties? Is this signaling the de-secularization of academia? This project seeks to answer these questions by focusing on the rise of Salafism and Pentecostalism on two secular campuses (Université Abdou Moumouni, Niamey, Niger, and University of Ibadan, Nigeria). Both religious trends are known for seeking an empowered life while campuses train students for leadership skills and the values that will ensure a good life. As these formulations are transformative of the student moral and cultural model, the campus is a window for studying societal dynamics and the relationships between religion, youth and the future. Beyond Salafi and Pentecostal activisms, this project engages with the question of the redefinition of the student as a socio-cultural model. How boko is both appealing and rejected is at the center of this historical and anthropological project. It emerges from current research carried out at the Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO) and builds on a collaboration that ZMO recently established with two universities in West Africa, one in Niger and one in Nigeria.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
QUiet-sun Event STatistics
|
Prof. Dr. Svetlana Berdyugina |
2018
|
2022
|
KIS (former member institute)
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
The project "QUEST" (QUiet-sun Event STatistics) led by Dr. Catherine Fischer focuses on researching the dynamics of small-scale magnetic fields in the sun's atmosphere. Previously neglected, we now know that the quiet-sun magnetic field outside of sunspots is omnipresent and covers 99% of the solar surface at any given time. It is not only responsible for the energy required to maintain the hot corona, but is also the main contributor to the solar irradiance variability influencing our climate on earth. Although its importance is beyond doubt, studies of the quiet-sun magnetic field are difficult because of its small scale as well as weak signal, and its weakest component remains unresolved. However, its traces are clearly seen with the currently available resolution in, e.g., transient events which leave signatures in the heating of the atmosphere, oscillations of parameters such as intensity and magnetic field strength, or magnetic flux appearing and disappearing on the solar surface. This project will characterize the quiet-sun magnetic field by studying its events signatures and taking advantage of multi-instrument data sets exposing different aspects of its nature. Building up statistics of these events and correlating the changes of physical parameters enable us to unearth its behavior, gaining a more complete picture of the still enigmatic quiet-sun. We will thereby fully exploit the multi-instrument data of the Hinode and GREGOR telescopes as well as the DKIST, the biggest solar telescope being built, coming online in 2020. The statistical results together with correlations we find between changes in the physical parameters are tagged with their significance allowing to formulate conclusions dictating limits on the theoretical description of the quiet-sun magnetic field and developing the cornerstones for new models. We will answer fundamental questions such as the magnetic flux emergence and removal rates determining the solar magnetic flux budget and how one quiet-sun magnetic field population is transformed into the other by, e.g., magnetic field intensification or magnetic flux expulsion by the granular motions.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Sources and Consequences of Legitimation Strategies of Regional Organizations
|
Prof. Dr. Tobias Lenz |
2018
|
2022
|
GIGA (formerly DÜI)
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
This Leibniz Junior Research Group is motivated by the question: When, how and with what effects do regional organizations claim legitimacy? Regional organizations have grown enormously in their political authority in recent decades, and this expansion has led them to become increasingly active in justifying their right to rule vis-Ã -vis relevant audiences. A growing literature addresses the nature, sources and consequences of legitimacy beliefs and legitimation dynamics in major global organizations and the European Union, but our knowledge of such processes in regional organizations outside of Europe is limited. Studying non-Western regional organizations offers the unique opportunity to generate new insights into the dynamics of legitimacy and legitimation in international organizations, and to assess whether existing findings travel beyond the organizations in which they were initially developed. The contribution of this Research Group is threefold. First, it maps the discursive and institutional legitimation strategies of 30 regional organizations from 1980 to 2015. Second, it develops a novel theoretical account of the sources and consequences of legitimation strategies of regional organizations by drawing on work in a variety of disciplines including comparative politics, political theory, sociology and psychology. Third, it provides a rigorous and systematic test of theoretical expectations against new data in a mixed-methods research design that combines statistical analysis and comparative case studies of regional organizations in Africa, Latin America, Asia and the Middle East.
