The initiative enables universities and research institutions in Germany to host threatened foreign researchers for two years, allowing them to continue their work. So far, 69 researchers from Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Burundi, Yemen, Libya, Pakistan, Sudan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan have been given the opportunity to conduct research at the winning institutions in Germany thanks to the Philipp Schwartz Initiative. This new round of the programme will bring the total number of fellowship recipients to approximately one hundred from August.
“We are delighted to be able to create an ever-broader basis for supporting threatened researchers in Germany,” emphasises Enno Aufderheide, Secretary General of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.“ Universities and research institutions from across almost the entire country have now taken in researchers under theat. Our host institutions increasingly include smaller institutes and universities of applied sciences (Fachhochschulen), a trend we particularly welcome,” Aufderheide continues.
The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation is cooperating on the Philipp Schwartz Initiative with experienced partner organisations like the Scholars at Risk Network, the Scholar Rescue Fund of the Institute of International Education and the Council for At-Risk Academics.
The funding provided by the Federal Foreign Office to finance the Philipp Schwartz Initiative is complemented by private donations. Up to now, the the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation, the Fritz Thyssen Foundation, the Gerda Henkel Foundation, the Klaus Tschira Foundation, the Robert Bosch Stiftung and the Stiftung Mercator have supported the initiative with funds amounting to almost €1.7 million.
