New AWI-DKB Training Award:

Three projects conducted by apprentices working at institutions for polar, marine and climate research were distinguished with the AWI-DKB Training Award in October. The award is donated by the AWI and the DKB and is endowed with a total of 5,000 Euro.

This newly established award for young employees at research institutions is granted to vocational training graduates and is to create an incentive for young people working in the technical and administrative fields. In contrast to the scientific field of occupation, the non-scientific field hitherto offers only very few promotional programmes. The sponsorship association of the Alfred Wegener Institute now closed this gap together with the Deutsche Kreditbank (DKB - German Credit Bank). The five members of the jury included in addition to Prof. Dr Karin Lochte (AWI) and Tilo Hacke (DKB) also Dr Niko von Bosse (Maritime Cluster Northern Germany), Christoph Sochart (Managing Director Stiftung Pro Ausbildung - Foundation Pro Vocational Training) and Claus Brüggemann (President of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce Bremerhaven). They unanimously decided to give the first prize endowed with 2,500 Euro to Lene Sophie Meiners.

During her training as a chemical laboratory assistant at the University of Oldenburg's Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment (ICBM), Lene Sophie Meiners had analysed sediment probes from a core sample from the South-West African continental fringe. Owing to her support the investigations had progressed at an unexpected rapid pace over the course of the past half year, in particular also because of the extraordinarily high quality of Meiner's laboratory work. The awardee thus fulfills an important award criterion of the tender: The degree to which the respective scientific institution profits from the trainee's performance. This profit can be, for instance, by way of saving on time or money, by way of contributions towards innovation or by way of positive representation of the institution to the public.

back