Secretary General Heide Ahrens at the opening of the 6th German Centre for Research and Innovation in San Francisco / New networks and synergies for German research

Secretary General Heide Ahrens at the opening of the 6th German Centre for Research and Innovation in San Francisco / New networks and synergies for German research

The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) is opening an office in San Francisco, USA. It is part of the newly established German Centre for Research and Innovation (DWIH) and the third DFG office in the United States, in addition to those in Washington D.C. and New York. DFG Secretary General Dr. Heide Ahrens is currently in San Francisco for the festive opening of the DWIH: in her role as representative of the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany – which the DFG is currently chairing – she emphasises the great importance of networking with the research companies and top universities on the US West Coast.

“The Bay Area is one of the most important and dynamic innovation centres in the world, where there is a unique dovetailing between basic and applied research and entrepreneurship. Germany has a lot to learn from such high permeability between these areas. But we also have a lot to offer – the first approved vaccine against the coronavirus, BioNTech’s mRNA, was the result of basic research conducted as part of a DFG-funded project in cancer research, to name just one example,” said Ahrens in San Francisco.

“The importance of the West Coast as a hub for science and industry is a key reason for us to open a third DFG office in San Francisco under the DWIH umbrella,” she continued. “The DFG has increasingly promoted knowledge transfer for some time and is now stepping up its support for universities of applied sciences. The office in San Francisco will help us pursue both of these endeavours, because the networks available here offer excellent conditions for this purpose.”

The DWIH in San Francisco is the sixth institution worldwide that forms part of an alliance of German science organisations, universities and research-based companies. The other DWIHs are located in Brazil (São Paulo), India (New Delhi), Japan (Tokyo), Russia (Moscow) and the USA (New York). They offer networking opportunities for the expansion of knowledge and technology transfer, enabling local partners to gain insight into Germany as a base for science and innovation. To this end, the DWIH present the German research and innovation landscape at specialist events, offer collaborative research ventures with the respective country and enable close interlinking with local innovation providers.

The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) took over management of the DWIH on behalf of the Federal Foreign Office in 2017. The work of the DWIH network in Germany is strategically supported by a Board of Trustees and a programme committee. The central body for the strategic steering of the DWIH is the Board of Trustees, which includes policymakers, academics and business representatives. It is chaired by the Federal Foreign Office and co-chaired by the respective spokesperson organisation of the Alliance of Science Organisations – which in 2022 is the DFG.

Further Information

Media contact:

• DFG Press and Public Relations
  Tel. +49 228 885-2109
  presse@dfg.de

To the website of the new DWIH in San Francisco:

• https://www.dwih-sanfrancisco.org/en/