Brain City Ambassador: Prof. Dr. Carsten Dreher

22.07.2024
Prof. Dr. Carsten Dreher, Freie Universität Berlin

Brain City Berlin

Science, technology and innovation policy is a research focus of Brain City Ambassador Prof. Dr. Carsten Dreher. As Professor of Innovation Management at the Department of Economics at Freie Universität Berlin, he wants to help make technological progress accessible to everyone.

What does a professor of innovation management actually do? “I am particularly concerned with the requirements for research and innovation systems and with the design of a sustainable science, technology and innovation policy (STI policy). What is important in this context is how this can be meaningfully coordinated with other policy areas,” explains Prof. Dr. Carsten Dreher. “I am fascinated by the question of whether and how we can shape technical progress. So that the opportunities benefit not just individuals, but all of us.”

Since 2009, the Brain City Ambassador has headed the Chair of Innovation Management at the Department of Economics at the FU Berlin. He is particularly interested in how knowledge can be generated in order to use innovation funding instruments for companies in a targeted manner – and which structures and processes support the success of complex transformation processes. “In a project funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), we are currently investigating new innovation policy instruments in Germany and Europe: For example, we consider them against the backdrop of current technological dynamics or challenges such as climate change or pandemics. This new practice presents politicians with new coordination tasks, as there is still no conceptual foundation. This applies in particular to the dovetailing of innovation policy with social goals and effects. The project attempts to close this research gap.”

In another research project funded by the Federal Ministry for Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK), Carsten Dreher is analysing political processes for an agile innovation policy that can contribute to solving social problems (mission-oriented). This research could have a specific impact, as Carsten Dreher emphasises: “From the perspective of innovation policy research, there is a great opportunity here: New findings on mission-oriented and transformative innovation policy could be incorporated into the new version of the BMWK’s 8th Energy Research Programme for Applied Energy Research and thus support the energy transition. At the same time, we can observe development and implementation processes in real time.”

Berlin is a vibrant city and a city of science. The cultural scene here is as unique as the music scene. This creates a very special creative space.

Carsten Dreher came to Brain City Berlin 15 years ago to advise and support the Executive Board in strategic research planning as Director of the Centre for Cluster Development at the FU Berlin. At the same time, he was appointed Professor of Innovation Management “I held the position of Director until 2012,” he says. “Before that, I worked as a professor for innovation research and innovation management at the University of Flensburg and Syddansk Universitet in Denmark, as a Department head at the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research and at the EU Commission in DG Research.” Outside Europe, Carsten Dreher, who originally studied industrial engineering at the University of Karlsruhe, where he also gained his doctorate, has conducted research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the Chinese Academy of Sciences and as a visiting professor in Santiago de Chile. Since 2020, the Brain City Ambassador has also been active in Brussels. “As a member of the Board of the European Innovation Council (EIC), I chair its working group on long-term strategy in the 10th Framework Programme for Research and Innovation.”

The scientific location of Berlin enables Carsten Dreher to coordinate quickly and effectively with competent project partners. These include the partners of the Berlin University Alliance – FU Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Technische Universität Berlin und Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, as well as various Fraunhofer and Leibniz Institutes. He appreciates the vibrant character of the city. “The cultural scene in Berlin is as unique as the music scene. This creates a very special creative space,” says Carsten Dreher. “The capital attracts scientists, artists and musicians like a magnet. You notice this immediately when you come into contact with people.”

Carsten Dreher recommends that young scientists who come to Berlin start working on their resilience early on. “This means being able to cope well with stressful life circumstances and deal with negative events. Resilience is not an innate characteristic, but a variable process that is related to different behaviours, personality traits and resources. In the science system, it is important to remain mentally and physically healthy despite serious stress or adverse challenges.” It is also important to find good mentors in the city and to build a strong network of like-minded people – in order to share experiences and challenges. Furthermore, one motto applies above all: “Focus, focus, focus. Berlin offers many interesting distractions from scientific work,” says the Brain City ambassador. “At the same time, the city offers great opportunities to position yourself professionally.” (vdo)