Press Release by the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany

Press Release by the Alliance of Science Organisations in Germany

The Alliance of Science Organisations expressly welcomes today’s debate in the plenary of the German Bundestag on the concerns of science in connection with the supply of energy. On sev-eral occasions, the Alliance has previously pointed out the anticipated impact of the energy crisis on research and teaching at German science institutions and appealed to political decision-makers to ensure security of supply and planning for science. In doing so, the Alliance clearly conveyed that science institutions had already begun to make their contribution to overcoming the situation by means of prioritisation and cost-cutting measures, as well as by taking coun-termeasures to prevent the science system as a whole from becoming less competitive in the long term. In view of this, the Alliance regards the supportive voices among policymakers as a positive signal.

An efficient science system guarantees the innovative capacity of our country. Scientific knowledge creates the basis for overcoming current and future crises. It shows ways of devel-oping resilience to future challenges, as well as guaranteeing long-term economic and social stability. Thanks to the continuous investments of the past years and decades and the resulting development and expansion of excellent research capacities, the German science system is cur-rently one of the strongest and most productive in the world.

If there were to be a weakening of this science system, however, as is foreseeable due to the current energy crisis – especially, too, in combination with the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic and cost increases in many areas – this would have negative consequences, with last-ing and to some extent irreversible effects. Germany should do everything in its power, espe-cially now, to ensure the stability of the country as a science hub, to secure its competitiveness and to strengthen its foreign science policy. The Alliance of Science Organisations is available for talks in this connection with a view to jointly developing a strategy for securing the German sci-ence system.

The Alliance of Science Organisations is an association of the most important research organi-sations in Germany. It regularly comments on important issues of research policy. The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) is a member of the Alliance and is the spokesperson organisation for 2022. Other members are the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, the German Academic Exchange Service, the Fraunhofer Society, the Helmholtz Association, the German Rectors’ Conference, the Leibniz Association, the Max Planck Society, the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina and the German Council of Science and Humanities.

• Website www.allianz-der-wissenschaftsorganisationen.de

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