„The Politics of Research“ – A discussion on research funding and public opinion
Together with the German Historical Institute Washington, DC, the DFG North America Office organized a high-level panel discussion on "The Politics of Research: Academic Freedom, Governmental Funding, and Public Accountability". DFG Vice President Prof. Dr. Julika Griem represented the DFG, the round was moderated by Doug Lederman (InsideHigherEd).

Simone Lässig (Director, German Historical Institute Washington DC), Wilhelm Krull (Secretary General, Volkswagen Foundation), Jon P. Peede (Chairman, National Endowment for the Humanities), Mary Sue Coleman (President, Association of American Universities), Doug Lederman (Inside Higher Ed), Pauline Yu (President, American Council of Learned Societies), Julika Griem (Vice President, German Research Foundation), Rainer Gruhlich (Director, DFG North America Office)
(06/27/19) The panel discussion focused on political and social framework conditions for free research and their promotion in times when the pressure of justification on both sides of the Atlantic is steadily increasing and the principle of representation in Western democracies also increasingly questions publicly funded science and research. In the discussion about "impact" and "innovation" as well as in current approaches towards science communication and the debate on "citizen science," an expectation became clear that research, especially basic research, can scarcely measure up to. This is especially true for the humanities and social sciences: Because even though their expertise is urgently needed and sought after in our rapidly changing world, their position today seems anything but undisputed.
After introductory remarks by the Director of the German Historical Institute Washington, DC, Prof. Dr. Simone Lässig, and the head of the DFG Office North America, Dr. Rainer Gruhlich, Doug Lederman, co-founder of online journal InsideHigherEd and former editor-in-chief of the Chronicle of Higher Education, moderated the panel discussion. In addition to DFG Vice President Prof. Dr. Julika Griem, who participated on the behalf of DFG President Prof. Dr. Peter Strohschneider, Dr. Wilhelm Krull, Secretary General of the VolkwagenStiftung, and Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, Jon P. Peede, represented the research funding organizations on the panel. Also on the panel were Mary Sue Coleman, president of the Association of American Universities (AAU), and Pauline Yu, president of the American Council of Learned Societies - the umbrella organization of American professional societies.

Panel discussion at the German Historical Institute on "The Politics of Research: Academic Freedom, Governmental Funding, and Public Accountability"
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Emily Formica |
Prior to the event, DFG Vice President Julika Griem and the Director of the DFG Office North America, Rainer Gruhlich, met with representatives of the Pew Research Center and the Kluge Center at the Library of Congress. Meetings were also held in New York with representatives of the Social Science Research Council (SSRC), the New School for Social Research, the American Council of Learned Societies, and representatives of German cultural mediators.