Dear Readers,

Welcome to the current Research Report of the University of Duisburg‐Essen (UDE).

In this issue, our University’s eleven faculties report on their latest research results and share their perspective on future developments. This year, for the first time, the Research Report also covers the topics of transfer and sustainability.

2018 was a very successful year for research at the University of Duisburg-Essen. In the current Times Higher Education (THE) Young University Ranking of the world’s best 200 universities under 50 years old, we are ranked 14th among the top 20 universities worldwide and take first place among the young German universities! The ranking features those universities that have developed very successfully in a short period of time and are considered as international higher education’s “rising stars”. The UDE has performed especially well in the citation index, which rates the quality of research results by measuring how frequently our researchers’ publications are cited. Here, the UDE came fifth in a nationwide comparison of all ranked universities, improving again on our performance in preceding years. The DFG’s current higher education report, which covers funds awarded in 2018, delivers equally satisfying results. In this case, the UDE has now reached a funding volume of 48.7 million euros/year. This means that we have increased our DFG funding by more than 50 % since 2015, and for individual grants by approximately 80 %. All the UDE faculties have contributed to this considerable success.

As these figures alone show, we are a highly dynamic university that has huge potential. “Open-minded” is not simply our motto; it also promotes research at the UDE in all its breadth.

It is also for this reason that the Report can include just a selection of the many fascinating research projects by name. Which is why I would like to take this opportunity to explicitly thank all researchers whose work may not be described in the Research Report but is nevertheless equally important for our University’s research reputation and continued development.