Senate
The Leopoldina’s Senate represents the interests of the Academy’s members before the Presidium and advises the Presidium. It currently has 40 members, 28 of whom are elected spokespersons, each representing one of the sections of the Academy. In addition, there are two elected members who represent the Academy’s members in Austria and Switzerland, respectively. Members of the Senate are elected for a term of four years and can be re-elected once.
Last edited: 29. April 2026
The Senate generally convenes once a year. During these meetings, the Senate, in accordance with the statutes, elects members of the Presidium and honorary members, checks the Presidium’s annual reports and approves its actions, appoints auditors and decides on the expulsion of members. In addition, the Senate approves regulations governing the election of Academy members, spokespersons and regional representatives, members of the Senate and their deputies, and members of the Presidium, as well as structural regulations for the sections and adjunct territories.
Senators
| No. | Section | Elected senators (academy members) | Deputy senators |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mathematics | Prof Dr Friedrich Götze, Bielefeld | Prof Dr Annette Huber-Klawitter, Freiburg |
| 2 | Informatics | Prof. Dr Gerhard Fettweis, Dresden | Prof. Dr Klaus-Robert Müller, Berlin |
| 3 | Physics | Prof Dr Eberhard Bodenschatz, Göttingen | Prof Dr Elisabeth Giacobino, Paris (France) |
| 4 | Chemistry | Prof Dr Peter R. Schreiner, Giessen | Prof Dr Stefanie Dehnen, Karlsruhe |
| 5 | Earth Sciences | Prof. Dr Manfred R. Strecker, Potsdam | Prof Dr Ulrich Platt, Heidelberg |
| 6 | Agricultural and Nutritional sciences | Prof Dr Bertram Brenig, Göttingen | Prof Dr Andreas Graner, Gatersleben |
| 7 | Global Health | Prof Dr Lothar H. Wieler, Potsdam | Prof Dr Rudolf Guthoff, Rostock |
| 8 | Organismic and Evolutionary Biology | Prof Dr Hermann Wagner, Aachen | Prof. Dr Susanne Renner, Saint Louis (USA) |
| 9 | Genetics/Molecular Biology and Cell Biology | Prof. Dr Regine Kahmann, Marburg | Prof Dr Helle Ulrich, Mainz |
| 10 | Biochemistry and Biophysics | Prof Dr Johannes Buchner, Munich | Prof Dr Irmgard Sinning, Heidelberg |
| 11 | Anatomy and Anthropology | Prof Dr Wolfgang Kummer, Giessen | Prof Dr Thomas Deller, Frankfurt |
| 12 | Pathology and Forensic Medicine | Prof Dr Hans H. Kreipe, Hanover | Prof Dr Heidi Pfeiffer, Münster |
| 13 | Microbiology and Immunology | Prof Dr Axel Brakhage, Jena | Prof Dr Christian Kurts, Bonn |
| 14 | Human Genetics and Molecular Medicine | Prof. Dr André Reis, Erlangen | Prof Dr Peter Lichter, Heidelberg |
| 15 | Physiology and Pharmacology/Toxicology | Prof Dr Stefan Offermanns, Bad Nauheim | Prof Dr Ingrid Fleming, Frankfurt |
| 16 | Internal Medicine and Dermatology | Prof Dr Norbert Suttorp, Berlin | Prof Dr Jan C. Simon, Leipzig |
| 17 | Surgery, Orthopaedics and Anaesthesiology | Prof. Dr Jens Scholz, Kiel | Prof Dr Brigitte Vollmar, Rostock |
| 18 | Gynaecology and Paediatrics | Prof. Dr Matthias Beckmann, Erlangen | Prof Dr Charlotte Niemeyer, Freiburg |
| 19 | Neurosciences | Prof Dr Ulf Eysel, Bochum | Prof Dr Katharina Domschke, Freiburg |
| 20 | Ophthalmology, Oto-Rhino-Laryngology and Stomatology | Prof Dr Ursula Schlötzer-Schrehardt, Erlangen | Prof Dr Werner Geurtsen, Hanover |
| 21 | Radiology | Prof Dr Anca-Ligia Grosu, Freiburg | Prof Dr Maximilian Reiser, Munich |
| 22 | Veterinary Medicine | Prof Dr Thomas C. Mettenleiter, Riems Island | Prof Dr Heidrun Potschka, Munich |
| 23 | History of Science and Medicine | Prof Dr Christina Brandt, Jena | Prof Dr Heiner Fangerau, Düsseldorf |
| 24 | Philosophy of Science | Prof Dr Julian Reiss, Linz | Prof Dr Urban Wiesing, Tübingen |
| 25 | Economics and Empirical Social Sciences | Prof Dr Klaus F. Zimmermann, Bonn | Prof Dr Alexia Fürnkranz-Prskawetz, Vienna |
| 26 | Psychology and Cognitive Sciences | Prof Dr Brigitte Röder, Hamburg | Prof. Dr Alexandra M. Freund, Zurich |
| 27 | Engineering Sciences | Prof Dr Dierk Raabe, Düsseldorf | Prof. Dr Marion Merklein, Erlangen |
| 28 | Cultural Sciences | Prof. Dr Michael Lackner, Erlangen | Prof. Dr Magnus Striet, Freiburg |
Senators of the adjunct territories Austria and Switzerland
- Austria: Prof Dr Rainer Blatt, Innsbruck
- Switzerland: Prof Dr Detlef Günther, Zurich
Honorary Senator
The appointment of Honorary Senator honours outstanding personalities who have promoted the Academy to a special degree.
- Prof Dr Andreas Barner, Ingelheim
Honorary Members of the Senate
Besides the senators elected by the sections and districts, the statutes allow for the Senate to include up to ten additional members, who do not necessarily have to be members of the Academy. Five of these ten additional members are elected ad personam; they are generally selected from the ranks of those holding senior positions in research organisations or other scientific institutions. The other five additional members are elected ex officio; these are the presidents of five major German scientific and academic organisations: the German Research Foundation, the Max Planck Society, the German Rectors’ Conference (HRK), the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, and the Union of the German Academies of Sciences and Humanities.
- Prof Dr Stefan Asenkerschbaumer, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Robert Bosch GmbH, Stuttgart
- Prof Dr Helge Braun, President of the University of Lübeck
- Carsten Knop, journalist, editor of the FAZ with responsibility for "Digital", Frankfurt
- Prof Dr Maria Leptin, President of the European Research Council
- Dr Georg Schütte, Secretary General of the Volkswagen Foundation, Hanover
Ex officio senators: Presidents of research organisations or research funding institutions
- German Research Foundation, Prof Dr Katja Becker, Bonn
- Max Planck Society, Prof Dr Patrick Cramer, Munich
- Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Prof. Dr Robert Schlögl, Berlin
- German Rectors' Conference, Prof Dr Walter Rosenthal, Berlin
- Union of the German Academies of Sciences and Humanities, Prof Dr Christoph Markschies, Berlin
Kontakt Dr. Jörg Beineke
