![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Saskia_Plura-740x1024.jpg)
Saskia Plura Saskia Plura at the 73rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting
Saskia Plura, junior member and former junior speaker of the Gutenberg Academy Fellows Program, took part in the 73rd Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting. In the interview, she talks about what inspired her to pursue a scientific career, how she got to where she is now in her appointment, her educational background and much more. You can find the interview at: https://www.lindau-nobel.org/blog-women-in-research-lino24-saskia-plura/.
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Headshot_Trzeciak_Emily-1-1018x1024.jpg)
Emily Trzeciak completes doctorate
Emily Trzeciak, former junior member of the Gutenberg Academy Fellows Program, submitted her doctoral dissertation entitled “Immunomodulation in wound healing and oncogenesis” and defended it on 26.11.2024 – the overall evaluation was “summa cum laude”. Her doctoral dissertation will soon be available at http://doi.org/10.25358/openscience-10981. We congratulate her warmly!
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/12/Schneiders-Abschluss-1024x768.jpg)
Pascal Schneiders completes doctorate
Pascal Schneiders, former junior member of the Gutenberg Academy Fellows Program, submitted his doctoral dissertation entitled “The platformization of the news ecosystem. Indicators, interdependencies and implications at the micro, meso and macro levels” and defended it on 26.11.2024 – the thesis was evaluated as “summa cum laude”. We congratulate him warmly!
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/11/Speyer-Johanna_Bild-2.jpg)
Johanna Speyer completes doctorate
Johanna Speyer, former junior member of the Gutenberg Academy Fellows Program, has published her doctoral dissertation entitled “A Theory of Backlash. How and Why States Practice Backlash Against Liberal Norms and Institutions” [Faculty 02, Institute of Political Science; first supervisor Prof. Arne Niemann (JGU Mainz), second supervisor Prof. Nicole Deitelhoff (PRIF & GU Frankfurt), third reviewer Prof Kai Arzheimer (JGU Mainz)] and defended it on 28.10.2024 – the thesis was evaluated with “summa cum laude”. We congratulate her warmly!
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Foto_Julia-Brechtel-scaled-e1720529323739-1024x1003.jpeg)
We welcome our new junior spokeswoman
Since October 22, 2024, Ms. Julia Brechtel is the new junior speaker of the Gutenberg Academy Fellows Program, alongside Ms. Carolin Jesussek. She takes over the duties of Ms. Saskia Plura, who previously served as junior spokesperson for the GAFP and fulfilled this office with great responsibility and commitment. We would like to thank her very much!
Junior members return from study trip |
---|
This year’s study trip, which took place from October 3-6, 2024, took fourteen junior members to Milan. The travel program was actively designed by all members in order to benefit as much as possible from the cultural offerings of the city and to enable exchange with other (junior) scientists on site. The full report on the 2024 study trip can be read here. |
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Hundertmark-Foto-200x300.png)
Junior member honored with young talent award
Marica Hundertmark, junior member of the Gutenberg Academy Fellows Program, has received the Young Scientist Award of the German Society for Traffic Medicine (DGVM) for the sub-project of her doctorate Differentiating the intake of medicinal cannabis flowers and recreational use (Faculty 09: Institute of Forensic Medicine, Department of Forensic Toxicology, supervisor: Prof. Dr. rer. Nat. Irene Krämer). This was the sixth time that the 10,000 euro prize has been awarded in Freiburg. The call for proposals is aimed at young researchers from a field substituted by the DGVM, including traffic medicine, traffic toxicology, traffic psychology, traffic traumatology, traffic accident analysis and traffic safety. Following a call for proposals and applications, the award winners were selected by a jury from the DGVM board. The selection criteria are originality of the research approach, practical significance of the results for traffic medicine and the number and quality of previous publications. Marica Hundertmark will speak about her award-winning work at a symposium in 2025. We congratulate her warmly!
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Foto-Obaid.png)
Mustafa Obaid completes doctorate
Mustafa Obaid, junior member of the Gutenberg Academy Fellows Program, submitted his doctoral dissertation entitled “City and Identity in Modern Iraq: Baghdad’s Role in Identity and Nation Building” and defended it on 09.04.2024 – the work was evaluated overall with “summa cum laude”. We congratulate him warmly!
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Jennifer-Konrad_Bild_verkleinert-e1721149850654.jpg)
Jennifer Konrad completes doctorate
Jennifer Konrad, former junior member of the Gutenberg Academy Fellows Program, submitted her doctoral dissertation entitled “Architecture as visual disturbance: on the relationship between building form and perception in deconstructivism” and defended it on 18.07.2023 – the work was evaluated overall with “summa cum laude”. We congratulate her warmly!
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Tamara-Stajner_c-Andrej-Grilc_Tamara-Stajnerjpg-400x600-1.jpg)
Former junior member honored with Kelag prize
Tamara Štajner, former junior member of the GAFP, was very successful in the competition for this year’s Ingeborg Bachmann Prize in Klagenfurt (June 26 to 30, 2024) and received one of the other awards of the competition – the Kelag Prize – with her story “Luft nach unten”. The prize is donated by Kärntner-Elektrizitäts Aktiengesellschaft, which has been a sponsoring partner of the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize since 2002. The Ingeborg Bachmann Prize has been awarded annually since 1977 during the multi-day Days of German-Language Literature. With her abysmal narrative, subtle and sometimes musical allusions, in which formative impressions of the war in Yugoslavia are conveyed, the doctoral student at Mainz School of Music (Music Theory department, supervisor: Dr. phil. habil. Birger Petersen) impressed the audience and the jury, who awarded her the Kelag Prize, endowed with ten thousand euros. You can find more information about the prize here and about Tamara Štajner’s performance here. We congratulate her warmly!
