RWTH Knowledge Hub
Knowledge Transfer to Society
How do we want to live? What kind of world do we want to leave to future generations? These are matters of crucial importance to humankind – matters that spur scientists worldwide to find sustainable solutions and turn acquired knowledge into innovations with help from strong partners from science, industry, politics, associations and, of course, society, so that we can all benefit from them in our everyday lives.
Building Trust with Transparent Research
In this increasingly complex modern world with countless information channels and multimedia omnipresence, it is crucial that we find reliable information. It is, however, becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish the true from the untrue, the relevant from the irrelevant. How can trust in sound research and its findings be strengthened?
Key Focus
The RWTH Knowledge Hub will focus on a different topic every year. Here, on these pages, we will fill you in on all the details. This year, our key focus is:
Universities like RWTH have a special responsibility here. We need to share our expertise and transfer this knowledge to society in a way that transparently and accessibly reveals the work of our researchers. RWTH prides itself on being a modern university that gets actively involved in the social discourse by offering innovative and sustainable solutions – we assume responsibility.
Research Needs Societal Support
Since its foundation in 1870 as the “Königliche Rheinisch-Westphälische Polytechnische Schule,” RWTH Aachen University has generated an enormous amount of expertise and has continuously served our society with it. By establishing a Knowledge Hub, RWTH promotes knowledge transfer to society, draws attention to its research, and provides information about current research projects. In this way, anyone outside the University can also experience and benefit from RWTH’s knowledge and expertise.
Professor Ulrich Rüdiger, Rector of RWTH Aachen University, commented:
Situated at the heart of the Aachen science region, RWTH Aachen University must now, and in the future, work to stimulate transformation processes that integrate technologies, innovations, and knowledge from research and teaching into urban and regional planning.
Professor Ulrich Rüdiger, Rector of RWTH Aachen University
The Knowledge Hub as a Measure of RWTH's Universities of Excellence Proposal
RWTH's vision is to create a unique teaching and research environment where knowledge is created and transferred to the next generation of scientists, to industry, and to society. Solutions will be found that have a significant impact on today's and tomorrow's technological and scientific challenges.
Excerpt from RWTH's successful proposal to receive funding from the German federal and state governments for the third Universities of Excellence funding line, titled “The Integrated Interdisciplinary University of Science and Technology. – Knowledge. Impact. Networks.”
In it, RWTH outlined five strategic objectives that are to be met with the help of ten identified measures.
The Knowledge Hub as a Part of Action 8
To promote knowledge transfer to society, the Knowledge Hub will serve as a new instrument for two-way communication between RWTH scientists, the public, and other target groups, such as the media, educational institutions, or political decision-makers. The Knowledge Hub will be an essential part of an open science and networking culture at RWTH Aachen University, enabling mutual exchange of ideas on projects with citizen participation.
The Knowledge Hub will be funded until 2026 and is part of the so-called Measure 8, “Stimulate Entrepreneurial Transfer,” which is “based on a broad understanding of transfer at RWTH, which includes the continuous and mutual exchange of ideas, knowledge, technologies and people within the university, with partner organizations, social groups, and the business community.”
In particular, it creates added value for so-called Living Labs as places for innovative research with the participation of civil society and various interest groups. However, for citizens to participate in RWTH research projects at all, and because they are interested in them at that, they must first become aware of the University’s research. This is precisely one of the tasks of the Knowledge Hub: to draw attention to ourselves.
Contact
Team Knowledge Hub