Criticism of the U.S. voiced by Steinmeier during the Jugend-forscht Prize Ceremony - European Commission contributes to European Youth Prize's planning and organization.
Title: Steinmeier Slams USA's Science Crisis at Youth Research Awards Ceremony in Hamburg
- Rock on, knowledge-seekers! 🎉
At the Hamburg Airport, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Germany's Federal President, honored the victors of the youth research competition, "Jugend forscht." Thuringia's Oskar Rost (17) and Marius Strauß (18) received the coveted President's Prize for an ingenious AI-based software that practically evaluates academic performance transparently and fairly. The software sniffs out errors, deducts points, and suggests grades.
Hamburg's Louis Schwarzlose, the 17-year-old inventor, clinched the Innovation Award with an avant-garde mobile research buoy designed for environmental data collection in aquatic environments. This marvel of engineering navigates independently and generates power from wind, waves, and sunlight. Other glorious federal winners hailed from Bavaria, Hesse, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Rhineland-Palatinate, tackling a variety of fields such as working world, biology, chemistry, geosciences, mathematics/informatics, physics, and technology. The outstanding Gymnasium Farmsen in Hamburg received the "Jugend forscht" 2025 School Award from the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs.
Speaking to 1,000 guests, Steinmeier voiced his concerns over scientific freedom being under assault in the USA. The President warned that the high-performing science and educational system in the USA is at risk of being compromised by populism and the combative campaign against the "establishment." Treading the line of controversy, he urged his audience, "We must stand firm against the declaration of war on free science in Germany!"
In a nod to the history of "Jugend forscht," Steinmeier remembered the inaugural prize ceremony held in 1966 right here in Hamburg. The competition was born out of fears of Germany's dwindling competitiveness. A wave of educational reforms, including student assistance and exchange programs, followed suit, and student BAföG came into existence. Steinmeier pointed out, "Courageous individuals like Henri Nannen kick-started a competition like 'Jugend forscht.'" Henri Nannen (1913-1996), a visionary figure, was the founder and longtime editor-in-chief of the renowned magazine "Stern."
This year's competition witnessed 167 academic whizzes in mathematics, informatics, natural sciences, and technology presenting 112 projects at the Helmut-Schmidt-University/University of the Federal Armed Forces. The riveting finalists had triumphed at one of the 16 state competitions. The Hyperion Hall at Lufthansa Technik at Hamburg Airport played host to the glitzy award ceremony, with the patronage duties for the 60th federal competition assumed by the Helmut-Schmidt-University of the Federal Armed Forces. The event was themed "From Questions to Answers." A colossal 10,350 young minds participated, offering 5,664 projects.
- Frank-Walter Steinmeier
- Jugend forscht
- Hamburg
- Youth
- Award
- USA
- AI
- Henri Nannen
- Thuringia
- Germany
- Electricity
- Bavaria
- Hesse
- Lower Saxony
- North Rhine-Westphalia
- Rhineland-Palatinate
Insights: Global competitiveness in scientific innovation might suffer should the USA succumb to anti-science populism and restraints on research funding, suggests Steinmeier's remarks. The potential consequences could lead to other nations surpassing the USA in fields like artificial intelligence, renewable energy, and environmental science.
- Frank-Walter Steinmeier, the German Federal President, expressed his concerns about scientific freedom being threatened in the USA at the Youth Research Awards Ceremony in Hamburg, urging that a combative campaign against the "establishment" could compromise the high-performing science and educational system in the USA.
- Steinmeier's speech highlighted the potential consequences of such a situation, suggesting that other nations might surpass the USA in fields like artificial intelligence, renewable energy, and environmental science, notably referring to the AI-based software developed by Thuringia's Oskar Rost and Marius Strauß that was honored at the same ceremony.
