Deepening cooperation with Brazil: DFG signs cooperation agreement with research funding organisation FAPERJ and holds first Leibniz Lectures in Brazil
(27.05.14) On 22 May the DFG and FAPERJ, the research funding organisation for the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro, signed a cooperation agreement enabling the joint funding of initiation and individual projects in all areas of research. The agreement was formally presented by Prof. Dr. Onur Güntürkün, a biopsychologist from the University of Bochum and recipient of the 2013 Leibniz Prize, to FAPERJ president Prof. Ruy Garcia Marques for him to sign. The agreement was signed in the presence of Alexandre Vieira, Secretary of Science and Technology for the state of Rio de Janeiro, Prof. Eliete Bouskela, President of the supervisory board of FAPERJ, Tarmo Dix, Vice-Consul at the German Consulate in Rio de Janeiro, and Dr. Dietrich Halm, director of the DFG's Latin America office. As a result of the agreement, and other agreements with federal funding organisations CAPES (Brazilian Federal Agency for the Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education) and CNPq (National Council for Scientific and Technological Development), the DFG now has cooperation partners in the three Brazilian states most active in research. Other agreements exist with the research funding organisations FAPESP for the state of São Paulo (since 2006) and FAPEMIG for the state of Minas Gerais (since 2009).
Prof. Onur Güntürkün and FAPERJ president Ruy Carcia Marques signing the DFG-FAPERJ agreement
On 20 and 22 May, at the invitation of the DFG's South America office, Prof. Güntürkün also gave two Leibniz Lectures on the subject "Cognition without Cortex: The Convergent Evolution of Avian and Mammalian Forebrains" in São Paulo and in Rio de Janeiro. The events were organised in cooperation with partner organisations FAPESP and FAPERJ, and were so well received that both organisations indicated an interest in establishing a jointly hosted series of Leibniz Lectures in Brazil.
First Leibniz Lecture in São Paulo, L to R: Prof. Dr. Onur Güntürkün, University of Bochum; Prof. Dr. Carlos Henrique Brito Cruz, Scientific Director of FAPESP; Rainer Müller, Vice-Consul, German Consulate General in São Paulo; Dr. Dietrich Halm, Director, DFG Office Latin America
During his trip to Brazil Prof. Güntürkün also held two graduate workshops on "Brain asymmetries: From bird models to human brain interactions and back". The first took place on 19 May at the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) and the second on 23 May at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). Also on the programme was a visit to the German House for Research and Innovation (DWIH) in São Paulo, where Prof. Güntürkün discussed the cooperation with Brazil over a working breakfast with staff.
Prof. Güntürkün with members of DWIH São Paulo
Prof. Güntürkün is an established researcher in the field of neurobiology. His fundamental objective is to understand how perception, thought and action arise in the brain. In 2013 he received the Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Prize in recognition of his achievements. He is also to receive this year's Communicator Award, which is presented annually by the DFG and the Donors' Association for the Promotion of Sciences and Humanities in Germany to a researcher who has successfully brought their work to a wider audience.