Potsdam

A grateful look back at a great conference

More than five hundred guests, a wealth of high-calibre lectures and many stimulating discussions: the 133rd assembly of our Society of German Natural Scientists and Physicians was an all-round success. One highlight was the founding of the Young GDNÄ, which, as a youth organisation, will shape the future of our long-standing society.

Science for our tomorrow’s life – under this motto, we were able to experience four exciting days at the University of Potsdam from 12 to 15 September. The lecture halls and seminar rooms on the beautiful Griebnitzsee campus were packed when the podium discussed generative language models such as ChatGPT, the storage of renewable energies, the current state of quantum computers, facts and myths about healthy aging, and other current topics of this calibre. The two public lectures on small molecular machines by Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry Ben Feringa and on the amazing healing power of placebos by GDNÄ Vice President Martin Lohse were very well received. Several hundred members of the GDNÄ followed the lectures remotely via livestream from their homes. Anyone who wants to listen to the lectures again can do so soon and free of charge via the GDNÄ’s YouTube channel.

The approximately 150 students present in Potsdam played a special role. They didn’t miss a single lecture and were even there at 9 a.m. on Sunday morning. The young people had prepared for the conference topics in workshops so that they could join in panel discussions with scientists and experts. Some of them took part in the traditional lecture competition “Science in 5 Minutes”, which was once again a great success with the audience.

At the beginning of our meeting, we celebrated the founding of the Young GDNÄ. The young people present in Potsdam belong to it, as do the young participants from previous meetings. As the youth organisation of our society, the Young GDNÄ will enrich future meetings and enable completely new developments.

We would like to thank everyone who contributed to the success of our 133rd conference: our guests from near and far, members and non-members, younger and older participants, all keynote speakers, speakers and panelists, and all those who helped prepare and execute the conference. I would like to thank Mike Schubert, the Lord Mayor of Potsdam, Steffen Weber from the Brandenburg Ministry of Science, University President Oliver Günther and our local business director Alexander Böker for their invigorating words of welcome. The University of Potsdam has generously provided us with its rooms – thank you very much for that. The Heraeus Foundation, the AKB Foundation, the Bayer Science & Education Foundation and the Foundation for Family Businesses, which make the Young GDNÄ possible with their financial support, deserve great recognition. Paul Mühlenhoff, a grammar school teacher from Bielefeld, has rendered lasting services to the pedagogical director. A particularly big thank you for preparing and organising the meeting goes to the staff at the office: to Katja Diete, who managed the conference office together with Beatrice Kaul, and to Sylvia Landeck, who ensured that everything ran smoothly.

The next GDNÄ meeting will take place in Bremen from 17 to 20 September 2026, under the leadership of Anke Kaysser-Pyzalla, the first female engineer in this role. The general assembly elected Ferdi Schüth, chemist and director at the Max-Planck-Institut für Kohlenforschung in Mülheim an der Ruhr, to preside over the society in 2027 and 2028. As a dedicated member of the GDNÄ and as its vice president from 2025 to 2026, I will do my utmost to support both of them.

Finally, allow me to draw your attention to our conference journal . At the bottom of the page, under the heading “How was it?”, you will find a kind of digital guest book in which some participants have already signed in.  We would also be happy to include your impressions here. I look forward to receiving your message at info@gdnae.de.

Best regards,

 

Heribert Hofer, President of the GDNÄ