Partnerships

Research at the University of Freiburg is strengthened by regional and international partnerships with other universities, external research institutes, and private enterprises. On this page we present some selected cooperations:

Fraunhofer Society
The Sustainability Center Freiburg – founded in March 2015 – is an alliance between the University of Freiburg, all five Freiburg Fraunhofer Institutes, sustainability-minded companies, and social actors. Scientists at the center investigate solutions for all facets of sustainable development – from its foundations to practical applications – and then implement them in concrete innovations. The four interdisciplinary research foci of the sustainability center are sustainable materials, energy systems, resilience engineering, and ecological and societal transformation.

The University of Freiburg’s Faculty of Engineering established its third department in October 2016. The Department of Sustainable Systems Engineering (INATECH) conducts research on sustainable materials, energy systems, and resilience. It represents a new and outstanding step in the university’s collaboration with the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, as half of the new department’s 14 professors are endowed by the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and the other half by the university. The objective in teaching and research is to develop energy-efficient, intelligent, and resilient technical systems for countering global warming and resource scarcity and dealing with their ecological and social consequences. INATECH also forms the engineering core of the Sustainability Center Freiburg.

Max Planck Society
The Max-Planck-Institute of Immunobiology and Epigenetics (MPI-IE) in Freiburg participates in several collaborative projects, such as Cluster of Excellence BIOSS, six long-term SFB/TRR-projects and the Spemann Graduate School of Biology and Medicine (SGBM). Members of the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security and Law are associated with the Centre for Security and Society (CSS). Both Institutes are actively involved in the Cluster Initiatives at the University of Freiburg as part of the ongoing excellence competition.

Upper Rhine Research Alliance
The University of Freiburg, the Karlsruhe Institute of Technolgoy, and the Universities of Applied Sciences in Furtwangen, Karlsruhe, and Offenburg have joined forces to form the “Upper Rhine Research Alliance on the Technical Foundations of Sustainability”. The project was launched with funding from Baden-Württemberg’s State Ministry of Science, Research, and the Arts (MWK) and is set to run for three years. The goal is to develop energy-efficient, intelligent, and resilient technical systems for countering global warming and resource scarcity and dealing with their ecological and social consequences.

Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (HAdW)
The University of Freiburg and the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (which also serves as the State Academy of Sciences and Humanities) have created Baden-Württemberg’s first academy professorship. A new philosophy professorship with an emphasis on philosophy of culture was established at the University of Freiburg’s Faculty of Humanities. The holder of the chair serves as head of the “Nietzsche Commentary” research project, one of the Heidelberg Academy’s 20 ongoing long-term projects. The establishment of this professorship takes the university’s cooperation with the HAdW to a new level.

Named and Endowed Professorships
Private donors and non-profit foundations are important partners for research at the University of Freiburg. The awarding of named professorships provides financial support for already established chairs. Endowed professorships enable the University of Freiburg to open up new research areas and enhance research profiles.