Viola Priesemann: Göttingen scientist receives prestigious prize!

Viola Priesemann: Göttingen scientist receives prestigious prize!

On June 4, 2025, Prof. Dr. Viola Priesemann from the University of Göttingen was awarded the prestigious Madame de Staël Prize. This honor took place at the annual general meeting of the European Association of Academies of Sciences, ALLEA. The award was announced in December 2024. Priesemann is being recognized for her outstanding scientific achievements in physics as well as for her leadership qualities and commitment to European cooperation during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Paweł Rowiński, President of ALLEA, highlighted that Priesemann's work embodies the prize's core values: promoting science as a global good, facilitating scientific collaboration and strengthening the influence of science in society. Priesemann is not only a professor of physics, but also a group leader at the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization in Göttingen, where she works on living and artificial neural networks.

Commitment to science communication

Priesemann is also actively involved in the Young Academy, particularly in science communication. She was instrumental in the publication of a guide to science communication, which was published in fall 2024. Her extensive research covers topics such as self-organization, learning, and efficient coding, which have far-reaching implications for social networks and the dissemination of information.

The Madame de Staël Prize is awarded annually to outstanding individuals who make significant contributions to Europe's shared values ​​and European integration. The aim of the prize is to promote the understanding of Europe as multifaceted, intellectual and open. At a time when Europe's cultural diversity often seems to be threatened by skepticism and extremism, the importance of such awards is particularly great.

Impact on the European scientific community

The award ceremony to Priesemann underlines the importance of outstanding scientific achievements for the European project. She is the eleventh winner since the Madame de Staël Prize was introduced in 2014. Previous laureates include prominent figures such as Prof. Fabiola Gianotti and Koen Lenaerts. ALLEA, which represents over 50 academies from across Europe, promotes science as a global public good and facilitates international collaboration in science.

She has demonstrated Priesemann's commitment to science and her ability to coordinate an interdisciplinary team during the Covid-19 pandemic. She was instrumental in developing strategies to mitigate the pandemic, which resulted in several publications, including an “Action plan for pan-European defense against new SARS-CoV-2 variants”. The selection committee emphasized the importance of its work in promoting pan-European cooperation and the relevance of interdisciplinary research in crisis management.

Overall, the Madame de Staël Prize reflects the deeply rooted and valued values ​​of tolerance, mutual respect and compassion in European culture, which are also of great importance in the current, challenging times. The awarding of the prize to Priesemann is not only a recognition of her personal achievements, but also a tribute to the collaboration and innovative strength that characterize the European scientific community.