Berlin-Brandenburg Science Region and Hebrew University of Jerusalem Intensify Cooperation in the Field of Jewish Studies
The various actors of the scientific region Berlin-Brandenburg as united in the Selma Stern Center, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem wish to intensify their cooperation in the field of Jewish studies. This was agreed upon in a virtual ceremony on Wednesday, December 10, 2020. The cooperation is intended to facilitate exchanges of senior scholars and students, joint research projects and conferences, as well as the sharing of archival materials.
The ceremony was hosted by Prof. Dr. Verena Blechinger-Talcott, Vice President for International Affairs at Freie Universität Berlin. She was joined by H.E. Jeremy Issacharoff, Ambassador of the State of Israel in Germany, and H.E. Dr. Susanne Wasum-Rainer, the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Israel. Among the speakers who attended the event were Prof. Dr. Julia von Blumenthal, Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Selma Stern Center and President of the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder); Prof. Dr. Sina Rauschenbach, Spokesperson for the Selma Stern Center; and Prof. Dr. Oron Shagrir, Vice President for International Affairs of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
The Selma Stern Center is a supraregional, inter-institutional association of Berlin’s three major universities (Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Technische Universität Berlin), the European University Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder), the University of Potsdam, the Abraham Geiger College and the Moses Mendelssohn Center for European-Jewish Studies, with the Liszt School of Music Weimar as a co-opted member. Since its founding, the Selma Stern Center has developed into an internationally recognized research community and network. Its structure connects the seven most important actors in Jewish studies in the Berlin-Brandenburg scientific region.
Within the strategic partnership that has linked Freie Universität Berlin and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem since 2011, a cooperation agreement has been drawn up to incorporate the Selma Stern Center and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem in the field of Jewish studies. The connection to the Selma Stern Center ensures that the entire Berlin-Brandenburg scientific region will benefit from this cooperation.