Professor Jale Tosun is New Chair of the Scientific Advirosy Board of the IRS

On 16 September 2024, Jale Tosun, professor at the University of Heidelberg, was unanimously elected as the new chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the IRS. The political scientist has been a member of the committee since November 2023. Her term of office as chair of the Advisory Board begins on 4 November 2024. Professor Karsten Zimmermann, head of the research group "European Planning Cultures" at the Technical University of Dortmund, will be her deputy. He has been a member of the advisory board since December 2019.

With the appointment of Astrid Eckert, Professor of Modern European History at Emory University (Atlanta / USA), and the reappointment of Koen Frenken, Professor of Innovation Studies at Utrecht University (Netherlands), the Scientific Advisory Board has grown to nine members. With these internationally recognised scholars, the IRS is well positioned to meet the challenges ahead, emphasised Oliver Ibert, Director of the IRS, at the meeting. During their four-year term of office, the development of a new research programme from 2025 and the audit of the IRS by the Advisory Board in 2027 will take place.

At the meeting, Johannes Glückler, professor at the University of Munich, was also bid farewell as the long-standing chair of the advisory board. The economic geographer had been a member of the advisory board since November 2016 and its chair since March 2021. Oliver Ibert paid tribute to Glückler's tireless commitment and his role in internationalising the committee. Under his leadership, the advisory board has always proved to be a demanding supporter for the institute, said Ibert. After four years, Dariusz Wójcik, Professor of Financial Geography at the National University of Singapore, is also leaving the advisory board. Ibert thanked him too for his valuable contribution to the institute's scientific development.

The Scientific Advisory Board advises the General Assembly and the Board of Directors on scientific and organisational matters. It makes recommendations and suggestions regarding the Institute's research fields and work planning. The international orientation of the advisory board has been strengthened in recent years by new members from international universities. These include the University of Sheffield (United Kingdom), Emory University (Atlanta / USA) and Utrecht University (Netherlands). Since May 2021, English has been the working language of the advisory board.