|
| Leibniz Junior Research Groups |
Constructing Transnational Spaces of Higher Education: International Branch Campus Development at the Interface of Network and Territorial Embeddedness
|
Dr. Jana Maria Kleibert |
2018
|
2024
|
IRS
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The globalisation of the knowledge economy has occurred in conjunction with the internationalisation of higher education. Beyond raising the number of foreign students, universities have sought new markets through the creation of international branch campuses (IBCs) abroad. An investigation of IBCs is timely, not only due to their rapid proliferation, but also because of their qualitative transformations, which include new spatial forms (entire education cities instead of single campuses), new players (including more active European universities), and new and increasingly complex geographies (shifting from the Middle East towards Asia), all of which are embedded in dynamic and changing political-economic contexts. Both the drivers and the implications of this rapidly unfolding phenomenon of transnational higher education, however, remain poorly understood. IBCs can be conceptualised as crystallisation points of globalisation. The proposed economic-geographic study investigates how enterprising universities form global (production) networks of higher education, how national and local actors engage in the construction of IBCs and education hubs, how students and staff are recruited to IBCs, and how the value of international academic degrees is constructed. Using an innovatively combined relational (network-based) and territorial (place-based) analysis, drawing on economic and urban geography, we examine how newly emerging transnational spaces of higher education are simultaneously becoming embedded in networks and territories. This will be the first comprehensive and grounded qualitative study from a socio-economic and spatial perspective that examines the rise of IBCs from a multi-scalar and multi-locational perspective. The findings are relevant for decision-makers of both sending and hosting countries, and will contribute to a deeper theorisation of globalisation, which is particularly relevant in the context of a growing populist backlash against globalisation.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Professorship Neurocognitive Development
|
Prof. Dr. Nicole Wetzel |
2018
|
2023
|
LIN (formerly IfN)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology (LIN) and Dr. habil. Nicole Wetzel will jointly apply for the Leibniz Program for Women Professors 2018. The newly established research professorship Neurocognitive Development will represent the field of neurocognitive development during childhood and will be affiliated at the LIN and the Hochschule Magdeburg-Stendal (HS). The professorship focuses on the development of auditory cognition including their underlying neuronal mechanisms. The research plan comprises in particular the systematic investigation of the developmental pathway of attention control and effects of influencing factors such as motivation, emotion, and the social context in healthy children. Attention control will also be investigated in real life situations and in atypically developed children. The special aim of the professorship is the translation of basic research findings into application as well as research-related teaching in the field of neurocognitive development. This project is of high social relevance as it can significantly contribute to improve the conditions for learning and for child development in the long term. The focus of the LIN on basic research on learning and memory mechanisms in animals and humans and the outstanding expertise in application-oriented research on early learning and education at the Department of Applied Human Sciences at the HS provide an excellent basis for successful collaboration. The professorship will be embedded in well-established research networks of both institutions and in the Leibniz Education Research Network. Furthermore, it will be located at an interdisciplinary interface that enables the development of new and innovative approaches to understand the development of cognitive functions and their neural basis. The scientific background and the excellent academic qualifications of the candidate ensure the successful realization of this innovative and interdisciplinary project. Cooperating university: Hochschule Magdeburg-Stendal
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
W2-tenure track professorship as a joint appointment of DWI - Leibniz-Institute and RWTH Aachen University
|
Prof. Dr. Laura De Laporte |
2018
|
2023
|
DWI
