The panel for the digital town hall meeting will feature Dortmund Rector Manfred Bayer, moderator Christina Elmer, and Bochum Rector Martin Paul (from left).
Invitation
Town Hall Meeting on the Excellence Strategy Decision
In an online event on October 7, the rectors from Bochum and Dortmund will discuss the outcome of the competition.
All members of Ruhr University Bochum and TU Dortmund University are cordially invited to a digital town hall meeting on October 7, 2026, to learn more about the outcome of the Excellence Strategy. Starting at 2:15 p.m., Professor Martin Paul, Rector of Ruhr University Bochum, and Professor Manfred Bayer, Rector of TU Dortmund University, will discuss the results and provide an outlook on future collaboration between the two universities. You will also have the opportunity to ask questions. The event will be moderated by Christina Elmer, Professor of Digital Journalism. Members of both universities will receive the access link via email prior to the event.
Town Hall Meeting
On October 2, 2026, the German Science and Humanities Council (Wissenschaftsrat) will announce which universities and consortia will receive Excellence Strategy funding. There will be a livestream of the press conference at which the results are published. Eleven candidates are competing for up to five available spots. Among them: the “Ruhr Innovation Lab,” the consortium of Ruhr University Bochum and TU Dortmund University.
The joint proposal, subtitled “An ecosystem for a future-proof society,” outlines an experimental space that creates room for free thinking in research and develops solutions to pressing future issues. To this end, connections to industry, politics, and civil society are also to be strengthened. Regardless of the competition’s outcome, the two partners will continue to pursue their shared vision and further intensify their collaboration.
