During a ceremony held at the University of Passau to mark "400 Years of Academic Tradition in Passau", Science and Art Minister Markus Blume presented Dr. Hannah Schmid-Petri, Professor for Science Communication, with the PRO MERITIS SCIENTIAE ET LITTERARUM award of the Bavarian State Ministry of Science and the Arts.

Figuratively speaking, you could definitely call Professor Hannah Schmid-Petri a futurologist and peace researcher: With her research about science communication, political communication and the analysis of social networks she builds strong bridges between science and society – also across the fault lines that threaten our future cohesion.

Bavaria's Science Minister Markus Blume

Science and Art Minister Markus Blume: "Figuratively speaking, you could definitely call Professor Hannah Schmid-Petri a futurologist and peace researcher: With her research about science communication, political communication and the analysis of social networks she builds strong bridges between science and society – also across the fault lines that threaten our future cohesion. After all, it was the pandemic that made us realise how this point of connection can turn into a point of disruption. That's why we need successful science communication. I am delighted that an expert like Professor Hannah Schmid-Petri – who was a highly influential and deeply respected expert even as a young researcher – is doing research at a Bavarian university!"

Professor Hannah Schmid-Petri has held the Chair of Science Communication at the University of Passau since 2017 and is an active contributor with a thoroughly professional demeanour in all fields of her discipline: In research, teaching and practice but also in the advisory support she provides politicians, Professor Schmid-Petri is particularly committed to forward-looking topics like bioeconomy, climate change, energy transition or digital transformation.

Schmid-Petri's voice can be heard at many levels in Bavaria, including in the Bavarian Bioeconomy Expert Council,the board of directors of the Bavarian Research Institute for Digital Transformation (bidt) or as head of the science communication research group in the Fraunhofer Cluster of Excellence Integrated Energy Systems. Professor Schmid-Petri also belongs to a research group of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities and, as a member of the #Factory-WissKomm think tank of the Federal Research Ministry, she works at the federal level to advance science communication.

Taking a resolutely interdisciplinary approach, Professor Schmid-Petri actively participates in panels and conferences, as an expert and moderator. She is also a member of various networks, including the advisory board of "wissenschaftskommunikation.de", a platform of ground-breaking importance in German-speaking regions.

The PRO MERITIS SCIENTIAE ET LITTERARUM award

The Bavarian State Ministry of Science and the Arts has been awarding the distinction PRO MERITIS SCIENTIAE ET LITTERARUM to individuals of outstanding merit for their achievements in the service of science and the arts since 2000; in the form of a bronze relief plaque since 2008. The purpose of this award is not only to honour these individuals but also to recognise culture as an integral whole: science and the arts should be perceived as two sides of the same coin. Typically, up to eight awards are presented every year.

Source: Press release of the Bavarian Science Ministry dated 16 May 2022