Positive evaluation: The German Maritime Museum in Bremerhaven is to remain part of the Leibniz Association
Federal and state funding for the German Maritime Museum (DSM) / Leibniz Institute for Maritime History is to be continued. This was decided by the Senate of the Leibniz Association following the completion of the regular scientific evaluation. The funding requirements will be reviewed again after four years. The statement also forms the recommendation to the Joint Science Conference (GWK) on the continuation of joint federal and state funding.
The DSM and the state of Bremen were delighted with the decision to remain in the Leibniz Association and to receive further funding. With the completion of the Bangert Building and the opening of the new permanent exhibition in particular, the museum has taken a major step forward and has also been able to position itself well in the areas of research, collection and exhibitions. The DSM intends to continue this development. The prospects and conditions for this are promising.
The DSM looks back on challenging times.The effects of the coronavirus pandemic from March 2020 until well into 2022 have shaped the past few years, alongside extensive restructuring measures and staff changes.In its statement, the Leibniz Senate all the more emphasizes the great commitment of the DSM and its two acting members of the Board of Directors, which should be particularly appreciated in view of the complex framework conditions.In addition to the scientific management, the commercial management also changed, which Matthias Templin has held since July 2023. Prof. Dr. Ruth Schilling, who previously worked as Head of the “Shipping and Society” programme area at the research institute, has been the new Managing Director since January 2024.
Prof. Dr. Ruth Schilling: “We would like to thank the evaluation commission for the trust they have placed in us.Despite difficult conditions over the past seven years, the successful opening of the new permanent exhibition 'Ship Worlds - The Ocean and Us' shows a positive trend in public perception.With promising plans for the reopening of the Scharoun Building, we look forward to making the German Maritime Museum a cultural attraction in Bremerhaven again in the coming years, as well as further strengthening research of national and international importance.
The German Maritime Museum - Leibniz Institute for Maritime History (DSM) collects historical collections on the history of German shipping and is dedicated to their preservation and documentation as well as the scientific research and museum presentation of these collections from a global and future-oriented perspective.
Under the motto “Understanding the world from the sea”, the new permanent exhibition “Ship Worlds - The Ocean and Us” opened this summer.
The external experts who visited the DSM on 11/12 April 2024 praised the extremely well-designed new permanent exhibition on the technological, environmental and scientific history of seafaring, which focuses on the approach of combining research and education.In this context, the Commission also welcomes the high relevance of the topic of participation for the DSM, particularly with regard to families, inclusion and the development of educationally disadvantaged population groups.
In its report, the Senate of the Leibniz Association acknowledges the fact that the DSM research projects of recent years combine the aspects of research infrastructures, research and communication.
The DSM is currently divided into the scientific program areas “Shipping and Society” and “Ships as Knowledge Repositories”. Together with the three research infrastructure areas “Library and Information Infrastructure”, “Collection Infrastructure” and “Exhibition and Communication Infrastructure”, these are rated from “good” to “good to very good”, “very good” and “very good to excellent”.
Together with a significant increase in scientific staff, this offers particular prospects for development. The constant expansion of the collection, the new research depot, which has significantly improved the storage of the collection, and the expansion of the digital depot are evidence of this.
Voice of the Senator for Environment, Climate and Science
Kathrin Moosdorf: “It is important that we have a museum in Germany that researches and reflects on mankind's relationship with the ocean and makes the scientific findings accessible to people. The influence of ships and shipping is not only of great importance for Bremen, but is globally relevant - for society, for the economy, for science and for our environment. The State of Bremen therefore welcomes the decision of the Senate of the Leibniz Association to continue the funding of the DSM by the federal and state governments. At the same time, the DSM has received valuable recommendations from the experts on how it can position itself even better for the future. The state of Bremen will support the DSM in implementing these recommendations.”
About the German Maritime Museum / Leibniz Institute of Maritime History
The German Maritime Museum / Leibniz Institute of Maritime History looks at the past, present and future from the sea.Because ships change the world: they drive global interdependencies in society, politics, science and the environment.Ships can be places of longing or delivery vehicles, drivers of war or escape helpers, destroyers of the environment or repositories of knowledge.One thing is certain: without ships, our world would be a different place.Because ships move - people and goods, ideologies and information. Ships are contemporary witnesses - silent and communicative at the same time. The Maritime Museum, one of eight research museums of the Leibniz Association, researches and presents their history: a history of man and the sea. After all, ships are the key to understanding our globalized world: they shape our relationship with the sea and other countries - socially and culturally, economically, technically and scientifically. How did these interdependencies come about - and what can we learn from them for the present and the future? We research this and make it visible in exhibitions. As a museum and historical research institute, the DSM is unique in the German-speaking world.
The institutes of the Leibniz Association are jointly funded by the federal and state governments and regularly evaluated. Depending on the development of the research institute, its strengths and weaknesses, an evaluation commission decides on further funding. Decisive factors here are the supra-regional importance and the national interest in science policy.
