State Secretary Ayse Asar officially presented the notice of funding approval for "Hessen Horizon" on September 07, 2021.
Hochschule Geisenheim University is implementing one of many successful projects of the Hessen Horizon program. The university is opening up to further EU initiatives and will play an important role in many more exciting research projects along with international partners”, says State Secretary Ayse Asar. “This offers great opportunities for the State of Hesse. In order to strengthen this potential and to take advantage of the opportunities provided by EU funding, the Hessian Ministry of Research, Higher Education, Science and the Arts supports the initiation of European research projects. Investing in science and research and thus is clever minds is crucial in the light of the crises we are facing today.”
Prof. Dr. Annette Reineke, Vice-President of Research at Hochschule Geisenheim University, presented the strategic concept for EU research, which was developed last year and can now be put into practice thanks to Hessen Horizon. The aim of the strategic research concept is to increase the chances of securing EU-funded projects. To this end, an EU Research Project Advisor will join the team of Hochschule Geisenheim University on October 01, 2021, to support Geisenheim researchers throughout the entire process – from project inception and finding the right partners up to project management. As part of its research concept, Hochschule Geisenheim University also seeks to expand international research networks, particularly in landscape architecture and horticulture. In order to achieve this goal, the university can build upon existing types of cooperation, for instance between the Competence Center for Cultivated Landscapes (KULT) and partners in Eastern Europe. Thanks to the excellent Hessian funding initiative, Hochschule Geisenheim University hopes to address the complex issues of the future together with appropriate partners.
The event provided an overview of the wide range of activities funded by Hessen Horizon, for which the Hessian Ministry of Higher Education, Research, Science and the Arts provides eight million euros until the end of 2023.
Another part of Hessen Horizon is the prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellowship Hessen, which encourages the mobility of researchers. The fellowship supports outstanding foreign researchers who have received an excellent rating by the EU to conduct a research project at Hessian universities or research organizations. Dr. Maria Schulze-Sylvester, one of the first Marie-Curie-Skłodowska fellows, presented her research project entitled "Grapevine cultivation in the age of climate change: implications for plant-vector-virus interactions" that she will pursue in the Department of Crop Protection at Hochschule Geisenheim University starting on October 01, 2021. Schulze-Sylvester has recently obtained a doctorate in Argentina. Thanks to Hessen Horizon, she can build upon her scientific achievements and continue her research in Geisenheim.
