International Humanities and Social Sciences

The Federal Government's strategy for the internationalization of science and research focuses on three priority areas:

1. Strengthening technical competence in world regions,
2. Promotion of worldwide research cooperation and
3. Qualification of young academics.

Whether Africa's visions of the future, Asia's capacity for innovation or change in Eastern Europe, cross-border questions need to be addressed in terms of international cooperation, as area studies in Germany show.  And since their academic findings are important, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) takes specific measures to further their communication.

Another instrument of internationalization of research are the Merian Centres. These are located in different regions of the world and aim at establishing research in long-term and transnational working contexts. Merian Centres exist in Asia, Latin America, Africa and South Asia.

The Max Weber Foundation, which is supported by the BMBF on a long-term basis, also makes a significant contribution to understanding and networking between Germany and the a range of countries or regions. Worldwide, there are currently ten institutes and several research groups and offices. The Max Weber Foundation promotes the dialogue between specialist cultures in the humanities and social sciences.

The largest research and innovation support programme in the world is Horizon Europe, the EU's Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, with a total budget of 95.5 billion euros for the period 2021-2027. Particularly interesting for the humanities and social sciences is the cluster “Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society”.   Interested applicants in Germany can contact the National Contact Point (NCP) Society.  International networking and the search for potential project partners is supported by Net4Society, the international network of the “National Contact Points of the Humanities and Social Sciences".