FOREWORD

It is the goal of the Universität Leipzig to continue developing itself, over the next five to ten years, into a leading European research university and internationally recognized educational establishment for young researchers. The University advanced considerably along this pathway in 2006. In this regard, three processes, in particular, with reference to research and to promotion of young researchers should be highlighted.

• This involves first of all the new focus that has been taking place since the end of 2004 on six Top-Level Research Areas, in which, respectively, several faculties with non-university research facilities are already working together internationally. The efforts in 2006 were concentrated primarily, parallel to the on-going self-presentation process, on the development of stable working structures including the provision regarding the relationship to the faculties, centres and non-university research facilities. The results achieved were discussed with the University’s governing body, the Rectorial College, in early 2007.
• Furthermore, we have made essential progress in the structured promotion of junior researchers. This is manifested in the foundation of the Research Academy Leipzig (RAL) in a ceremonial act on 13 December 2006; the RAL had been preceded by the formation of the Graduate Centre for Mathematics/Computer Science and Natural Sciences, Life Sciences, Humanities and Social Sciences in November 2006. Under the auspices of the RAL there should be found, in addition to the structured qualification of doctoral candidates, a place for the inter-generational exchange of ideas between internationally acclaimed personalities from the scientific community and the most-qualified and most-motivated junior researchers.
• Third, the evaluation of the expert opinions regarding the application draft in the first round of the Federal-State-Initiative “Top Universities for Germany- Excellence Initiative Competition” and the resulting discussion provided substantial impulse for the improvement of the contents, articulation of the University’s research goals and training for the young researchers. These energies also flowed into the second round of the Federal-State-Initiative in September 2006, consisting of an application draft submitted for 3 graduate schools for the funding of junior researchers, for 2 Excellence Clusters for the funding of Top-Level Research, and a concept for the future regarding project-related implementation of the University’s Top-Level Research.

We have also continued the efforts to found new research associations.

The granting of the application regarding installation of a Translation Centre for Regenerative Medicine (TRM), founded in 2006, should be mentioned first as a rounding success. The Centre is being financed with about 20 M. € by both the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), and the Free State of Saxony, in order to set a further example for the gaining of prominence within the Life Sciences by building Excellence Centres. The goal is to offer young researchers their own research facility, in which they are able to evolve, introduce new ideas, and research and work independently. Participants include the Universität Halle-Wittenberg, non-university research facilities and private enterprises from the region.

Moreover, the National Research Foundation (DFG) has agreed to the implementation of the Post-Graduate Research Unit “Fracture Zones in Globalization”. This Post-Graduate Research Unit is analyzing globalization processes in light of the fracture zones that are appearing, at which the new-segmentation of the world is becoming particularly conspicuous due to destabilization of the old spatial relationships and evolution of the new.
Researchers of the Universität Leipzig were successful with a total of three applications for the implementation of DFG research groups:

• The DFG Research Group “Analysis and Stochastics in Complex Physical Systems” will enable an intensive interaction between Analysis and the Theory of Probability, in order to study physical systems with random input and high complexity. It will unite and develop further ideas from both areas, in order to obtain results that lie outside the reach of both disciplines.
• The DFG Research Group “Grammar and the Processing of Verbal Arguments” has dedicated its time and effort to the relation between verb and argument as the core of grammar. By means of the interdisciplinary research of argument-structure, argument-realization, argument-encoding and argument interpretation, new insights are introduced into the organization of grammar and its processing components within the human brain.
• The Clinical Research Group “Atherobesity: Fat and Vessels” – the first in the New Federal States – has as its goal, the uncovering of causes for the increased-risk cardiovascular diseases – down to the level of the molecular mechanisms – for patients with adiposity, thereby establishing the foundations for successful strategies for prevention and intervention of adiposity-associated early atherosclerosis.

The Inno-Profile junior research group “White Bio-Technology” will be funded by BMBF in the next 4 years with 2.1 M €. Methods will be developed to facilitate the search for new enzymes in environmental samples. Furthermore, innovative expression systems and values for the gene-technological manufacturing of these enzymes, as well as strategies for both production and sterilization are to be developed and established on an industrial-pilot scale.

The Universität Leipzig is increasing its competency with the aid of noted partners in the area of Energy Economics. In this regard, the “Research Post of Communal Energy Economics” was founded on 28 June 2006 in the Faculty of Economics and Management. Linked to this is the installation of a “Vattenfall Europe Endowment Chair for Energy Management and Sustainability” with the goal of producing contributions for future-orientation of the Central German Region, and, through international appointments, to become more attractive to enterprises and students from all countries of the world, not only from Central and Eastern Europe. And in Moscow, a contract with the University MGIMO was signed on 21 June 2006 for the establishment of a Russian German Institute for Energy Policies and Energy Economics.

These selected examples have contributed appreciably to the funding by grants, which amounted to 53.1 M € in 2006. It is particularly satisfying to see that the share of projects evaluated from the EU competition procedure, from the National and the DFG funding amounts to 58% overall from the total proceeds from grants- this is once again a high number. In this regard the DFG, with a share of 26%, is the most important grant provider for the University.

The recruitment of grants opens the opportunity for the University to employ additional personnel for the production of research projects. In this respect for the year 2006, the best result ever was achieved with 1,038 work contracts – an increase of 8% compared to the previous year.

With a view to the 600-year anniversary of the University in 2009 and beyond, the Universität Leipzig will continue to work on its Top-Level Profiles in Research, Promotion of young researchers and its excellence.