Press Releases 2008

• 16 December 2008
  Humboldt Research Award winner Steven Chu is US Secretary of Energy-designate 
  US President-elect Barack Obama has nominated the physicist Steven Chu to be Secretary of Energy in his cabinet. Chu is a recognised expert and driving force in the use of renewable energies. In 1994, he received the Humboldt Research Award.
• 10 December 2008
  Statement by the Alliance on the Federal Government’s initiative to promote academic freedom
  Non-university research organisations have been given broader budget setting freedoms for a pilot period of two years within the framework of the German parliament’s initiative to promote academic freedom. The science and research funding organisations represented in the Alliance welcome this move towards greater flexibility.
• 27 November 2008
  Humboldt Professorship brings top-rank researchers to Germany 
  This year, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation have created the most valuable international research award. In the very first selection round they have already managed to attract nine eminent international researchers to Germany.
• 25 November 2008
  2008 Sofja Kovalevskaja Award Ceremony in Berlin today 
  Federal Minister of Research, Dr. Annette Schavan, and the President of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Prof. Dr. Helmut Schwarz, are bestowing the Sofja Kovalevskaja Award for the fourth time today on top-rank young researchers from abroad.
• 24 November 2008
  Excellent research: Made in Germany 
  In the USA more should be known about the outstanding research projects currently underway in Germany. To this end, nine representatives of universities receiving sponsorship through the Excellence Initiative are travelling to the USA at the invitation of the German Research Foundation (DFG), the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.
• 18 November 2008
  Alexander von Humboldt Professorship: Press Conference with award winners in Berlin 
  At a press conference in Berlin on 27 November, Federal Minister of Research, Annette Schavan, and the President of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Helmut Schwarz, will be introducing the first holders of the Alexander von Humboldt Professorship.
• 13 November 2008
  Network Meeting in Münster from 18 to 21 November
  145 young scientists and scholars from 38 countries will be guests in Münster from 18 to 21 November 2008 on the occasion of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation's Network Meeting. The object of the meeting is to allow the new Humboldtians to get to know each other and familiarise themselves with Germany as a location for research, taking Münster as an example.
• 11 November 2008
  2008 Sofja Kovalevskaja Award Ceremony 
  The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is honouring eight international junior researchers by granting them the Sofja Kovalevskaja Award. Each of the five men and three women will receive prize money of up to 1.65 mill. EUR. Take this opportunity to talk to all eight award winners.
• 29 October 2008
  Humboldt Foundation network meeting in India 
  At the Humboldt Colloquium in New Delhi some 130 eminent Indian and German engineers discuss collaboration between academia and business in India and Germany.
• 23 October 2008
  Bayreuth, Brunswick and Greifswald win the competition for cosmopolitan universities 
  The universities in Bayreuth, Brunswick and Greifswald are the winners of the Welcome Centres Competition to find Germany's cosmopolitan universities, which has been run by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the Deutsche Telekom Foundation and the Donors' Association for the Promotion of Sciences and Humanities in Germany for the second time after 2006.
• 15 October 2008
  Alexander von Humboldt Professorships awarded 
  Eight researchers have now been selected to receive the very first Alexander von Humboldt Professorships. The most valuable international award for research in Germany is being granted by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation to globally leading academics of all disciplines working abroad. From this year on, as many as ten awards will be granted annually, funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).
• 14 October 2008
  International meeting of researchers in the Year of Mathematics  
  For the next two days some 40 mathematicians sponsored by the Humboldt Foundation are meeting for a two-day conference in Bonn. The conference partner is Bonn University’s Hausdorff Center for Mathematics 
• 30 September 2008
  A hundred international junior researchers from 31 countries meeting in Darmstadt 
  100 young scientists and scholars from 31 countries will be guests in Darmstadt from 8 to 10 October 2008 on the occasion of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation's Network Meeting. The Foundation's research fellows are preparing to cooperate with colleagues in Germany. The object of the meeting is to allow the new Humboldtians to get to know each other and familiarise themselves with Germany as a location for research, taking Darmstadt as an example.
• 23 September 2008
  2008 Sofja Kovalevskaja Award granted
  For the fourth time, the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is granting the Sofja Kovalevskaja Award, valued at up to 1.65 Million EUR, to young, cutting-edge researchers, providing them with risk capital to pursue innovative projects at a very early stage in their careers. They are being rewarded for outstanding talent, above-average initiative and a creative approach to research.
• 28 August 2008
  Career paths for those returning from the USA
  From 5 to 7 September, more than 200 German scientists and scholars from the USA and Canada are getting together at the Annual Meeting of GAIN (German Academic International Network) in Boston. The event is focussing on an interim assessment of the Excellence Initiative and the Higher Education Pact and the opportunities they offer to young researchers in Germany. The participants will be talking to political decision-makers as well as representatives of science organisations, universities and companies.
• 27 August 2008
  Mathematics Rankings: Which universities attract foreign academics?
  The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation surveyed Humboldtians to discover which German universities have the most popular departments of mathematics. The Humboldt Foundation’s fellows and award winners make their own decisions as to which German hosts and host institutes offer the most attractive conditions for their research and, in doing so, provide evidence for the international appeal of German mathematics.
• 29 June 2008
  Reimar Lüst Award goes to historian, Jean-Claude Schmitt, and Germanist, David Simo
  The French historian, Jean-Claude Schmitt, and the Cameroonian Germanist, David Simo, are being granted the Reimar Lüst Award for International Scholarly and Cultural Exchange. Valued at 50,000 euros the award, which is granted jointly by the Fritz Thyssen Foundation and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, honours outstanding humanities scholars and social scientists from abroad for their services to cultural and academic relations between their own countries and Germany.
