Center for interdisciplinary research

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Center for Interdisciplinary Research (ZiF) is an institute of Bielefeld University . It was founded in 1968 at Rheda Castle as the first institute of its kind in Germany and as the nucleus of the new university. In the meantime, it has been the godfather of numerous similar foundations across Europe. It is located immediately south of the main university building on the northern slope of the Teutoburg Forest .

The site plan for the center for interdisciplinary research

The ZiF supports and hosts international and interdisciplinary research groups. Scientists from various disciplines can jointly carry out research projects at the ZiF, from large one-year research groups to conferences and workshops. Well-known researchers were Norbert Elias and the Nobel Prize winners Reinhard Selten , John Charles Harsanyi , Roger B. Myerson and Elinor Ostrom .

target

Helmut Schelsky , the founding father of the ZiF, described the ZiF as the engine of scientific progress. In this sense, it is intended to promote interdisciplinary research, especially in the field of basic research. The ZiF is a thematically independent research institution that is not involved in teaching. It awards fellowships and scholarships, offers its guests the appropriate work environment and the infrastructure for organizing conferences. The specialty of the ZiF is that it does not support individuals but research groups whose members (fellows) live at the ZiF for the duration of the research group and work together on a topic of their choice.

"[...] systematic and regular discussions and colloquia, criticism and approval of a group of scholars who are interested in the same subject areas, even if perhaps from different scientific and technical points of view, are among the most beneficial that can happen to one's own research activity."

- Helmut Schelsky (1964)

Working formats

There are different working formats at the ZiF: the large one-year research group, cooperation groups lasting several months, and working groups lasting several days. There are also junior research groups and the youth network. In addition, there are public lectures, author readings and art exhibitions.

Legal form and structure

The ZiF is headed by a scientific board of directors made up of professors from the university. The managing director is the philosopher Véronique Zanetti . The Board of Directors is supported by a Scientific Advisory Board made up of sixteen appointed researchers. There is also an association of friends and sponsors of the ZiF. Twenty employees organize the center.

Live and work

The ZiF has its own campus, surrounded by the event rooms and the apartments for the fellows. The infrastructure includes a library and a swimming pool.

literature

  • Helmut Schelsky : The center for interdisciplinary research. A memorandum by Helmut Schelsky. in: Paul Mikat , Helmut Schelsky: Fundamentals of a new university. For planning a university in East Westphalia. C. Bertelsmann Verlag, Gütersloh 1967
  • Sabine Maasen: Introducing Interdisciplinarity: Irresistible Infliction? The Example of a research group at the Center for Interdisciplinary research (ZiF), Bielefeld, Germany. in: Peter Weingart , Nico Stehr (Eds.): Practicing Interdisciplinarity. Univ. of Toronto Press 2000, pp. 173-194
  • Gerhard Sprenger, Peter Weingart : Center for Interdisciplinary Research. in: Peter Lundgreen (Ed.): Reform University Bielefeld 1969–1994. Between defensive and innovation. Publishing house for regional history, Bielefeld 1994, pp. 397-410
  • Jürgen Kocka (Ed.): "Interdisciplinarity. Practice - Challenges - Ideology", Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1987.
  • Peter Weingart , Britta Padberg (Eds.): "University Experiments in Interdisciplinarity - Obstacles and Opportunities", transcript Verlag, Bielefeld 2014.
  • Britta Padberg, "The Global Diversity of Institutes for Advanced Study", in: Sociologica, vol.14, no.1 (2020) https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.1971-8853/9839

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Andreas Rossmann: Interdisciplinarity: Methods 1, 33615 Bielefeld . In: faz.net . November 24, 2018 ( faz.net [accessed November 24, 2018]).
  2. ↑ Board of Directors: Executive Director Véronique Zanetti. In: www.uni-bielefeld.de. Retrieved August 11, 2016 .

Coordinates: 52 ° 1 ′ 57.4 ″  N , 8 ° 29 ′ 36 ″  E