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Together with RWTH University, we propose Dr.-Ing. De Laporte for a W2-professorship. She is highly qualified (ERC starting grant, habilitation in progress) and DWI has agreed with the RWTH on the tenure track procedure. The field of her research and scholarship concerns the interface of synthetic materials and living matter. Her research focuses on the controlled interaction of synthetic matrices with living cells by the development of hierarchically structured biomaterials. Materials will be explored for in vitro, ex vivo (organ models), and in vivo biohybrid constructs, where the mutual interaction of the material with mammalian cells will be directed to generating physiologically functional tissue useful in medical applications. Particular challenges concern hydrogel components that can be injected as a liquid but then structured in situ. The term hierarchically denotes controlled structural variation on the length scales from functional molecular subunits up to macroscopic dimensions, but also the time scales due to the alterations upon interaction with living cells. Parameters are anisotropy, porosity, as well as gradients in mechanical properties, ligands, and biochemical signals, as well as time-dependent degradation, mechanical relaxation and stiffening, and the release of biochemical factors. The tools and methods to generate such hierarchical structures involve (i) a biocompatible hydrogel chemistry, (ii) new concepts for structuring such gels via self-assembly and in external fields, and (iii) 3D-printing of these gels to establish layered and hierarchical structures. A further aspect concerns (iv) the mechanical actuation of these types of materials. More specifically, Dr. De Laporte studies mechanical and biological guidance of nerve cells, layered gels to better mimic the native anisotropic architecture of cartilage, and new concepts for local mechano-stimulation. Cooperating university: RWTH Aachen
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Leibniz Professorhsip for Applied Labour Economics at the University of Heidelberg
|
Prof. Dr. Melanie Arntz |
2018
|
2024
|
ZEW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The proposal aims at establishing a professorship for applied labour economics at Heidelberg University joint with the ZEW – Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research. The proposed candidate, Melanie Arntz, focuses on the effects of macroeconomic phenomena on labour markets and individual workers. Her work is grounded in labor and regional economics. Together with a team of researchers at ZEW, she looks at phenomena such as the international division of labor or the ongoing digitalization of the labour market in order to examine the consequences that these structural changes have on individual workers, their careers as well as their adjustment strategies in terms of occupational, industrial and spatial mobility. In addition, she is also interested in understanding how these impacts differ across European countries and regions by taking account of institutional and structural differences between regional and national labour markets in Europe that may contribute to regional disparities in these outcomes. Hence, her research approach bridges a gap between the micro-oriented perspective of labour economics and the more macro-oriented perspective of regional economics. For ZEW as well as Heidelberg University, this research agenda is highly complementary, but at the same time has sufficient overlap to other research groups to allow for fruitful discussions and an exchange of ideas. At the University of Heidelberg, the proposed Leibniz professorship would strengthen applied labour economics within the Alfred-Weber-Institute for Economics (AWI) and also provide opportunities for students and professors to get involved in policy-oriented research. For ZEW, the affiliation to Heidelberg University, among others, provides the opportunity to intensify the exchange and cooperation with scholars from Heidelberg University in order to develop and pursue a research agenda that is state of the art. Cooperating university: Universität Heidelberg
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Influenza at the Animal-Human Interface: One Health
|
Prof. Dr. Gülsah Gabriel |
2018
|
2024
|
LIV (formerly HPI)
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The main aim of our research is to understand the molecular basis of highly pathogenic avian influenza A virus (HPAIV) interspecies transmission from birds to humans. A particular focus here lies on HPAIV pathogenesis in humans upon zoonotic infection. Therefore, we are modelling various aspects of influenza disease in respective small animals. In order to identify and analyze the impact of viral and cellular determinants of HPAIV mediated disease in mammals, we are additionally employing various high-end in vitro techniques. Findings from the respective animal models are then challenged regarding their human relevance by recruitment of human influenza cohorts. Furthermore, findings with influenza A viruses are translated to other viral pathogens in order to understand and identify potential common disease pathways which might act as targets for therapeutic intervention. Finally, we aim to establish novel antiviral treatment strategies against influenza which are then evaluated in vitro and in vivo regarding their efficacy. Cooperating university: Stiftung Tierärztliche Hochschule Hannover
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Transfer and Promotion of Research-based STEM Education: Communities of Practice for the Adaptation and Implementation of Science and Maths Open Educational Resources
|
Prof. Dr. Ilka Parchmann |
2018
|
2022
|
IPN
