Structures and Centers
The application of scientific knowledge is of central importance for research institutions working on the challenges currently facing global society. The transfer of knowledge and technology has advanced to the status of the “third mission” of universities next to research and education. Transfer projects encourage innovation and solution-oriented exchange between academia, industry, government and civil society.
The process of academic transfer involves a wide range of important structures. The partner institutions of the Bonn Alliance for Sustainability Research are actively involved in political advising, economic consulting, citizen science projects, as well as offering support for start-ups and patent applications. Additionally, endowed professorships play a significant role in the transfer between practice and education.
Transfer structures are as diverse as they are important. The partner institutions of the Bonn Alliance for Sustainability Research are actively involved in political advising, economic consulting, citizen science projects, as well as offering support for start-ups and patent applications. Additionally, endowed professorships play a significant role in the transfer between practice and education.
The Centre for Science and Technology Transfer at the Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg, University of Applied Sciences (H-BRS) was established to transfer knowledge and technology from academia into a range of commercial and social settings and thereby ensure its application. ZWT is the central point of contact for practical research and cooperation and brings together stakeholders from academia, industry and society.
The Centre of Applied Research (ZAF) brings together research staff from the Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg, University of Applied Sciences (H-BRS) into collaborative undertakings with external researchers drawn from industry, civil society and non-university research institutions to work on innovative projects with a strong transfer component. Current projects at the Center for Applied Research include various collaborations with companies from the region and the Federal Office for Information Security (BSI).
A number of endowed professorships have been established at H-BRS to function as an instrument of long-term cooperation with a number of regional and national companies and institutions. They have been established in several areas including autonomous systems, medical informatics, case management.
Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg, University of Applied Sciences (H-BRS) collaborates with 130 partners from industry and cooperates jointly with companies on almost 90% of its research projects. H-BRS offers numerous opportunities for cooperation ranging from taking on assignments for research, to joint research and development projects, to student work. In addition, H-BRS facilitates strategic partnerships that form long-term, substantial and comprehensive cooperation beyond the areas of research, teaching and innovation and can include internationalization, recruiting and community engagement.
The Transfer Center enaCom at the University of Bonn acts to mediate between academia and external stakeholders in a range of sectors, thereby acting to catalyze research and convey its findings into the public realm, to ensure that scientific innovations are able to inform practical applications in a wide range of areas, thereby benefiting society. The center provides consulting services to startups, providing an idea checking and coaching service, whilst providing advice and support to researchers seeking to register patents and other proprietary rights.
enaCom works with a range of stakeholders to diffuse the findings of researchers into social and commercial practice. In addition to the range of collaborative research projects which it supports, enaCom also provides assistance to the University of Bonn in the realization of transfer projects in the area of continuing professional development, knowledge and technology transfer and social engagement.
The endowment of new chairs at the University of Bonn permits a range of new, often practical research in a range of areas. One such example is the endowed professorship “Global Health – Social and Cultural Aspects” which takes a “one health” (an integration of the health of humans, animals and the environment) approach to the investigation of the socio-cultural aspects in healthcare organization.
Funded by industry, public funding agencies such as federal ministries, as well as associations, foundations and institutions, these endowed professorships serve to reinforce cooperation between universities and external partners.
In addition, the University of Bonn is appointing new professorships in cooperation with non-university research institutions, such as the Bonn Alliance partner institutions BICC and DIE.
