Major Recognition for IDIR: Norddeutscher Wissenschaftspreis 2026

On 03 September, 2026, the „Norddeutsche Wissenschaftspreis 2026“ was presented in Rostock. IDIR was nominated alongside two other outstanding North German research collaborations, and all three projects were honored with the prestigious award.

The jury was particularly impressed by IDIR’s consistent integration of medicine and the natural sciences. At the award ceremony, Ms. Stenke, Schleswig-Holstein’s Minister for General and Vocational Education, Science, Research and Culture, recognized the work of the collaborative project with the words: “IDIR is driving the development of the implants of the future forward.”

This integration of different disciplines and perspectives is at the heart of IDIR’s work: Researchers from Kiel University (CAU), the University Medical Center Schleswig-Holstein (UKSH), the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, the University of Rostock, and Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH) are working together to develop new approaches to implant development.

The award recognizes not only IDIR’s scientific achievements, but also the exceptional interdisciplinary collaboration across institutions and locations. By bringing together medical research, fundamental research in the natural sciences, technological development, and innovative methodological approaches, the partners are working towards the goal of advancing the implants of the future.

In addition to IDIR, the research collaborations “Disrupt, Evade, Exploit: Gene Expression and Manipulation of the Host Response in DNA Virus Infections (DEEP-DV)” and “The Magnetic Sense of Migratory Birds: From Quantum States to Biological Function” were also honored. We warmly congratulate both teams on this outstanding achievement!

For IDIR, the North German Science Award represents a special recognition of our joint research efforts. We are proud of the outstanding work of our researchers and of what has been achieved through the close collaboration between the participating institutions, locations, and disciplines. At the same time, this award motivates us to continue on this path and to work together to advance the implants of the future.