German Research and Innovation Tour (GRIT)—Stanford University

On Thursday, August 20th, American Friends of AvH was honored to participate in a day of scholarly dialogue with Professor Robert Schlögl, President of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (AvH), during his visit to the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.

The visit was inspired by the success of the German Research & Innovation Tours (GRIT), a collaborative initiative of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and Germany’s leading research funding organizations that has strengthened German-American research relationships through visits to universities across the United States. Building on this successful model of scholarly exchange, we, together with the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, were pleased to convene a focused day of conversations at the Hoover Institution with Stanford faculty, Hoover Fellows, Humboldt program alumni, and invited guests.

President Schlögl was especially interested in engaging directly with US researchers and university leaders to better understand the current landscape of American higher education and research. Throughout the day, he and the German delegation participated in a series of conversations on topics including research security, emerging technologies, democracy and artificial intelligence, sustainability, and the evolving role of universities in addressing global challenges. Above all, the visit reflected the Foundation’s enduring commitment to strengthening transatlantic ties through research, science diplomacy, and meaningful people-to-people connections.

We are grateful to our Board Secretary Sumit Ganguly and to his colleague Russell Berman for making this event possible.