The team around Martin Stratmann 2014 - 2020

June 04, 2014

From among the ranks of the Scientific Members of the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, the Senate on Thursday elected three new scientific Vice Presidents for a six-year term of office. These Max Planck Directors are now members of the Executive Committee which advises President Martin Stratmann and lays the groundwork for the MPG’s important decisions.

Angela D. Friederici, former Managing Director at the MPI for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig, is the first woman to hold this position. Aged 62, she represents the interests of the Human Sciences Section which comprises 22 Max Planck institutes. In addition, Ms Friederici will also become Scientific Director of the Minerva Foundation, which promotes German-Israeli scientific cooperation and supports 27 Minerva Centers in Israel.

Bill S. Hansson, Managing Director at the MPI for Chemical Ecology in Jena, is Swedish by birth and becomes the first non-German Max Planck scientist to hold this post. During his six-year term of office, the 55-year-old will be responsible for the 27 institutes of the Biology & Medicine Section, including the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience in the US. He sees the organization of scientific quality assurance and the continuing development of internalization at the Max-Planck-Gesellschaft as two of his main tasks.

Ferdi Schüth, Director at the MPI für Kohlenforschung in Mülheim an der Ruhr, previously chaired the Scientific Council of the MPG before being elected Vice President. Aged 53, he will now oversee the 32 institutes of the Chemistry, Physics & Technology Section. Among other things, he will also be responsible for long-term major projects and shared infrastructure, with particular emphasis on the IT infrastructure at the MPG. In common with the other Vice Presidents, Mr Schüth will remain closely associated with his research.

New Treasurer comes from Siemens

The Executive Committee also welcomes another new member. Now that Hans-Jürgen Schinzler of Munich Re has stepped down after 15 years as Treasurer, Ralf P. Thomas has been elected to succeed him. Thomas is CFO of Siemens AG in Munich  and amongst others, Chairman of the Board of the German Accounting Standards Committee. He is already connected to the Max Planck Society via a Private Supporting Membership. The 53-year-old also chairs the Deutscher Rechnungslegungsstandards Committee e. V. 

The other members of the Executive Committee are: Stefan Marcinowski, long-standing Director of BASF and fourth Vice President of MPG, Stefan von Holtzbrinck, Chairman of the Management Board of Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck GmbH, Friedrich von Metzler, a partner in B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co KGaA, and Andreas Barner, management chairman of Boehringer Ingelheim GmbH.The Executive Committee together with Secretary General LuDwig Kronthaler constitute the Management Board of the Max Planck Society.

 

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