The Berlin University Alliance and the University of Oxford are deepening their research partnership with the establishment of a Centre for Advanced Studies.
Starting with Global Health and Social Cohesion, groups of up to ten Fellows from Oxford and Berlin will research topics relating to the Berlin University Alliance’s Grand Challenge Initiatives. The Centre is funded under the Excellence Strategy of the German Federal Government and the Länder by the Berlin University Alliance and will strengthen the exchange of expertise across national borders.
The interdisciplinary groups of researchers from both sides of the Channel will develop joint research ideas. There are plans for a total of three groups for which the Berlin University Alliance will provide up to 300,000 euros each. The funding is intended to provide financial support for fellows of the Centre and their research, as well as to enable summer schools and conferences. The flexible format will promote mobility for researchers and graduate students from Berlin and Oxford working on joint projects.
Governing Mayor and Senator for Higher Education and Research Michael Müller says: “I am delighted to see how the cooperation between Berlin and Oxford has grown and evolved in recent years and how researchers are working together to take on the big issues of our time, such as social cohesion and global health. Both Berlin and Oxford are centers of science and research, and they are retaining their close ties regardless of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union. Their strong relationship makes an important contribution to German-British cooperation. By the Oxford/Berlin partnership, we are bolstering our city as an international research hub.”
Prof. Dr. Günter M. Ziegler, President of Freie Universität Berlin and spokesperson for the Berlin University Alliance, highlights: "Oxford and Berlin are a better match than it might seem at first glance: in top research, diversity of subjects, infrastructure of museums and collections, and at both universities, many outstanding researchers full of enthusiasm for collaborative work and creative exchange – in short, a ‘match made in heaven’. I am pleased that the Oxford/Berlin partnership is now taking this next big step towards long-term cooperation.”
Prof. Louise Richardson, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford says: “Oxford University has always valued its status as an international university and, now - possibly more than ever before - we must reaffirm the importance of maintaining international links between academics, researchers and students. Oxford's partnership with the Berlin University Alliance has already delivered important advances in research and scholarship, and the formation of a Centre for Advanced Studies promises to achieve much more. We are extremely grateful to our partners in Berlin for taking the lead on the establishment of the Centre and look forward to the participation of Oxford colleagues in its activities over the coming years.”
