To find solutions for the complex problems of our times, increasingly often there needs to be cooperation between different disciplines. There are many examples of such collaborations at the University of Magdeburg. Research Training Group 2408 in the Faculty of Medicine is one of them. The scientists explain what working in an international and interdisciplinary team is like, what they are working on together and what the challenges are that they currently face.

Scientists from all over the world come to Magdeburg University again and again thanks to an Alexander von Humboldt Fellowship. Currently, Prof. Dr. Evangelos Tsotsas at the Institute of Process Engineering of the Faculty of Process and Systems Engineering is hosting Dr. Stutee Bhoi from India. Lisa Baaske spoke with the Humboldt Fellow about her research, her goals about Magdeburg and what it means to her to be a Humboldtian.

Rarely has humanity faced so many challenges at once. The list of global crisis issues is long. Climate change and the Corona pandemic alone are affecting how we live, research and work. The war in Ukraine and its economic consequences are also currently turning industry upside down. Process engineers at the University of Magdeburg are therefore researching how CO2-neutral microwave technology can be used for industrial purposes.

When Yash Ankurbhai Shah arrived in Magdeburg from India in 2018 to study for a Master’s degree at the university, he probably did not imagine that he would end up being solely responsible for running the RIA Buddy Program. His many years of voluntary work and outstanding academic achievements have not gone unnoticed. This year, the student was honored by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD).

In 2019 around 40 per cent of Germans over 14 years of age took part in voluntary work in society. From assistance for refugees, care of senior citizens, animal protection and youth work through to the voluntary fire brigade, their activities were many and varied. One of these people is Ulrike Schmidt, who works in the student secretariat in the International Students’ Office at the University of Magdeburg. During her free time she volunteers in the Magdeburg district of Buckau.

If Germany wants to achieve its climate targets and become climate-neutral by 2045, wind power and photovoltaics must be expanded much more quickly and comprehensively than before. Environmental psychologist Prof. Ellen Matthies is investigating how this energy turnaround can succeed. She knows that only with the right communication can fear of loss be overcome and people become enthusiastic about change.

One could hardly wish for a better student to embody the motto, ‘Rethinking the world together’ than Akram Elborashi. As an Egyptian medical student with, at times, a record FOUR jobs at the university, he shows how one person can have a positive influence on life for foreign students all over Magdeburg. This is because alongside his medical studies, he is also committed to helping international students and communities in the city.

In her research and teaching, Dr. Tina Jung addresses gender relations as a structural and power principle in society in the context of social and democratic change. She researches health and gender politics, violence and gender, including in the context of human rights, care work, family and both (queer) feminist and critical social theories.

The “Buddy” program was set up to make it easier for international students to settle in in Magdeburg. In this mentoring program, new international students are paired with so-called buddies, that is, students from higher semesters. They make the new starters feel welcome and help them get to grips with their new environment at the university.

Even as children, we learn that we either go to the women's or men's restroom. But what happens when people don't feel they belong to their birth sex? When there is no either or for them, but an in-between? Gender-neutral restrooms are supposed to spare them this either-or question. But what about the people who can fit into the binary system and feel uncomfortable sharing a restroom with the opposite sex? Are they simply too uptight?