Career planning has never been an easy matter for people working in research. Due to the pandemic, many are losing patience and optimism. How is the science system doing to counteract the impending brain drain? 

As the covid crisis has shown: If scientific arguments are to be taken seriously in the public discourse and subsequently acted upon, researchers must make a greater effort to master the rules of today’s mediatized society. The following is a subjective situation report in five sequences.

With special funding, the Volkswagen Foundation offers researchers who have fled Afghanistan the chance to continue their work in Germany. This is made possible by additional funds for funded projects and further fellowships at the Academy in Exile. A total of up to 2.9 million euros will be available for this purpose.

Detecting viruses, bacteria, tumor markers or dangerous environmental toxins quickly and accurately saves lives. Two innovative projects funded by the Foundation in the corona context show what effective diagnostics could look like in the future.

What are the consequences of corona-related mobility restrictions and who is affected and in what way? In close cooperation, scholars from Germany, South Korea, South Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo want to conduct comparative research on this issue. 

With 15 million euros, the Foundation is funding four centers for science of science communication. An interview about qualification criteria and the contribution to a highly topical field of research.