With the program „Funding of the German-Ukrainian “Cores of Excellence (CoE) in Ukraine“ (see the call, in German), the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is supporting the establishment of excellent joint German-Ukrainian research groups or small institutes (Cores of Excellence, CoE) in Ukraine to strengthen the sustainable bilateral research partnership between Germany and Ukraine.
Federal Minister for Education and Research Bettina Stark-Watzinger stated “Der russische Angriffskrieg gegen die Ukraine trifft auch die ukrainische Wissenschaft mit andauernder Härte. Deutschland steht militärisch wie zivil fest an der Seite des Landes. Mit den jetzt ausgewählten vier deutsch-ukrainischen Exzellenzkernen unterstützen wir die Ukraine gezielt bei einem modernen, forschungsstarken Wissenschaftssystem und einem funktionierenden Transfer in Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft. Sie sind auch ein wichtiger Beitrag zum Wiederaufbau des Landes. Für die deutsch-ukrainischen Exzellenzkerne stellt das Bundesforschungsministerium bis zu elf Millionen Euro in den kommenden vier Jahre bereit. Sie sind zukünftige Zentren wissenschaftlicher Exzellenz in der Ukraine, geleitet von einer internationalen Spitzenforscherin oder einem internationalen Spitzenforscher./ English translation: The Russian war of aggression against Ukraine is also hitting Ukrainian science with continuing brutality. Germany stands firmly by the country’s side, both militarily and at the society level. With the four German-Ukrainian centres of excellence that have now been selected, we are providing Ukraine with targeted support for a modern, research-strong science system and a functioning transfer to the economy and society. They are also an important contribution to the reconstruction of the country. The Federal Ministry of Education and Research is providing up to eleven million euros over the next four years for the German-Ukrainian Centres of Excellence. They are future centres of scientific excellence in Ukraine, headed by a top international researcher“.
A total of 38 eligible applications were submitted. From the 12 selected concepts, where the concept phase was funded (aiming at the development of a detailed economically feasible plan).
Now four projects were selected:
- The German-Ukrainian Centre of Excellence EUU20 is to be located in Lviv to research the German-Ukrainian and European history of the twentieth century.
- The German-Ukrainian Centre of Excellence for Natural Product Research CENtR is to be located in Lviv in the future and will focus on strategies for the discovery and medical utilisation of new anti-infectives.
- The German-Ukrainian Core of Excellence for Quantum Materials GU-QuMat will be located in Kiev and will focus on the search for novel quantum materials and their functionalisation as a platform for future technologies.
- The German-Ukrainian centre of excellence PLASMA-SPIN-ENERGY is to be located in Kharkiv in the future. The aim is to utilise plasma technologies for the production of spintronic components and thus create next-generation electronic devices.