Statement by HRK President Walter Rosenthal on the attack by masked anti-Israel activists on employees in the Präsidium Building of Freie Universität Berlin: “Several university employees were injured this afternoon during the violent storming and temporary occupation of the Präsidium Building of Freie Universität Berlin. I condemn this outrageous incident in the strongest possible terms. The bodily injuries and the significant vandalism must be punished under criminal law. Such actions represent a brutal attack on academic freedom – fortunately, this was not successful. I assure the affected employees and the President of Freie Universität Berlin, Günter Ziegler, of my full solidarity. I wish the injured a speedy recovery.“

The Federal Government Commissioner for Jewish Life and the Fight against Antisemitism, Dr Felix Klein, and HRK President Walter Rosenthal have jointly invited the university officers against Antisemitism to a first networking meeting. Following the Hamas attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, the German universities that are members of the HRK were very clear in their condemnation of the atrocities committed by this terrorist organisation and in their support for Israeli science. In the course of the subsequent Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip, however, there were also anti-Israeli and clearly antisemitic incidents at several universities.

Strategies and ways to shape the further internationalisation of German universities in a changing world in a legally secure and sustainable manner were the focus of the virtual HRK ADVANCE autumn conference "Governance & Processes of Internationalisation at Universities: Sustainable strategies – diverse impulses". Active multilingualism, cross-border mobility, including that of teaching staff, joint virtual teaching formats, a more active orientation of appointment processes towards international career paths and more forward-looking risk management for institutional cooperation in degree programmes or doctorates each have the potential to significantly advance international university cooperation in the coming years.

Joint declaration by the Executive Board of the Saxony State Rectors' Conference, the Thuringia State Rectors' Conference and the German Rectors' Conference: The federal states of Thuringia and Saxony have elected new parliaments. In the coming weeks, the elected members of parliament will come to an agreement on the formation of a government. It is important for science and universities that university autonomy and academic freedom are preserved. Only in this way, science can realise its full potential for the economy and society.

Sustainable development is increasingly taking centre stage in the strategic orientation of universities. They are setting up sustainability competence centres, appointing sustainability officers and committing to sustainability in their mission statements. In this context, the HRK now launches the pilot phase for the Sustainability at Universities audit. The new advisory service is intended to systematically support universities in the further development of their sustainability strategies, goals and activities.

For 15 years, the Audit "Internationalisation of Universities" offered by the German Rectors' Conference (HRK) has been supporting German universities in developing and enhancing their specific international profile. In this anniversary year, Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), the University of Hildesheim, the University of Education Freiburg and Hochschule der Medien Stuttgart are to start the HRK Audit. The voluntary audit process combines elements of self-reflection with expert external consulting and is tailored precisely to the profile of the individual university.