Research

At the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces in the Potsdam Science Park, Dr. Aleksandr Savateev conducts research in Innovative Heterogeneous Photocatalysis. The field is inspired by the natural photosynthesis of plants – and may help us to conserve many scarce natural resources. Dr. Aleksandr Savateev appreciates small things. Microscopic things, even. Big, flashy…

For many decades, micro-plastics remained a scarcely researched issue. But awareness is growing, as is the realization that we, too, ingest plastic particles through food and water. Hardly anyone can estimate the consequences. PD Dr. Harald Seitz from Fraunhofer IZI-BB and Dr. Susanne Baldermann from the IGZ dare to take a closer look. They research…

Coatings protect materials from negative environmental influences. They prevent metals from rusting and wood from swelling. However, over 90 percent of coatings today are still based on synthetic petroleum products. That has negative consequences for the environment. Therefore, Dr. Christina Gabriel-Liebs has long been researching the possibilities of producing coatings from a sustainable raw material:…

Climate change is influencing global political, environmental and private decisions like no other issue. However, at universities, it often remains only a peripheral topic on specialised degree courses. Its wider implications are hardly investigated. The Climate, Earth, Water, Sustainability (CLEWS) degree at the University of Potsdam will change that. Starting in autumn 2021, students of…

For over 20 years, snow and permafrost algae have been the specialty of Dr. Thomas Leya of the Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology’s branch of Bioanalytics & Bioprocesses (IZI-BB) in the Potsdam Science Park. They contain many enzymes, antioxidants and nutrients that are used for food supplements and cosmetics. But their potential is…

The Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology (MPI-MP), located in Potsdam Science Park, is regarded as one of the world’s most prestigious research institutions. In February 2021 Prof. Dr. Claudia Köhler joined its senior management. As director of the department of reproductive biology and epigenetics, she has established an entirely new field of research…