Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings
The Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings are annual scientific conferences held in Lindau, Bavaria, Germany, since 1951. Their aim is to bring together Nobel laureates and young scientists to foster scientific exchange between different generations, cultures and disciplines. The meetings assume a unique position amongst international scientific conferences, as from 30 to 65 Nobel laureates attending each edition they are the largest regular congregation of Nobel laureates in the world, apart from the Nobel Prize award ceremony in Stockholm.
Purpose
Every Lindau Meeting consists of a multitude of scientific sessions like lectures and panel discussions as well as a variety of networking and social events. The meetings are not centered on the presentation of research results, but instead, their main goals are the exchange of ideas and the discussion of topics globally relevant to all scientists. The Nobel laureates do not receive any kind of payment for their participation and are free to choose the topics of their presentations. Approximately 375 are members of the meetings’ Founders Assembly.Billed by the organising Council for the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings as their ‘Mission Education’, the aim of the meetings is to facilitate the transfer of knowledge between Nobel laureates and young scientists but also among the international scientific community and the general public. The opportunity for participants to form international networks of scientists – e.g. through the Lindau Alumni Network – is also regarded as a prime objective by the organisers. The meetings' leitmotif is ''‘Educate. Inspire. Connect.’''
History
After World War II, Germany was disconnected from the international scientific community due to the ramifications of the Nazi regime. During this time, hardly any scientific conferences of high value took place in Germany.Initial idea and establishment (1951)
The two physicians Franz Karl Hein and Gustav Wilhelm Parade from Lindau, a small town located on the Bavarian shore of Lake Constance, conceived the idea of organising a scientific meeting to bring together German researchers and physicians with Nobel laureates. They convinced Count Lennart Bernadotte af Wisborg, a member of the Swedish royal family and proprietor of nearby Mainau Island, to call upon his good connections to Sweden's Nobel Committee and Nobel institutions to support the undertaking. The first meeting, subsequently held in 1951, was dedicated to the fields of medicine and physiology and was attended by seven Nobel laureates, among them Adolf Butenandt, Henrik Dam and Hans von Euler-Chelpin. After the success of the initial meeting, the scientific scope was broadened to include the other two natural science Nobel Prize disciplines chemistry and physics. Thus, a mode of annually alternating disciplines for the meetings was established.1954–2000
In 1954, the Council for the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings was founded and henceforth established as the organising committee of the meetings. Count Lennart was appointed as first president of the Council. Also in 1954, the concept of inviting students and young scientists to the meetings was introduced. This step was seen as a measure to add additional value for society to the meetings. Among the young scientists participating that year were also students from Eastern Germany.While originally conceived by Hein and Parade as a European meeting of scientists, the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings slowly but steadily became more international. In the beginnings, only students from Lake Constance's bordering countries Germany, Switzerland, and Austria attended but year after year new nations began to send representatives. Since 2000, each Lindau Meeting is attended by young scientists from between 80 and 90 or even up 100 countries.
In 1987, Count Bernadotte resigned from his position as president of the Council for reasons of age and his wife, Countess Sonja Bernadotte af Wisborg, took over.
2000–2008
Shortly before the turn of the millennium, the future of the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings was again endangered due to financial uncertainties. In order to counter this negative development, Countess Sonja Bernadotte expanded the Council and added experts from charitable foundations and public affairs as well as representatives of Stockholm's Nobel Foundation to the committee.Two main goals of Countess Sonja Bernadotte's aegis were the further internationalisation of the meetings and to improve its public images, both domestically and internationally.
On the occasion of the 50th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting in the year 2000, the establishment of the Foundation Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings was officially announced. Its main goal since then has been to secure the funding of the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings. Upon its creation, 50 Nobel Laureates joined the Founders Assembly of the foundation and support the continuance of the conference both ideationally and financially.
The 50th Lindau Meeting in 2000 was also the first interdisciplinary meeting that united Nobel laureates and students from all three natural science disciplines of the Nobel Prize.
2008–2019
When Countess Sonja Bernadotte died in October 2008, her daughter, Countess Bettina Bernadotte, was elected President of the Council. She continued her mother's course and worked steadily to expand the international network of scientific partner institutions, complementing this with a strong commitment to education and an increase in the social value of the conferences.Since 2020
For the first time in its nearly 75-year history, the conference planned for 2020 had to be postponed to the following year due to the worldwide Corona pandemic. Instead, Nobel laureates, Lindau alumni, and young scientists came together online and exchanged ideas virtually at the Online Science Days 2020 and the Lindau Online Scienceathon 2020.In the summer of 2022, the conferences on chemistry and economics were held in a hybrid format, with appropriate measures in place for on-site participants in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Lindau Alumni network has been systematically expanded over the past years through numerous offerings, which were primarily conducted online.
Meetings
Ever since their inception, the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings have taken place in the small Bavarian town of Lindau on the shores of Lake Constance. The city's center is located on an island in the lake that is connected to the mainland via bridges.Meeting cycle
The meetings focus alternately on physiology and medicine, physics, and chemistry – the three natural science Nobel Prize disciplines. Since 2000, an interdisciplinary meeting revolving around all three natural sciences is held every five years. In addition, since 2004 the Lindau Meeting on Economic Sciences is held every three years with recipients of the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel.Scientific programme
The following session types are currently part of the scientific programme of the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings:- Lectures: Traditional presentations held by the Nobel laureates who are free to choose their topics.
- Agora Talks: The Agora Talks feature one or two Nobel laureates and a moderator, discussing a topic of the laureate’s choosing. Participants are given the opportunity to ask questions in an open forum setting. This format is especially suitable for controversial and new topics.
- Open Exchanges: Nobel laureates engage in intimate discussion sessions with the young scientists and answer their questions.
- Next Gen Science Sessions: In a review process, selected young scientists provide insights into their research in brief presentations.
- Panel Discussions: Several Nobel laureates and other meeting participants gather for a panel discussion and debate current issues in science. The audience has the opportunity to direct questions to the panelists.
- Science Breakfasts: Early-morning, panel discussions hosted by partner institutions and supporters of the meetings.