Martin Böhnke takes over as Managing Director of the Forschungsverbund Berlin e. V.

Lawyer Martin Böhnke has been officially appointed as the new Managing Director of the Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V. (FVB). Martin began serving in this role on an interim basis in April 2024, following the departure of Dr. Nicole Münnich. The FVB is comprised of seven Leibniz Institute members, including PDI. The organization focuses on combining excellent research in the natural sciences, engineering, life sciences, and environmental sciences with efficient science management.

Following the departure of the previous Managing Director, Dr. Nicole Münnich, in March 2024, a search committee was tasked with filling the position. Martin Böhnke, who had already been working as a Legal Advisor in the joint administration of the Forschungsverbund for two years, stepped in at short notice. He later applied to take over the position permanently. The search committee, consisting of members of the FVB Board of Trustees, eventually decided in favor of the experienced science manager.

Martin Böhnke grew up near Hanover and was Vice President at the HAWK University of Applied Sciences and Arts Hildesheim/Holzminden/Göttingen before moving to Berlin. He previously worked as Chancellor at the Stuttgart State Academy of Art and Design (ABK Stuttgart). After studying law and completing his legal clerkship, he took on various positions at Leibniz University Hannover, including that of a Faculty Managing Director.

Martin Böhnke is looking forward to his new role. "After working in a wide variety of university forms with an even more diverse range of disciplines, I was curious about the structure of a non-university research institution. The Forschungsverbund is a challenging idea that creates space for outstanding high-level research in an increasingly complex, regulated environment. I am very excited about the opportunity of bringing this idea to life and I am grateful for the trust that has been placed in me."

Prof. Dr. Stefan Eisebitt, Spokesman of the Executive Board and Director of the Max Born Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Short Pulse Spectroscopy, is very pleased with the choice of the new Managing Director. “With Martin Böhnke, we not only have a very competent and level-headed leader at the head of our administration, but also someone who knows the structures, opportunities, and challenges of the Forschungsverbund from an inside perspective. On behalf of the entire Executive Board, I can say that we are really looking forward to working together with him!”

The Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V. comprises seven Leibniz Institutes in the natural sciences, engineering, life sciences, and environmental sciences, as well as a joint administration. The association combines excellent research with efficient science management. Martin Böhnke succeeds Dr. Nicole Münnich as Managing Director, who took over the position in December 2021, succeeding Dr. Manuela Urban and Dr. Falk Fabich.