Bonn, Oktober 10, 2018

Königswinter to transform into an international centre for Climate, Energy and Earth System Research for two days

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The first meeting to mark the launch of the Fellowship Programme on Climate, Energy and Earth System Research will unite all selected international researchers and their German partners on 11 and 12 October in Königswinter, Germany, in a display of world-class expertise. Over the next four years, they will carry out research at renowned German higher education and research institutions within the framework of the Franco-German programme “Make Our Planet Great Again – German Research Initiative”, funded by the Federal German Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

The DAAD, who is implementing the programme, invited the 13 international academic researchers to travel to Königswinter along with their German research partners to get to know one another and for the purposes of professional exchange. The meeting also serves to provide the participants with detailed information regarding both the structure of the four-year programme and the numerous design possibilities available to researchers.

“Climate change is one of the major challenges we are facing – both globally and here in Germany. We need strong research contributions to get a grip on this. That’s why we are cooperating with our French colleagues to found the research initiative ‘Make Our Planet Great Again’,” explained Federal Research Minister Anja Karliczek, whose ministry has funded the German programme initiative since 2017. “As I speak, the first academic scholars are forming their new research groups in Germany and France. They are seeking to slow down climate change and control the impact it is having. This joint initiative shows that Germany and France are determined to attain the objectives outlined in the international Paris Climate Agreement.”

The in-depth professional exchange is also receiving crucial support from the BMBF’s project management agencies – the Project Management Jülich (PtJ) in Jülich and Rostock and the DLR Project Management Agency.

“In light of the most recent calls from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the creation of effective international mechanisms for knowledge transfer and the provision of cross-border support to the best researchers constitutes a key responsibility as far as combating climate change is concerned,” says DAAD President Prof. Margret Wintermantel. “The Franco-German Fellowship Programme on Climate, Energy and Earth System Research underlines the decisive importance of international cooperation, particularly in this research field, also highlighting the fact that Germany as a research location is capable of attracting top-flight researchers from these disciplines.“

Franco-German Fellowship Programme on Climate, Energy and Earth System Research (“Make Our Planet Great Again – German Research Initiative”)

The Franco-German Fellowship Programme, which stems from an initiative by the French President Emmanuel Macron and was designed by the Federal German Ministry of Education and Research, is aimed at outstanding academic researchers of all nationalities who, in their work in climate, energy and earth system research, seek to make a contribution towards achieving the climate objectives outlined in the Paris Agreement.

It offers 13 researchers the opportunity to cooperate with a German university or a non-university research institute in order to put together a research group whose personnel and material needs are fully met.

The projects will be implemented between 1 July 2018 and 31 December 2022. For this period, research groups will each dispose of budgets amounting to up to 1 million euros (junior research groups) or 1.5 million euros (senior research groups). The BMBF has earmarked a total of 15 million euros for the programme’s implementation between 2017–2022.

About the German Academic Exchange Service

Since its founding in 1925, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) has awarded funding to more than 2 million students and scholars in Germany and abroad. DAAD is a registered-members’ association made up of German institutions of higher education and student bodies whose activities go far beyond simply awarding grants and scholarships. DAAD supports the internationalization of German universities, promotes German Studies and the German language abroad, provides developing countries with best practices in establishing universities and advises decision makers in the area of cultural, educational and developmental policy. Today, DAAD is one of the most important funding organizations worldwide for the international exchange of students and researchers.