2018/2019

Broadening Perspectives

Titelbild Jahrbuch 2018/19. Tansfer weiterdenken.

Transfer plays a significant role at the University of Bremen – but what does the term “transfer” mean exactly? The university sees transfer as a cooperative process between society, businesses, administration, and academia. Researching together, learning from each other, discussing as equals, and taking on responsibility for society are important aspects of this process.

Employees of the university are active in a myriad of ways with regard to transfer: they give lectures, put on interactive events and projects for citizens, and organize congresses with participation from the public. They are also in demand in advisory roles. Additionally, they keep interested parties abreast of their research and teaching projects via blogs and in social media. All of this is a team effort and can only work in collaboration with other researchers, employees, and
students, as well as partner institutions.

For our yearbook theme, we will introduce you to people from different disciplines who embody our idea of transfer. They are just a small sample of many employees of this university who are dedicated to dialogue on a day-to-day basis.

Andreas Breiter

“We Hope to Create a Culture of Transfer”

Professor Andreas Breiter is Vice President for Research at the University of Bremen. In an interview, he explains how the university enriches the city and the surrounding region as well as the importance of community outreach in doing so. That the partnership with businesses is only one aspect quickly becomes apparent. In fact, transfer is a reciprocal process that affects all academic disciplines and civil society.

Ulrike Huhn und Christine Knipping.

“Generating New Ideas Together”

Whether school or adult education: the employees of the University of Bremen shape the educational landscape of the city-state with great dedication. Employees like historian Dr. Ulrike Huhn and mathematics educator Professor Christine Knipping are just two examples of these dedicated doers. They share their defining experiences from teaching certification, their enthusiasm for the Gr?pelingen neighborhood in Bremen, and an understanding of knowledge transfer based on dialogue.

A portrait photo of Thorsten Klu?.

“All Knowledge Is Shared”

As part of the Citizen Science program, scientists work together with citizens to conduct their research. Current plans of the University of Bremen show how both sides are able to benefit. Thorsten Klu? from the Cognitive Neuroinformatics working group will make sensor technology available to beekeepers so that they can monitor their bee colonies. In return, the colonies will provide data that Klu? will use to gain insights into why the bees are dying out.

Juliane Jarke und Andreas Klee

“Shaping Bremen”

Whether in civic education or political consulting as part of digitization: political scientist Andreas Klee and computer scientist Juliane Jarke leave the university to hear from the citizens of Bremen themselves what motivates them and how they see the way people interact in society. Their objective is to enable people to make positive changes to how people interact in Bremen.

Portrait photo of Marc Avila.

“More and More People Are Shaping Space Travel”

In Bremen, 2018 was the year of space travel. With the title of “Sternstunden 2018,” events were held for citizens of Bremen over a 12-month period. Numerous university employees were involved in the conceptualization of these events. The occasion for the event series was the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) at the beginning of October in Bremen. More than 19,000 people attended. Lead organizers of the IAC were Professor Marc Avila and his team from the Center for Applied Space Technology and Microgravity (ZARM) at the University of Bremen.

Julia Lossau, Michi Knecht and the “brick elephant” in Bremen.

“Conducting Research with the Citizens of Bremen, Not about Them”

To what extent does the colonial history of Bremen still impact the identity of the city today? Urban geographer Professor Julia Lossau and cultural anthropologist Professor Michi Knecht are investigating this question together with their teams, students, and local players outside the university. For them, outreach and knowledge transfer are part of a mutual process where the synergy of various perspectives creates added value for all.

Nina and Dirk Wenig are standing in a telephone booth at the Brill.

“For Us, People Are Always the Focus”

The University of Bremen and its BRIDGE network have been successfully supporting the founding of start-ups and therefore supporting innovations for society: in the 2018 Gründungsradar of the Stifterverband, they ranked sixth among major higher education institutions in Germany. One example of a successful start-up from the university is the married couple Dr. Nina and Dr. Dirk Wenig, who developed a chat bot for businesses. For their idea, the computer scientists came in first place in the category for “Business Ideas” as part of the Bremen start-up competition CAMPUSiDEEN 2018, a finish endowed with a prize of 3,000 euros

Portrait photo of Wolfgang Ahrens

“I Want to Understand Humans in Their Entirety”

Whether diabetes or obesity: researching chronic diseases and their prevention is at the center of the work of Professor Wolfgang Ahrens. The epidemiologist is a professor at the University of Bremen and the deputy director of the Bremen Leibniz Institute for Prevention Research and Epidemiology (BIPS). Both institutions are members of the U Bremen Research Alliance. Ahrens’s work comprises a broad research field with social responsibility that necessitates an understanding of transfer oriented to society.

Anouk Vlug and Valentin Ludwig sitting with a beer in the pub.

Out of the Lab – into the Spotlight

Whether in the form of Science Slam, Science goes Public, Wissen um 11, Forschungsmeile, or Explore Science – in Bremen, there are numerous methods of science communication engaging a broad audience. What do they have in common? It is often young researchers who are involved and communicating their subjects to the public in a comprehensible fashion. They agree on one thing: for them, publishing their own research is simply a part of everyday life in science. Anouk Vlug and Valentin Ludwig are two examples – they are working on their doctorates as part of the International Research Training Group ArcTrain at the University of Bremen along with eight Canadian partner universities.