Philipp Schwartz Initiative marks 10-year anniversary – 10 years of supporting researchers at risk

Around the world, the pressure on researchers is growing. Scientists and scholars who are subject to significant, sustained personal threat in their country of origin can continue their work in Germany with the help of a fellowship from the Humboldt Foundation’s Philipp Schwartz Initiative. 

The Humboldt Foundation is hosting the Philipp Schwartz Forum in Berlin for some 400 attendees to offer networking opportunities to at-risk researchers and all those supporting them, whether it be at local, national or international level. The forum on 9 and 10 April will look back on 10 years’ support through the Philipp Schwartz Initiative and draw attention to the challenges that will shape the years to come. Academics who are at risk in their countries will report on their experiences in order to provide researchers and individuals who are politically active in Germany and Europe first-hand information and impetus for protecting academic freedom and ensuring institutional support for threatened researchers.  

Participation details

Journalists are welcome to attend! To attend, please register by 7 April via email to presse[at]avh.de. We will be pleased to arrange interviews. Please note that taking photos is not permitted in order to protect participants. The Humboldt Foundation will make official photos available after the event. The conference will be held in English. The opening ceremony and plenary discussions on 9 April will be broadcast live on the Humboldt Foundation’s YouTube channel.
Press contact on location: Kristina Güroff, Tel. 0151-14015796

Two-day networking event

On the first day of the forum, fellows from Sudan and Ukraine along with their academic mentors will report on what they feel makes for successful collaboration that is beneficial for both sides. Another session will revolve around the opportunities that arise when researchers engage in preserving and possibly rebuilding academic systems in acute conflict and post-conflict contexts with the help of diaspora networks.
The second day will offer participants workshops revolving around career planning, networking and mental health.

The Philipp Schwartz Initiative

The Philipp Schwartz Initiative was established by the Humboldt Foundation and Germany’s Federal Foreign Office in 2015. It receives additional funding from foundations in Germany and abroad. Since 2016, the initiative has granted funding to universities and research institutions in Germany to take in at-risk researchers for a period of two years. 
In the years since then, 147 universities sponsored individuals and developed structures and capabilities to ensure their best possible integration. As a result, over 674 researchers from more than 30 countries have found a new academic home in Germany. This has also been accomplished through special programmes for researchers from Ukraine, Afghanistan and Iran which the Humboldt Foundation set up together with the Federal Foreign Office in response to geopolitical developments and flashpoints.

Excerpt from the programme:

Thursday, 9 April 2026 – Henry-Ford-Bau of FU Berlin

2 p.m.: Opening | 10 Years of the Philipp Schwartz Initiative: Reflecting on the Past and Looking Ahead

• Günter M. Ziegler, President, Freie Universität Berlin
• Bernhard Kotsch, State Secretary, Federal Foreign Office
• Keynote speech: Robert Schlögl, President of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
• Keynote speech: Katrin Kinzelbach, Chair of Human Rights Politics, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg

4:30 p.m.: Creating Successful Cooperations between Philipp Schwartz Fellows and Academic Mentors

• Mohammed Gebrail (Sudan), Philipp Schwartz Fellow, University of Konstanz
• Anke Hoeffler, Philipp Schwartz Mentor, University of Konstanz
• Olena Zinenko (Ukraine), Philipp Schwartz Fellow, Ruhr University Bochum 
• Mareike Meis, Philipp Schwartz Mentor, Ruhr University Bochum

5:30 p.m.: Making a Difference: The Impact of Diaspora Networks for (Post) Conflict Higher Education Systems

• Ayham Abazid, Philipp Schwartz Alumnus, MSD (Merck Sharp & Dohme), Syrian Science Council
• Samer Alkarkoukly, University Hospital Cologne, German Syrian Research Foundation
• Mursal Dawodi, Philipp Schwartz Fellow, Technical University of Munich, FemsTech Worldwide
• Kateryna Latysh, MSCA4Ukraine Alumna, Ghent University
• Liza Bezvershenko, EU Global Diaspora Facility (EUDiF)

Friday, 10 April 2026

9 a.m.: Workshops and Trainings for Researchers; Researcher-Led Workshops for Researchers, Academic Mentors and Host Institution Project Managers

2 p.m.: Closing Plenary – The German Research Landscape
and Funding Opportunities
 

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.