“Research under pressure – How do research institutions and funding organisations react to crisis?”. This is a subject of the third Polish-German Scientific Meeting held in Berlin on 27 and 28 October with the participation of 17 research institutions and research funding agencies as well as embassies from Poland and Germany.
The current global political crises and their impact on science and research in Germany and Poland, as well as possible coping strategies, were discussed at the third Polish-German Science Meeting held in Berlin that brought together 17 research institutions and funding organisations from both countries. The meeting was organised by the German Research Foundation (DFG), the National Science Centre (NCN) and the Foundation for Polish Science (FNP). The institutions emphasised the importance of bilateral cooperation, especially in view of climate crisis, coronavirus pandemic and war in the Ukraine:
“Our close Polish and German relations rely on a common approach to science and belief that support for science and research is crucial for the future and well-being of our countries. It is also the reason why we have organised the Polish-German Scientific Meeting in which we participate as scientists and citizens of the united Europe. Therefore, we have strongly condemned the Russian aggression against Ukraine. Together with our Polish partner organisations we will continue supporting persecuted Ukrainian and Russian researchers and in close cooperation we will support the reconstruction of the Ukrainian science system” says Katja Becker, President of the DFG.
“No global problem can be solved alone, therefore it is crucial that researchers and decision-makers from various countries cooperate. Cooperation between Polish and German research institutions is also a great chance for Polish science that opens many doors. For me personally, as someone who has worked as a researcher in Germany for some time (including at two Max Planck institutes) and has managed a Polish grant agency, scientific cooperation is also an investment in the future, bringing the two countries closer together.” says Zbigniew Błocki, Director of the National Science Centre.
“For the past decades, German and Polish academics have formed a strong and successful collaboration. We believe that equal potential lies in the cooperation of organisations supporting science. In view of the current crises, we have to make every endeavour to trust each other. Furthermore, our continuous bilateral activities have a positive impact on the academic environment in the neighbouring countries, with Ukraine needing our helping hand right now”, says Maciej Żylicz, President of the Foundation for Polish Science.
The DFG has organised a series of Polish-German Science Meetings in Berlin for the third time. The previous meetings took place in Munich in 2017 and in Krakow in 2019. Over 50 representatives from almost all Polish and German science and research organisations and Embassies of both countries met in the capital of Germany. The meeting began with a number of scientific lectures and a panel discussion. On the second day, the discussions focused on the experiences, perspectives of individual institutions and organisations as well as ways in which they dealt with the current crisis.
Attendees of the 3rd Polish-German Science Meeting, DFG/Bildschön, Peter Lorenz
Particular focus was paid to the activities undertaken by individual Polish and German institutions to support Ukraine. Moreover, it was even more obvious which special options for handling crises lie before cross-border cooperation. A series of Polish-German Science Meetings will be continued due to the growing importance of German-Polish relations.