More than 100 researchers from the universities of Oldenburg, Bremen, and Groningen gathered in Oldenburg to exchange ideas about their future cooperation in the Northwest Alliance.
The University of Oldenburg hosted a network meeting in early February with more than 100 researchers in attendance that included short presentations, individual conversations, and room for in-depth questions. Participants included researchers from the University of Oldenburg, University of Bremen, and the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen (Netherlands) who met as international alliance partners and took advantage of this opportunity to strengthen existing connections and form new ones. The focus was on exploring the potential for even closer collaboration in the Northwest Alliance (NWA) and developing ideas for new partnerships that transcend the area of expertise of an individual university.
“Our long-term goal is to establish a more integrated research community among the three universities under the Northwest Alliance umbrella, with the aim of driving cross-border innovation,” said Prof. Dr. Ralph Bruder, President of the University of Oldenburg, in his welcome address in the library hall. “By combining our research strengths, we can attain a level of success that none of the three universities could achieve on their own,” added Prof. Dr. Jutta Günther, President of the University of Bremen.
Academic Networks for Excellent Research
The Northwest Alliance aims to continue developing Germany’s northwest region into a leading location for research and knowledge transfer, combining excellent research with social responsibility to find innovative solutions for regional and global challenges. Through its close partnership with the Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, the Northwest Alliance also operates across national borders.
The alliance has already laid a stable foundation for these collaborations, with the universities of Oldenburg and Bremen having received funding for a total of four Clusters of Excellence as part of the Excellence Strategy of the federal and state governments. Researchers in these clusters are conducting cutting-edge research on various topics that include Mars, human hearing, the ocean floor, and animal navigation abilities. In the joint Ocean Floor cluster, researchers from Bremen and Oldenburg are working together to decipher the role of the ocean floor for nutrient cycles and biodiversity under changing climatic conditions.
Top Research Partnership
The two universities want to pursue their future goals as a University Excellence Consortium. In November, they submitted their joint application with the title “Northwest Alliance: Connecting for Tomorrow” in the second funding line of the Excellence Strategy. The decision on funding will be made in October 2026.