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The transfer from research into practice has been and still is described as being a major challenge in education. Studies and surveys point out demands that have already been ad-dressed by research and led to the development of teaching and learning materials, but which have not yet been implemented into practice. Frameworks and studies on implementation describe factors for successful implementation processes, such as continuous development, relevance for practice and an alignment of curriculum, instruction and assessment. Projects that enabled long-term developments in communities of practice have successfully led to changes and an application of research-based approaches, but even those had huge difficulties to be continued after the end of each project. Today, digital resources freely available on the internet represent one important source for teachers when planning and realizing teaching units. While availability and easy access are positive criteria with regard to distribution, quality control is often not provided. In addition, material without further support is rather integrated into existing routines instead of changing the latter in favor of results from research and theories. Open Educational Resources (OER) developed by research institutions provide freely available resources based on empirical foundations. However, up until now they do not yet systematically relate applicable material for science and maths teaching and learning to theoretical frameworks and empirical findings explicitly. Against this background, the goal of this transfer project is to provide an OER platform in the area of science and maths, to initiate its sustainable use and further development by virtual communities of practice and to evaluate the initiated processes with regard to different levels of implementation, such as teachers’ perceptions, adaptations of the material, or exemplary student results.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Cystein-selective bioconjugation for next generation antibody drug conjugates
|
Prof. Dr. Christian Hackenberger |
2018
|
2023
|
FMP
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Antibody-Drug conjugates (ADCs) are emerging biopharmaceutical agents for cancer therapy combining antibody-mediated tumor targeting with the cytotoxicity of small molecule drugs. The two ADCs that are currently on the market, Adcetris and Kadcyla, rely on the conjugation of maleimides to cysteines, a linkage that is instable in serum and prone to exchange with thiols of endogenous proteins leading to severe side-effects. Thus, novel conjugation technologies with increased stability are highly desired to widen the therapeutic window of ADCs. In this line, our lab recently developed a novel modular cysteine-bioconjugation technique named “P5-labeling†using alkyne-phosphonamidates. In contrast to state-of-the-art maleimide-labeling, we observed a remarkable improvement in cell lysate stability and no thiol exchange with endogenous proteins. Furthermore, P5-labeling showed superior selectivity in the reaction with cysteine-residues compared to maleimides. First ADCs developed with our P5-labeling technique were evaluated in a breast cancer cell model showing highly efficient and cancer cell-specific cytotoxicity. Building upon this outstanding performance we propose for this SAW transfer project extensive in vitro and in vivo studies to evaluate the cytotoxicity, immunogenicity and the pharmacokinetic behavior of P5-labelled ADCs. Together with the evaluation of new toxophores with our collaboration partners we aim to introduce next generation ADCs with improved selectivity and potency for future clinical use.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Help from science to improve the numerical analysis of population movement & urban development with existing statistical data for sustainable urban growth
|
Prof. Dr. Francis Harvey |
2018
|
2022
|
IfL
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Processes of residential mobility both within cities and between cities and the surrounding suburban municipalities are important drivers of urban development. Movement of people, flows, at the level of statistical districts are, however, difficult to analyse given their complexity and changes over time. Against this background, the interactive application hin&weg has been developed to map migrant flows between the statistical districts and municipalities of urban regions. The application provides the numerical means to describe and analyse population movements using existing data through visualisations and statistics. It has been developed in the context of research on reurbanisation and is currently in use by ten cities. hin&weg has also been the basis for interactive exhibits in two public exhibitions. The transfer project aims at turning the scientific application into a tool that fits the needs of the day-to-day work in city administrations, e.g. to improve the accuracy of population forecasts. The enhancements and refinements of hin&weg will be developed in close cooperation with future users employing a participative approach. The transfer project also establishes new (forms of) cooperations between research institutions and municipalities and puts in place an appropriate entity to manage and guide its future development and sustainable continuation through a subscription model.
