Carl Friedrich Gethmann was Professor of Philosophy at the University of Duisburg-Essen from 1979 until 2012. His research fields are linguistic philosophy, argumentation theory, logic, phenomenology and applied philosophy (medical ethics, environmental ethics, technology risk assessment). Since 2013, Gethmann has been a professor in the research group “Creating a Common Future” (Zukunft menschlich gestalten) at the University of Siegen.

Karlheinz Altendorf was Professor of Microbiology at the University of Osnabrück from 1980 until 2009 and from 2009 to 2012 had a “Niedersachsenprofessur”. He researches the structure and function of ATP synthase, potassium transport, regulatory processes in bacteria and microbial ecology.

Barbara Bröker has been Professor of Molecular Immunology at the University of Greifswald since 2000. Her research interests are in the areas infection immunology, Staphylococcus aureus and sepsis.

Hans-Joachim Freund was appointed as a Scientific Member and Director of the Fritz Haber Institute of the Max Planck Society in Berlin in 1996, where he has led the department “Chemical Physics” since then. He looks at the physics and chemistry of solid surfaces, the structure and dynamics of oxide surfaces, model systems for heterogeneous catalysis, and nanostructures and clusters.

Philipp U. Heitz works in Basel, London, and Zurich on the biology of human endocrine diseases, in particular with neuroendocrine tumours of the pancreas, gastrointestinal tract, lungs and thyroid as well as with the pathology of multiple endocrine neoplasia, types 1 and 2 (MEN 1 and 2). Philipp U. Heitz was the Director of the Institute of Pathology at the University of Basel for five years and the Director of the Department of Pathology at the University of Zurich for 17 years. He developed this department into a recognized centre for research and teaching.

Werner Raub is Professor of Sociology in the Department of Sociology at Utrecht University, Netherlands and at the Interuniversity Center for Social Science Theory and Methodology (ICS) at the Universities of Groningen, Utrecht and Nijmegen, Netherlands. His research fields include theoretical sociology and organisational studies as well as business sociology and sociology of the family. The primary aim of his work is to systematically integrate theoretical models and empirical research in sociology.

Luise Schorn-Schütte is Professor of General Modern History with a special focus on the Early Modern Period at the Goethe University Frankfurt. Her research concentrations include the history of political communication in Europe in the early modern age, the theory of historical science and the history of science in the 19th and 20th centuries.

Eckhard Schumacher is Professor of Modern German Literature and Literature Theory and Director of the Wolfgang Koeppen Archive at the University of Greifswald. He focuses on the areas of literature and media theory, romanticism, contemporary literature and pop.