“Enormous richness of academic life” -
Ulman Lindenberger bids farewell to five intense years as Scientific Director of the Minerva Foundation
In his farewell address to the members of the Minerva Weizmann Committee, which met in September 2025 at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Ulman Lindenberger shared his journey through academic life in Israel.
In June 2020, Ulman Lindenberger was appointed Vice President of the MPG – and with it, the management of the Minerva Foundation became part of his portfolio. Given the Corona pandemic, an inaugural trip to Israel seemed out of reach. However, in April 2021, the time had come: under Corona-restricted entry regulations, a three-week trip to Israel began, together with the Head of Office, Dr. Lou Bohlen.
The first stops were the Weizmann Institute, Bar-Ilan University, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, followed by visits to several Minerva Centers and the University of Haifa.
What impression did the outgoing Managing Director have of this first trip? "Israel impressed me by the enormous richness of its academic life. And the Minerva Foundation, with its three pillars, the Minerva Centers, the Minerva fellowships, and the Weizmann program, is actually able to capture an appreciable part of this richness and is able to contribute to it in a small but meaningful manner," said Ulman Lindenberger in his speech.
The inaugural visit was followed by eight more, including the farewell trip of former President Martin Stratmann in May 2023.
However, the Hamas attack on Israel brought an “emotional contrast:” Instead of celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Minerva Fellowship Program, a small delegation—including Max Planck President Patrick Cramer, Secretary General Simone Schwanitz, both Minerva Managing Directors Ulman Lindenberger and Maximilian Prugger as well as Lou Bohlen—met colleagues and friends at the Van Leer Institute in Jerusalem to demonstrate the support of Minerva and the MPG for scientific institutions in Israel.
“The perhaps most rewarding aspect of my term”
The opening of the Max Planck Office in Jerusalem a year later, on the other hand, was “perhaps the most rewarding aspect of my term as Minerva Director,” said the former Managing Director.
Ulman Lindenberger also noted that the political choices of the Israeli government, and in particular the continuation of the war in Gaza, has made scientific collaboration more difficult. In this context, he appreciated the statement issued by Alon Chen and four university presidents, in which they request the release of the hostages and request a fundamental change in Israeli policy. “We need to draw a distinction between antisemitism directed against Israel and legitimate critique of the Israeli government, and continue to support collaboration between the Max Planck Society and scientific institutions in Israel”, he said.
Ulman Lindenberger also thanked the chairs and members of all the various Minerva committees for their commitment to the Minerva Foundation. “You have made sure that the three pillars of Minerva are as steadfast as ever,” he remarked.
Ulman Lindenberger wished his successor, Christian Doeller, Vice President of the Human and Social Sciences Section of the Max Planck Society, all the best for his upcoming term as Managing Director of the Minerva Foundation.
The entire team at the Minerva Foundation would like to thank Ulman Lindenberger for his deep understanding of German-Israeli scientific cooperation, for his unwavering commitment, his outstanding leadership in geopolitically challenging times, and for his wonderful ability to master even difficult situations with humor.
