Dr. Britta Horstmann visits FIZ Karlsruhe – strategic exchange on research infrastructure and Open Access

Karlsruhe, May 26, 2025 - On 22 May 2025, Dr. Britta Horstmann, Head of the Science Division for Research Museums at the Leibniz Association Head Office in Berlin, visited FIZ Karlsruhe - Leibniz Institute for Information Infrastructure. The visit focused on the role of modern scientific infrastructures and their targeted funding by the federal and state governments.

One focus of the exchange was zbMATH Open, the world's largest open access service for mathematical publications. The platform has been funded by the Leibniz Association since 2021 - an instrument that specifically supports projects with particular scientific potential.

zbMATH Open is considered a success story of the Open Access movement: internationally visible, highly relevant to science and permanently accessible free of charge. During the discussion, it became clear how effective special statuses can be - for example, when it comes to designing innovative information services that are sustainable and user-friendly.

The three pillars of a Leibniz Institute - research, infrastructure and transfer - were also on the agenda. The visit provided an opportunity to present FIZ Karlsruhe as a broad-based, interdisciplinary institution that builds bridges between science, technology and society.