The Oxford Berlin Research Partnership Symposium 2025

In an era of rapid technological progress and global challenges, innovation holds the power to address critical social, cultural, economic, and environmental issues. The Oxford-Berlin 2025 Symposium, Innovation: Pathways to Societal Impact, will explore how innovation across disciplines can drive transformative change.

Organised by the University of Oxford and the Berlin University Alliance, this conference will bring together researchers, policymakers, entrepreneurs, and cultural leaders to discuss translating ideas into solutions with measurable societal impact. The event will spotlight case studies and research that advance sustainable development, social equity, and human well-being, fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration and practical pathways for change.

As the UK and Germany seek to strengthen bilateral ties amid global shifts, innovation is a mutual priority. The symposium will examine how governmental policies, and international partnerships can drive solutions to shared challenges such as climate change, social equity, and economic resilience. Special emphasis will be placed on successful collaborations between the developing and established ecosystems of research, exchange and collaboration between Oxford and Berlin.

Please register for this event via our sign up link to the side or via our QR code:

Oxford Berlin Research Partnership Annual Symposium 2025 

‘Innovation: Pathways to Societal Impact’ 

Programme


8:30 – 9:00	Registration & Welcome Coffee	---------------------------------
9:00 – 9:15	Opening/ Welcome Remarks	Prof. Alex Betts, PVC External Engagement and Academic Director Oxford Berlin Research Partnership, & Prof. Beate Kampmann, Einstein Professor of Global Health, Academic Director Oxford Berlin Research Partnership
9:15 – 10:30:	Panel 1: Innovation, Science and the Environment	Chair: Dr Henry Marx, Berlin State Secretary for Higher Education and Research Panellists: Prof. Matthew Wood, BioEscalator, Oxford Prof. Sara Khalid, Planetary Health Informatics, Oxford Martin Rahmel, innovate! lab gGmbH (Berlin University Alliance) Dr Doris Meder, Berlin Institute of Health

10:30 – 11:00	Keynote Address	The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford, Prof Irene Tracey.
11:00 – 11:15	Coffee break	--------------------------------
11:15 – 12:30	Panel 2: Innovation, AI and the Arts	Chair: Prof. David de Roure, Digital Scholarship @ Oxford Initiative, Laboratory for AI Security Research, Oxford Panellists: Prof. Florian Conradi, Universität der Künste Berlin / Freie Universität Berlin Prof. Kathryn Eccles, Oxford Internet Institute, Oxford John Fulljames, Schwarzman Centre, Cultural Programme, Oxford Prof. Frank Fischer, Digital Humanities, Freie Universität Berlin Prof. Christine Gerrard, TORCH, Oxford
12:30 – 13:35	Lunch Break	-----------------------------------
13:40-14:00	GLAM – SHOWCASE	Dr Megan Gooch & Ayla Karmann, Bodleian Libraries, Oxford
14:00-15:15	Panel 3: Innovating for Democracy: Building Resilience in a Changing World	Chair: Prof. Petra Schleiter, Centre for Democratic Resilience, Oxford Panellists: Prof. Lauren Sukin, Politics and International Relations, Oxford Prof. Florian Jeßberger, International Criminal Law, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin Tim Wappenhans, Comparative Political Behaviour, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin Prof. Katerina Tertytchnaya, Politics and International Relations, Oxford
15:15-16:00	Afternoon Networking Break	---------------------------------
16:00- 17:15	Panel 4: Innovation Eco-Systems	Chair: Dr Olga Kozlova, Innovation and Engagement, Oxford. Panellists: Dr Mairi Gibbs, Oxford University Innovation Prof. Sören Salomo, Technology and Innovation Management (TIM), Technische Universität Berlin, Prof. Markus Ralser, Biochemistry and Systems Biology of Metabolism, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin
17:15 – 17:30	Closing Remarks	Prof. Alex Betts
17:30 – 18:45	Networking Drinks
19:00	Symposium Speaker Dinner