Expanding Cooperation. Japan and the Activities of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. Dr. Georg Schütte Secretary General

The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Connecting academic excellence worldwide Knowledge transfer and cooperation at the highest level Melanie Schmitz: 4c Melanie Schmitz: 4c

Historical and Intellectual Roots  Alexander von Humboldt (1769 – 1859): discoverer, universal genius, cosmopolitan and patron of excellent scientific talent  1953: establishment of today’s Alexander von Humboldt Foundation  international network of academic cooperation and trust

Academic Excellence  sole selection criterion: academic excellence  sponsorship for people, not projects  flexible sponsorship programmes for cutting-edge researchers at all stages of their careers  no quotas for countries or subjects  free choice of academic host/collaboration partner in Germany  worldwide excellence network of Humboldtians

Sponsorship – individual and personal  sponsorship for foreign and German top-flight academics to collaborate with specialist colleagues  the prestige associated with Humboldt Foundation fellowships and awards  individual and personal mentoring for those sponsored and their families  Humboldtians and their families as ambassadors for Germany  “Once an Humboldtian, always an Humboldtian”

Five out of twenty-three thousand  Robert Grubbs – 2005 Nobel Prize for Chemistry  László Sólyom – President of Hungary  Tricia Striano – Sofja Kovalevskaja Award Winner  Hamadi Boga – Georg Forster Research Fellow  Erin Taylor – German Chancellor Scholar

Humboldt Foundation Financing  AA:Federal Foreign Office  BMZ:Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development  BMBF:Federal Ministry of Education and Research The annual budget is approx. 60 mill. EUR, more than 97% of which is publicly financed by the Federation. Financing is distributed as follows:

Sponsorship Programmes at a Glance

Humboldt Foundation Programmes Flexible sponsorship programmes for cutting-edge researchers at all stages of their careers  for postdoctoral researchers (scientists who completed their doctorate less then 4 years ago)  Research Fellowships: 6 to 24 months  for junior resarch group leaders (scientists who completed their doctorate less then 6 years ago)  Sofja Kovalevskaja Award; 1.65 million EUR

Humboldt Foundation Programmes  for experienced researchers (scientists who completed their doctorate less then 12 years ago) with an own, clearly defined academic profile  Research Fellowships: 6 to 18 months  Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award; 45,000 €, nomination  for internationally recognised cutting-edge researchers  Humbold Research Award; 60,000 €; research stays in Germany over a period of 6 to 12 months (may be divided into segments); nomination

Research Fellowships for research stays abroad  Feodor Lynen Research Fellowship for postdoctoral researchers / for experienced researchers  worldwide, all subjects, no quotas  Humboldtians as hosts  host contribution

Research Fellowships Japan/Taiwan  Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) research visits lasting 12 to 24 months in Japan and  National Science Council of Taiwan (NSC) research visits lasting 6 to 12 months in Taiwan In the framework of the Feodor Lynen Programme, the Humboldt Foundation is responsible for the pre-selection of German postdoctoral researchers for the fellowships of the

Application requirements Postdoctoral researchers  doctorate  academic publications  agreement by academic host  autonomous research project  knowledge of German and/or English Experienced researchers  own, clearly defined academic profile  comprehensive list of academic publications  agreement by academic host  autonomous research project  knowledge of German and/or English

Application procedure  applications at any time to the Humboldt Foundation directly  assessment by independent expert reviewers  decision by Humboldt Foundation Selection Committees  duration of procedure: approx. 3 to 6 months

Sponsorship provisions  travel expenses  language courses or allowance towards language course *  fellowship  family allowance  additional funding for project costs and scientific equipment (*not applicable to Feodor Lynen Research Fellowships)

Sponsorship provisions  Intensive and individual mentoring in Germany and abroad by personal contacts at the Humboldt Foundation  Study Tour*, Network meeting, Annual meeting  Alumni Sponsorship  Return Fellowships for specific regions (*not applicable to Feodor Lynen Research Fellowships)

 maintaining continuous, life-long contact to all Humboldtians worldwide  actively sponsoring academic contacts amongst Humboldtians worldwide through events at home and abroad; Humboldt Associations  systematic network sponsorship An association for a lifetime

 Short visits (up to 30 days): allowances for  actively participating in international congresses in Germany  lecture trips or information visits  short working visits to research institutes in Germany Network Sponsorship

 Renewed research period (up to 3 months): to continue or complete earlier projects or initiate new ones Network Sponsorship  Re-invitation (up to 3 months): no direct applications; re-invitations may be extended on the recommendation of an academic in Germany or the AvH itself

 guest visits by academics from Germany to Humboldtians’ institutes abroad  research visits by German junior researchers to Humboldtians abroad (Feodor Lynen Programme)  book and equipment donations Network Sponsorship

 long-term research cooperation (Institutional Partnerships, TransCoop Programme)  colloquia abroad  Humboldt Kollegs  Humboldt Associations Network Sponsorship

Fellowship for Japan-Related Research  jointly established by the Humboldt Associations in Japan and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation to strengthen academic cooperation between Japan and Germany  for German doctoral candidates who are conducting research on a Japan-related subject  single grant of 5,000 EUR to undertake a research visit to Japan

Philipp Franz von Siebold Award  donated by the President of the Federal Republic of Germany  awarded annually to a Japanese academic under 50 years of age for outstanding services to enhance mutual understanding of culture and society in Germany and Japan  prize: 50,000 EUR; research stays in Germany of up to 12 months  nominations by presidents of Japanese universities and former Siebold award winners; Humboldt fellows may make nominations via the Vice Chancellor of a Japanese university

Statistics

Origin of Guest Researchers : a total of 2,478 new research fellows from abroad (5% from Japan)

Destination Countries of Feodor Lynen Fellows : a total of 2,715 Feodor Lynen Fellows

Disciplines of Guest Researchers : a total of 2,478 new research fellows from abroad

Disciplines of Japanese research fellows : a total of 2038 research fellows from Japan

Humboldt Network in Japan – Main Institutions Number of Humboldtians Kyoto University83 University of Tokyo65 Kyushu University48 Tohoku University41 Nagoya University34 Osaka University30 Hokkaido University28 Kobe University27 University of Tsukuba21 Niigata University20

Other Fields of Activity

German Mobility Centre Germany’s role in the EU-wide network of mobility centres (ERAMORE) to facilitate cross-border, research-related mobility  Information and personal counselling for internationally mobile researchers:  fellowships and funding resources  job offers  immigration and residence, taxation  Internet portal and contacts:

National Contact Point (NCP) Mobility  Task information and counselling for German institutions and researchers on the facets and actions in this field, especially the Marie Curie Actions  Marie Curie Actions support for research training and transnational mobility for researchers, knowledge transfer and excellence in research

Frontiers of Research Symposia bi-national, interdisciplinary conferences involving outstanding junior researchers (USA, Japan, Great Britain, China) Form  3-day conferences for scientists (with the USA: for engineers and humanities scholars, too)  in cooperation with foreign partner organisations  annually-alternating in Germany and the partner country  matching funds from both sides

Contact Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Jean-Paul-Straße Bonn Germany Tel: Fax: