Greeting from the President
Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Christoph Markschies
Photographer: Urbschat
Dear friends and sponsors of our alma mater,
It is a great pleasure to welcome you and thank you for your interest in the future of Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.
Founded two hundred years ago as a reform university that was admired throughout the world, we still see ourselves as the "modern classic" of a university where the ideals of Wilhelm von Humboldt and the other founding fathers are translated into the twenty-first century. Our founding fathers wanted to implement a structure that guaranteed the freedom of research, the unity of the sciences in their disciplinary variety and the reciprocal relationship of research and teaching in order to realise the university's societal responsibility. These classic formulas are still topical today. They guide our actions for the future: our goals, projects and visions are not only characterised by the necessities for excellent teaching and research but also by the necessities of a world community.
These tasks cannot be managed with state funds alone. We rely on the commitment of private sponsors, responsible entrepreneurs and voluntary supporters in order to realise our projects and goals. Our alumni, moreover, bolster the future course of the university, to which they owe an excellent education and many of their professional opportunities.
As a university aware of its responsibility and acting on behalf of society at large, we research the topics and issues of the future, find solutions and communicate our results to the public. We want to promote our young talents in a sustainable way by focussing on character building as well as a disciplinary and professional education.
It is our task to maintain the precious architectural and cultural heritage of Humboldt-Universität in the heart of Berlin. We want to celebrate the two-hundredth anniversary of our university in 2009/2010 with the entire city and are planning events, exhibitions and activities within and far beyond the city - in short: we are planning worthy birthday presents for our alma mater, we seek to unite university and town and we will enable everyone to experience science, research and teaching.
That is why we are looking for partners who look ahead, who share our ideals and support our future projects in form and content as well as financially. We welcome any form of support. Come and shape the future together with us and sustain Humboldt's path into the twenty-first century. I am greatly looking forward to our joint commitment for the alma mater berolinenses - Berlin's oldest university.
Christoph Markschies