The second and final funding period of the International Research Training Group ‘Zwischen Räumen – Entre Espacios’ (‘Between Spaces’) ends in around a year’s time, and the initiative has already produced some impressive results. The project, funded since 2009 by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and its Mexican partner organisation CONACYT, was the focus of a symposium held at the Colegio de México (COLMEX) in the Mexican capital.

During the symposium, the speakers summed up the group’s activities over the past eight years. Special emphasis was given to the good career opportunities and openings available to the trained doctoral researchers. “It is clear to see that the group has produced some highly qualified and internationally competitive early career researchers,” said Dr. Julia Tagüeña, head of the department of scientific development at CONACYT.

An equally important and positive outcome of the first International Research Training Group with a Latin American country is the intensification and expansion of scientific collaboration between Germany and Mexico. “‘Between Spaces’ has given rise to a relationship in the social sciences which is essential to the future of both countries,” said Dr. Arturo Borja, head of the department of international cooperation at CONACYT. As recognition of the support shown for the bilateral cooperation, CONACYT presented Dr. Stefan Rinke, a professor at the Free University of Berlin (FU Berlin) and coordinator of the group on the German side, with the Premio de Investigación José Antonio Alzate.

The International Research Training Group is based at the Colegio de México (COLMEX) and FU Berlin and is led by 20 established researchers in the humanities and social sciences, representing the fields of history, anthropology, politics, literature, economics and culture. […]

Prof. Dr. Marianne Braig, the representative of FU Berlin at the event, indicated that by the end of the project in 2018, ‘Between Spaces’ would have produced 63 German and 59 Mexican doctorates in a nine-year period. […]

Please read the complete article of the DFG here.

Source: DFG Office Latin America