The University of Oldenburg and the Oldenburg University Society (UGO) opened the new academic year with a ceremony in the university's Audimax. The traditional "Auftakt" event brought together around 500 invited guests from the worlds of science, politics, business, administration and culture. The keynote speaker was the Chairman of the ZEIT STIFTUNG BUCERIUS, long-time journalist and author Prof Manuel Hartung.
"Our university is now '50 plus' - and therefore at an age when you typically start to rethink your role. Especially when major changes are on the horizon. These include social challenges that require universities to take a clear position, but also our success in the Excellence Strategy, for example, which also means change." With these words, University President Prof. Dr Ralph Bruder and UGO Chair Wiebke Schneidewind got the guests in the mood for the programme.
High recognition
Lower Saxony's Science Minister Falko Mohrs, who addressed the audience via video message, picked up the ball: "The fact that you have been awarded funding for all three clusters of excellence in the fields of hearing research, marine research and animal navigation is a great achievement on your part, which has also made headlines nationwide. It is always important to you - based on the basic idea of Carl von Ossietzky University - to work on issues that are relevant to society in order to have a positive impact. That is anything but self-evident."
Lord Mayor Jürgen Krogmann was also among the guests on stage. In his speech, he emphasised: "Carl von Ossietzky University has long been in the top league of German universities. This is also demonstrated by the great successes in the Excellence Strategy. Thanks to the reliable and direct cooperation between the city and university management, we are jointly driving forward important topics for the future. We are proud of the development and international success in research and science - made in Oldenburg."
The role of universities in a democratic society
The focus of the evening was the lecture by Prof Manuel Hartung, Chairman of the Board of the ZEIT STIFTUNG BUCERIUS, who previously worked as a journalist for over 20 years, including as Editor-in-Chief of ZEIT CAMPUS. He spoke on the topic of "The controversial university: Why universities must contribute to defending the freedoms of our society". Hartung demanded: "Universities must remain an active part of our democratic society. To ensure that they are not marginalised in Germany, as in other countries, dialogue and communication are needed - even if it is often difficult and sometimes painful. If this succeeds, universities can provide orientation for social dialogue."
Connecting people and topics
In his speech, University President Prof. Dr Ralph Bruder emphasised what the university has stood for for more than 50 years and will continue to stand for in the future: "Our goal is to connect - people as well as topics. For us, social responsibility and research excellence go hand in hand - that is our aspiration," emphasised Bruder. The fact that the university has made it into the high-calibre Excellence Strategy competition offers the historic opportunity to be recognised as an Excellence Network together with the University of Bremen. "We are using this opportunity to position ourselves as an entire university, to rethink things and to build on the values we live by. We are working on this with all our strength in this academic year, which is special for us."
Prizes for outstanding female academics
The University's research strength was also evident in the presentation of the UGO awards. Chair Wiebke Schneidewind presented the "Prize for Excellent Research", endowed with 5,000 euros each, to psychologist Prof Dr Mandy Roheger and art teacher Prof Dr Michaela Kaiser. Dr Antonia Wallbraun from the didactics of chemistry received the doctoral prize, which is endowed with 2,000 euros. Biologist Dr Maren Striebel was awarded the prize for outstanding doctoral supervisor. It is also endowed with 2,000 euros.
The evening was accompanied by music from members of the Institute of Music. Students of the ensemble "Schlagwerk Ossietzky" under the direction of Gereon Voß acoustically prepared the guests for the start of the ceremony. On stage, students from the University of Oldenburg and alumni of the University of the Arts Bremen presented excerpts from the 1968 tango opera "María de Buenos Aires" by Astor Piazzolla (music) and Horacio Ferrer (libretto) under the direction of Volker Schindel (musical rehearsal: Joaquín Alem). The singer Marija Jokovic took on the vocal role of María. The evening was hosted by Nils Prior, who recently completed his studies at the University of Oldenburg and is now a research assistant.