|
| Leibniz Transfer funding programme |
Help from science to improve the numerical analysis of population movement & urban development with existing statistical data for sustainable urban growth
|
Prof. Dr. Francis Harvey |
2018
|
2022
|
IfL
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Processes of residential mobility both within cities and between cities and the surrounding suburban municipalities are important drivers of urban development. Movement of people, flows, at the level of statistical districts are, however, difficult to analyse given their complexity and changes over time. Against this background, the interactive application hin&weg has been developed to map migrant flows between the statistical districts and municipalities of urban regions. The application provides the numerical means to describe and analyse population movements using existing data through visualisations and statistics. It has been developed in the context of research on reurbanisation and is currently in use by ten cities. hin&weg has also been the basis for interactive exhibits in two public exhibitions. The transfer project aims at turning the scientific application into a tool that fits the needs of the day-to-day work in city administrations, e.g. to improve the accuracy of population forecasts. The enhancements and refinements of hin&weg will be developed in close cooperation with future users employing a participative approach. The transfer project also establishes new (forms of) cooperations between research institutions and municipalities and puts in place an appropriate entity to manage and guide its future development and sustainable continuation through a subscription model.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Leibniz Professorship for Phytonutrient Management at the Technische Universität Berlin
|
|
|
|
IGZ
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Climate change is challenging horticulture to produce healthy food in a more sustainable way. A project in the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors is focusing on researching the mechanisms of formation and degradation of health-promoting phytochemicals of vegetables. The aim is to safeguard and improve the nutrient quality of cruciferous vegetables in particular under changed climatic conditions, and to consider the effect of food processing in the value chain. The project thus combines topics from nutrition and health with (bio)chemistry as well as basic research in plant science with aspects of environmental sciences.
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
The GEnomic basis of NEOtropical Mammalian diversity: from species adaptation to conservation
|
|
|
|
IZW
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
The Neotropics, including the South American continent, harbor a rich mammalian diversity shaped by unique evolutionary forces. Xenarthrans, a group of mammals comprising sloths, anteaters, and armadillos, exemplify this diversity. They evolved on the South American continent and exhibit special adaptations, such as low metabolism, unique anatomical features, and specialized diets. Despite their ecological importance, they remain understudied, and several species are threatened by anthropogenic influences. This project, under the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors, will compare their genomes, trace speciation processes, and translate the findings into actionable conservation measures. Cooperating University: Freie University of Berlin
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Electron Microscopy of Soft-Hard Interfaces
|
|
|
|
INM
|
Section D - Mathematics, Natural Sciences, Engineering
|
Soft-hard interfaces occur often in both natural and synthetic systems. The mismatch in chemical reactivity, mechanical response, or adaptability to environments between soft and hard components leads to exceptional physicochemical phenomena (e.g., mineralization in biological tissues, electrochemical processes in batteries, catalysis) and enhanced functionalities at such interfaces. Understanding and controlling these phenomena requires knowledge about nano- and molecular structure of interfaces. The project in the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors will develop methodologies for nanoscale and atomic-resolution imaging of hybrid interfaces using a synergy of materials science’ and biological electron microscopy approaches, advancing our understanding and guiding design of hybrid materials for energy and biomedical applications. Cooperating University: Saarland University
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Nuclear Reaction on the Khreshatik: Ukrainian society and its Path from Perebudova to Decoloniality, 1986-1994
|
|
|
|
ZZF
|
Section A - Humanities and Educational Research
|
The years 1986-1994 were instrumental in the creation of contemporary Ukraine and the post-Soviet world, yet largely await detailed historical examination. Calls for a decolonization of Eastern European history in practice and content are voiced emphatically but the theory has yet to be filled with empirical research. This project will leave its mark at the confluence of these two demands by examining this pivotal time from the viewpoint of an imperial periphery and with an eye to switching assumptions about agency, centrality, and causality. A team of researchers will conduct detailed case studies of Ukrainian society in transformation ranging from the role of competitive sports and workers' movements to examining contested sites of leisure and cityscapes. Cooperating University: Central European University Vienna
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Transcending Boundaries: Navigating Mobility and Persistence in Arid and Degraded Landscapes
