Cluster of Excellence proposals submitted
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The existing clusters: RESOLV and CASA
In RESOLV, scientists from Ruhr- University Bochum and TU Dortmund University are researching the role of solvents in chemical reactions with the participation of colleagues from the University of Duisburg-Essen. The Cluster of Excellence, which has been in existence since 2012, is now competing for the third time. “The interdisciplinary collaboration enables cutting-edge research that is internationally competitive,” says TU Rector Prof. Manfred Bayer.
CASA has been funded at Ruhr University Bochum since 2019 as part of the Excellence Strategy. Within CASA, innovative and holistic IT security solutions are being researched that contribute to the protection and resilience of our digital society. “We are keeping our fingers crossed for all applicants from RUB and our partners in the University Alliance Ruhr,” says RUB Rector Prof. Dr. Martin Paul.
The new cluster initiatives: REASONS and “Color meets Flavor”
REASONS focusses on water bodies in environments shaped by humans. Rising temperatures, antibiotic residues, droughts and floods: rivers are coming under pressure worldwide. In order to make them fit for the future, researchers from the REASONS Cluster of Excellence initiative are developing a new, sustainable concept for the management of water bodies. ‘The strength and reputation of our scientists in the field of water research is unique, and they have gained further - nationally and internationally - outstanding experts to put together their research team for the excellence competition,’ says the Rector of the University of Duisburg-Essen, Prof Dr Barbara Albert. ‘I am so pleased about this because the topic is very special and important. If there were no new solutions from our cutting-edge research to optimise waterways and ecosystems in the Anthropocene, i.e. the human-dominated age, then the inestimable value of science would not be fully exploited.’
In the new project “Color meets Flavor”, TU physicists want to search for new phenomena in the interaction of elementary particles in collaboration with the universities of Bonn and Siegen.
Good conditions for the UA Ruhr
The deadline for submission was August 22, 2024. The decision will be announced on May 22, 2025. The decision will have a major impact on all three universities in the University Alliance Ruhr with its four proposed research clusters. The conditions are good, as the top scientists will benefit with their cluster applications from the excellent cooperation and structures within the University Alliance Ruhr and the support of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia as part of the Research Alliance Ruhr founded in 2022. “Together, we in the University Alliance Ruhr have a good chance of being successful in the Excellence Strategy in order to be able to compete as an Consortium of Excellence in 2025,” the rectors agree.
In RESOLV, researchers from Ruhr University Bochum and TU Dortmund University are investigating, with the participation of colleagues from the University of Duisburg-Essen, the role of solvents in chemical reactions. The Cluster of Excellence has existed since 2012 and is now competing for the third time. In the new project “Color Meets Flavor”, physicists from TU Dortmund University, in collaboration with the universities in Bonn and Siegen, want to search for new phenomena in the interaction of elementary particles.
Apart from RESOLV, Ruhr University Bochum has submitted a renewal proposal for the Cluster of Excellence “Cyber Security in the Age of Large-Scale Adversaries – CASA”, in which it is exploring IT security solutions for the protection and resilience of our digital society. In addition, the University of Duisburg-Essen has submitted a full proposal for the new research project “REASONS – River Ecosystems in the Anthropocene - sustainable scientific SOlutionS”, in which it wants to develop, together with researchers from Ruhr University Bochum and other partners, a concept for sustainable river management.
Internationally competitive cutting-edge research
The deadline for submitting proposals was 22 August. In May 2025, the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the German Science and Humanities Council will jointly announce which Clusters of Excellence will be awarded funding. It will then be decided whether the UA Ruhr can compete as a University Consortium of Excellence. To do so, at least three clusters must first be approved, with each of the partner universities contributing at least one.
“Collaboration across different geographical locations facilitates cutting-edge research that is internationally competitive,” says Professor Manfred Bayer, President of TU Dortmund University. “Together, we in the University Alliance Ruhr have a good chance of being successful in the Excellence Strategy.”
About the UA Ruhr
Ruhr University Bochum, TU Dortmund University and the University of Duisburg-Essen have been working closely together as strategic partners under the umbrella of the UA Ruhr since 2007. Joining forces enables the partner universities to systematically expand their activities. True to the formula “better together”, there are meanwhile over 100 collaborations in research, teaching and administration. With over 110,000 students and almost 1,300 professors, the UA Ruhr is one of the largest and best-performing academic hubs in Germany.