Minister for Science Petra Olschowski Visits ZEW
Dates and NewsSetting the Course for Closer Collaboration in Economic Research and Knowledge Transfer
Minister Petra Olschowski, responsible for universities, research, and arts institutions in the state of Baden-Württemberg, visited ZEW Mannheim for the first time on Friday, 17 May 2024. Her visit aims to expand and deepen the collaboration between ZEW and the Ministry of Science, Research and Arts (MWK).
The meeting took place between Minister Petra Olschowski, ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach, and ZEW’s Managing Director Claudia von Schuttenbach. Olschowski was accompanied by Dr. Susanne Aschhoff and Dr. Albrecht Schütte, both members of the Baden-Württemberg state parliament.
The objective of the meeting was to strengthen the longstanding and very good relationship between MWK and ZEW. “ZEW Mannheim plays an outstanding role in international economic research. Its researchers make meaningful contributions to societal debates on the challenges of our time. An excellent example is the Research Group ‘Health Care Markets and Health Policy’: In times of major challenges in the health care sector, ZEW researchers strengthen the link between theory and practice. Their findings are relevant for the health care sector in Baden-Württemberg and beyond.”
The agenda included the further cooperation between ZEW and the University of Mannheim, as well as measures to strengthen Baden-Württemberg as a centre of scientific research.
About Petra Olschowski
Petra Olschowski has been the Minister of Science, Research and Arts (MWK) for the State of Baden-Württemberg since September 2022. Before taking office as Minister, she served as State Secretary at the MWK for six years and managed a university and two art institutions. Olschowski was born in Stuttgart in 1965. After completing her Abitur (secondary degree), she initially decided to do an apprenticeship as a retail salesperson in the art trade. In 1986, she completed her studies in art history and German language and literature at the University of Stuttgart, graduating with a Magister Artium. While still a student, she worked as a freelance journalist, a freelance editor and the Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn, among other things. In 1996 she began working as an editor at the Stuttgarter Zeitung. From 2010 to 2016, she served as the first female rector of the State Academy of Fine Arts in Stuttgart, and from 2014 onwards as chairwoman of the Württembergischer Kunstverein (Württemberg Art Association). Petra Olschowski is also a member of the German Green Party.
