Free science: 10 years’ experience with the Philipp Schwartz Initiative

The Philipp Schwartz Initiative was established by the Humboldt Foundation and Germany’s Federal Foreign Office in the summer of 2015. The programme enables universities and research institutes in Germany to take in at-risk researchers from throughout the world for a period of time. Its aim here is to give at-risk researchers a place to continue their work in safety, maintain their knowledge and expertise and help them develop prospects for the future. The first recipients received their fellowships in 2016. In the ten years since then, the initiative has sponsored more than 600 individuals from over 30 countries across the globe – and the subject of scientific and academic freedom appears to be more relevant than ever.

In this issue of its Humboldt Kosmos magazine, the Humboldt Foundation is marking this anniversary by taking a closer look at academic and scientific freedom and the support available for at-risk researchers. Where does the Philipp Schwartz Initiative – which was the first programme of its kind to be launched in Europe – stand today? What are the experiences of the individuals being sponsored? What impact is the programme having in Germany as a location for research and in the world? And what does all this say about the conditions for scientific and academic freedom around the world – where even previous counterparts and pacesetters like the USA are increasingly turning away from it?

The latest issue of Kosmos magazine “Free Science. Ten years of supporting academic freedom – the Philipp Schwartz Initiative” at a glance:

• Philipp Schwartz Initiative alumni and sponsorship recipients report on their experiences – including with the German science system. International experts examine the global situation and the current threats to scientific and academic freedom.
• “Indicator of a free society”, interview with Foundation President Robert Schlögl and Robert Quinn, Executive Director of the international Scholars at Risk Network, on the importance of academic freedom for a free society.
• Guest article by Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul: Why Germany’s Federal Foreign Office is dedicated to defending scientific and academic freedom – and why knowledge is our greatest asset.
• In addition, this issue includes further portraits of researchers from the Humboldt Foundation’s worldwide network, insights into their research work and what topics move them.

The bilingual Humboldt Kosmos magazine is published in German and English and has a circulation of 46,000 copies. It reaches the Humboldt Network with more than 30,000 members in over 140 countries and many cooperation partners in Germany. Strengthening scientific and academic freedom – and, in the process, defending liberal democratic values – is one of the aims of the Humboldt Foundation’s current strategy. The Philipp Schwartz Initiative is one of the Foundation’s key instruments for this work.

Every year, the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation enables more than 2,000 researchers from all over the world to spend time conducting research in Germany. The Foundation maintains an interdisciplinary network of well over 30,000 Humboldtians in more than 140 countries around the world – including 63 Nobel Prize winners.