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/0IMG_7635-1024x768.jpg)
Network meeting
Our GAFP network meeting took place on 21.06.2024, bringing together junior and senior members from different years. Despite the changeable weather, our members made their way to the largest monument in the city of Mainz, the Citadel, with our tour guide, the head of the old town, Brian Huck, and experienced Roman times, the Middle Ages and modern times above and below ground (casemates) on the compact site with a unique view of the city. Afterwards, a glass of wine, Spundekäs cheese, bread and pretzels provided the opportunity to meet and chat in the Michel wine house.
Former junior members receive awards |
---|
At this year’s DIES ACADEMICUS, two former junior members of the GAFP were honored for their outstanding achievements and contributions to science: Dr. Jasmin Reichert-Schlax received the prize of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz – Faculty 03 Law and Economics for her doctoral thesis entitled “Study success types in Economics and Social Sciences: An analysis of personal determinants of study success over the course of the Bachelor’s degree”. Dr. Franziska Reiffen received the prize of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz – Department 07 History and Cultural Studies for her doctoral thesis entitled “The social life of the mall: Working and dwelling in urban Argentina”. Further information on the prizewinners and their projects can be found here. Congratulations to our former junior members! |
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Tamara-Stajner_c-Andrej-Grilc_Tamara-Stajnerjpg-400x600-1.jpg)
Former junior member honored with poetry prize
Tamara Štajner, former junior member of the GAFP, took first place in the Merano 2024 Poetry Prize. With a poetic and musical performance, the violist and doctoral student at Mainz School of Music (Music Theory department, supervisor: Dr. phil. habil. Birger Petersen) impressed the audience and the jury, who awarded her the prize worth eight thousand euros. Out of 256 entries, 35 were shortlisted and nine finalists were invited. The Poetry Prize is a literary prize that is awarded every two years. In addition to the prize for first place, which is donated by the South Tyrolean provincial government, the Sparkasse Foundation Prize (4,000 euros) and the RAI Media Prize (2,500 euros) will also be awarded. You can find more information about the prize here and about Tamara Štajner’s performance here. We congratulate her on this great success!
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/0-Gruppenfoto-2024_nachbearbeitet-fuer-Webseite-1024x683.jpg)
New members admitted to the GAFP
The ceremonial admission of the new members took place on 22.04.2024. On the one hand, the junior members of the class of 2022 as well as Prof. Dr. Philipp Harms, Prof. Dr. Christian Dormann and Prof. Dr. Doris Prechel were bid farewell from the GAFP after 10 years of senior membership. We would like to thank them most sincerely for their many years of commitment, wish them all every success in their future careers and hope to continue meeting and exchanging ideas at upcoming events. We also welcomed the following twelve new junior members: Xenia Bolschakow (Psychology), Julia Brechtel (Pharmaceutical Sciences), Alina Geiger (Management), Inge Heinemann (German and Latin), Marica Hundertmark (Toxicology), Carolin Jesussek (English and German), Janika Kunzmann (African Studies), Deanna Pellerano (Musicology and Music Librarianship), Franziska Rauh (Comparative Literature and Jewish Studies), Matthias Schmitz (Chemistry), Eduard Visintini (History) and Isabell Zipperle (Media Management) as well as the three new senior members Univ.-Prof. Dr. Birgit Stark (Communication Studies), Univ.-Prof. Dr. Immanuel Ott (HfM) and Univ.-Prof. Elisabeth Scholl (HfM). We welcome the new junior members as well as the new senior members and look forward to an exciting exchange and intensive discussions at the upcoming events. Musical contributions by the duo Benedikt Fröhlich and Finn O’Donnell-Hönow from the Mainz School of Music framed the celebrations.
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Nachruf-Nagels-Foto-fuer-HP.jpg)
Obituary
We mourn the loss of our senior member Univ.-Prof. Dr. Arne Nagels, who passed away on April 09, 2024. As an excellent scientist, Mr. Nagels was admitted to the GAFP on 14.11.2018. In addition to his work in the Faculty of Philosophy and Philology, at the Department of English and Lingustics, he has since supported the selected, outstanding talents in science and arts of our program and was available to our junior members as a doctoral supervisor and contact person. We will always remember his warm personality and his passion for science.
![](https://gafp.uni-mainz.de/wp-content/uploads/sites/110/2024/07/Foto_Jesussek-703x1024.jpg)
We welcome our new junior spokeswoman
Since April 1, 2024, Ms. Carolin Jesussek has been the new junior speaker of the Gutenberg Academy Fellows Program, alongside Ms. Saskia Plura. She takes over from Ms. Veronika Phung, who was previously the junior spokeswoman for the GAFP and has fulfilled this role with great responsibility and commitment. We would like to thank her very much!