|
|
|
|
IAMO
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
Land degradation is a growing issue that affects the livelihoods of millions worldwide. It is considered a key driver of migration in low- and middle-income countries. Nevertheless, the specifics of how land degradation influences migration decisions remain poorly understood. The project will shine light on why some people choose to move while others stay put when faced with land degradation and climate change using an interdisciplinary, theory-based and data-rich approach with Central Asia as a case study. This will create a better understanding of the environment-migration nexus, which has thus far focused on climate change but ignored land degradation. Cooperating University: Martin-Luther University Halle-Wittenberg
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Sustainable Tourism: Evolving Paradigms for sustainable Systems
|
|
|
|
ZMT
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Tourism is one of the most influential global economic sectors, yet frequently gives rise to undesirable social and environmental outcomes. Sustainability transformations have proven elusive. In this project the Coronavirus pandemic is explored as an inflection point for global tourism. The project applies interdisciplinary mixed methods including modeling approaches and machine learning to identify and question possible pathways for social transformations of tourism in tropical island destinations, where tourism is a key source of livelihoods as well as conflicts. Results will broadly inform sustainability transformations, and work will be carried out in close collaboration with local partners to ground the study findings while providing a direct pathway to transfer results. External cooperation partner: Universität Bremen
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
The Role of Multinational Enterprises in the Global Financial Cycle
|
|
|
|
IWH
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project intends to explore how multinational firms contribute to the existence of a global financial cycle, that is, the phenomenon that financial conditions and in particular the costs of and the tightness of access to capital move globally. The focus is on the role of multinational firms in transmitting global financial shocks. To this end, the project will trace how German subsidiaries of US multinationals react to changes in financial conditions in the US and how the internal capital markets of multinationals pass on financial stress to other local firms. External cooperation partner: University of Leipzig
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Leibniz Professorship for Empirical Banking at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
|
|
|
|
ZEW
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project aims at better understanding how the financial sector, and banks in particular, can contribute to the net-zero transformation of the economy. One sub-project focuses on the causal impact of climate regulations and investor preferences on bank lending to firms and the greening of firms’ activities. The second sub-project seeks to identify how credit can effectively be used to finance households’ investments in energy efficiency improvements. The aim is to provide rigorous evidence on how to balance the need for energy-saving measures, prudential lending standards affecting households’ borrowing capacity and financial stability. External cooperation partner: Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
A Long-term Observatory of the North Atlantic Gateway to the Arctic
|
|
|
|
SGN
|
Section C - Life Sciences
|
Marine habitats in the Arctic are not only exposed to severe climate change, but also to increasing threats from fishing, potential deep-sea mining and commercial shipping. In this project of the Leibniz Programme for Women Professors observatories will be set up at the border between the North Atlantic and the Arctic Ocean – the so-called "North Atlantic Gateway" – in order to monitor the biological diversity of the deep sea with the help of long-term sampling. The data from the project can serve as a basis for political decisions and thus make an important contribution to the sustainable management of the oceans. External cooperation partner: University of Hamburg
|
| Leibniz Programme for Women Professors |
Leibniz Professorship for Applied Microeconomics at the Technische Universität Berlin on Social Inequality, Charitable Giving and Media Bias.
|
|
|
|
WZB
|
Section B - Economics, Social Sciences, Spatial Research
|
The project deals with the overarching question of how the availability and use of different information (for example, in news, media or propaganda) influences individual behaviour and various inequalities between people. Field and laboratory experiments will be used to investigate how behaviour changes when people are exposed to different media content. One question is whether charitable giving can be increased by providing specific information in different ways and at different times. In addition, it will be investigated whether the provision of specific information can alter men's and women's behaviour in such a way that this leads to a reduction in inequality between men and women. External cooperation partner: Technische Universität Berlin
|
| Leibniz ScienceCampi |
Smoke and bioaerosols in a changing climate
|
Prof. Dr. Ina Tegen |
|
|
TROPOS (formerly IfT)
|
Section E - Environmental Research
|
Projekt noch nicht gestartet
University of Leipzig; Helmholtz-Center for Environmental Research; DBFZ Deutsches Biomasseforschungszentrum gemeinnützige GmbH
|