On March 31st, 2021 the Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht – Centre for Materials and Coastal Research GmbH has been renamed the Helmholtz-Zentrum hereon GmbH. With this new name and new logo, the research center is expressing its current mission and the organizational structure with its sites and field locations.
Over the last few decades, the Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht has evolved thematically and has successfully expanded its locations beyond the borders of Schleswig-Holstein. “The description ‘materials and coastal research’ in our old name no longer encompassed the entirety of our research fields,” says Prof. Matthias Rehahn, scientific director of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, expressing one reason for the research center’s name revision.
The re-naming was preceded by an important internal restructuring process oriented on the Helmholtz Association’s new funding period while at the same time following the recommendations of international scientific experts. “We must strengthen the development of interdisciplinary technologies and generate knowledge so that, despite a reduction in resource availability, rapid climate change and population growth, we can hand over a planet to our children that is viable for the future. To this end, we want to provide scientific advice to support policymakers in their decisions for creating a better environment. At the same time, innovations are needed to maintain or even improve our quality of life in the course of demographic change,” says Rehahn, summarizing the current aims and functions of the center. (Source: Press release hereon.de)