• 26 June 2008
  Max Planck Research Award 2008: Biomimetics – learning from nature
  Today, the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and the Max Planck Society are granting their international research award, valued at 750,000 EUR, for outstanding achievements in the field of biomimetic materials research. The award winners are the Austrian colloids and interfaces researcher, Professor Dr. Peter Fratzl, and the American chemical engineer, Professor Dr. Robert Langer.
• 23 June 2008
  Germany – Land of Ideas: Alexander von Humboldt Foundation’s Researcher Network chosen as a “Landmark of 2008”
  Today, Franz-Josef Conrad of the Deutsche Bank singled out the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation’s researcher network for its integrative strength and sustainability and designated it one of the “Landmarks” in the Land of Ideas. The Foundation has thus become one of the award winners in the national innovation competition “365 Landmarks in the Land of Ideas.”
• 17 June 2008
  Humboldt Foundation Annual Meeting brings together 540 international junior researchers and top-rank academics from 14 to 15 June in Berlin
  From Egypt to Belarus, from agriculture to zoophysiology: the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is welcoming approx. 600 scientists and scholars from 72 countries to Berlin. They are involved in research in the most diverse disciplines and are currently staying in Germany as Humboldt Research Fellows or Award Winners.
• 16 June 2008
  Alexander von Humboldt Foundation – a winner in the “365 Landmarks in the Land of Ideas” competition
  The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and its network of researchers have been selected as a “Landmark of 2008” in the Land of Ideas. At the award ceremony at the Rückert-Oberschule in Berlin on 23 June, Humboldt Foundation research fellows will meet school students and discuss careers in science. The President of the Humboldt Foundation, Prof. Dr. Helmut Schwarz, will accept the award and take part in the panel discussion with school students.
• 12 June 2008
  Science organisations launch initiative focusing on “Digital Information”
  The “Alliance of German Science Organisations” agreed on a new initiative focusing on Digital Information. The objective is to create an integrated digital research environment which will further improve the opportunities for scientists and scholars to prepare and exchange information digitally.
• 02 June 2008
  Welcome Centres: Second round of the competition for cosmopolitan universities
  Welcome Centres help to make life easier for mobile researchers in Germany. The three best ideas are in line to receive up to 125,000 EUR. The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the Deutsche Telekom Foundation and the Donors' Association for the Promotion of Sciences and Humanities in Germany are embarking on the second round of the competition to find Germany's cosmopolitan universities.
• 15 May 2008
  Abel Prize 2008 goes to Humboldtian
  The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation would like to congratulate its Humboldt Research Award winner, Professor Dr. John G. Thompson, who is being awarded one of the most important research prizes for mathematics together with Jacques Tits in Oslo.
• 18 April 2008
  Hunger is still the major challenge facing science in developing countries
  A hundred scientists from developing and threshold countries met in Bonn to discuss what contribution research could make to economic, cultural and academic development in their countries. They called for greater scientific efforts, particularly to help the poorest sections of the population.
• 16 April 2008
  Networking conference from 22 to 24 April 2008 in Berlin
  164 young researchers from 37 countries will be guests of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation on the occasion of its networking conference from 22 to 24 April 2008 in Berlin. The Foundation's fellows are here to collaborate with colleagues in Germany.
• 15 April 2008
  Ambassador scientists campaign for conducting research in Germany
  Humboldt Foundation is creating a worldwide network of expert advisers. Humboldt Foundation alumni will inform international researchers about Germany as a research location and campaign for collaborations with German colleagues.
• 08 April 2008
  Meeting of development policy researchers in Bonn: From knowledge to development
  A conference on 17 and 18 April brings together some 130 experts from developing countries and Europe in Germany. It marks the tenth anniversary of the Georg Forster Research Fellowship Programme.
• 14 March 2008
  Max Planck Research Award 2008 goes to Peter Fratzl and Robert Langer
  Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and Max Planck Society present lucrative prize of, in total, 1.5 million euros. The Max Planck Research Award 2008, with prize money of, in total, 1.5 million euros is to go to the Austrian colloids and interfaces researcher Prof. Dr. Peter Fratzl and the American chemical engineer Prof. Dr. Robert Langer. They will receive the award for their research into structural-functional correlations in the development of biologically inspired materials and systems..
• 13 March 2008
  Get started - get on: career paths for mobile researchers
  As of now, the German Mobility Centre at the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation has new web pages containing information revolving around careers in academia.
• 15 February 2008
  Humboldt Foundation steps up cooperation with India
  The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is promoting German-Indian academic dialogue with its new Indo-German Frontiers of Engineering Programme. The aim is to bring together excellent junior researchers from both countries at interdisciplinary symposia.
• 07 February 2008
  Fellows' Meeting at Marburg University from 13 to 15 February 2008
  100 young scientists and scholars from 39 countries will be guests in Marburg from 13 to 15 February 2008 on the occasion of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation's Network Meeting. The object of the meeting is to allow the new Humboldtians to get to know each other and familiarise themselves with Germany as a location for research, taking Marburg as an example.
• 05 February 2008
  Humboldt Foundation signs European Charter for Researchers
  The Humboldt Foundation is the first funding organisation in Germany to sign the European Charter for Researchers and to subscribe to European standards for promoting science.
• 24 January 2008
  Helmut Schwarz: "We are looking for researchers who are playmakers."
  The new President of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Professor Dr. Helmut Schwarz, presented his objectives for the presidency at a press conference in Berlin today.
• 16 January 2008
  Helmut Schwarz takes on Presidency of Humboldt Foundation
  On 1 January 2008, Professor Dr. Helmut Schwarz became the new President of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. His accession to office will be marked by a press conference in Berlin on 24 January as well as the Foundation's New Year's Reception with Federal Foreign Minister Dr. Frank-Walter Steinmeier.