Dr. Henrike Hartmann has headed the funding department since 2015. Previously, she was team leader of "People and Structures" and responsible for several funding initiatives, e.g. in biomedicine. (Foto: Nico Herzog for VolkswagenStiftung)
The third profile area, "Understanding Research", is about the system itself: How can science work in the best possible way? What structures does it need to take on the major challenges of the future? We want to create impetus for structural renewal; not only in the scientific community, but also at its margins. This is where the field of science communications plays such an important role.
Where do the ideas for new funding topics come from?
Schütte: In broad terms, they come in two ways. Firstly, in a bottom-up process within the scientific community itself, for example at specialist conferences, in individual discussion, but also in the occasion of expert hearings initiated by the Foundation itself. But of course our own experts are also never short of stimulating ideas themselves, which we then field to the community with a request for feedback. The overriding objective is to create an impact, to bring about structural changes and initiate follow-up projects.
Which target groups do you specifically want to address through the new funding opportunities?
Schütte: Creative, daring, and inquisitive researchers. We, for our part, are ready to promote unconventional ideas, and we expect that applicants will be able to face critique from peers.
Hartmann: Powerful pressures and dependencies exist in the science system. As a result, many ideas that could possibly be capable of opening up new perspectives never amount to anything. In this respect, we want to pave the way for people who are prepared to say: I don’t just want to swim with the tide – or at least not all the time...
The Foundation is big enough to create a really deep impact.
Henrike Hartmann
How does the Volkswagen Foundation see itself going forward?
Hartmann: Ideally, we want to swim ahead of the tide, i.e. discover the future potential of emerging topics early on and then put them on the science map. By supporting daring new research ideas we are encouraging others in mainstream research to do the same. The Foundation is big enough to create a deep impact. And we are small enough to be agile. As a private foundation, we are also independent, so we can decide for ourselves what to put on the agenda. And we do that with the greatest possible flexibility.