Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg honours 30 outstanding female scientists with an exhibition

Visionäre Forscherinnen Ausstellung_3zu2

Hochschule Bonn-Rhein-Sieg (H-BRS) turned 30 this year. To mark the end of its anniversary year, it is holding a public exhibition to honour 30 exceptional female scientists who have been very successful over the past 300 years, but who have often remained unknown in comparison to their male colleagues. The exhibition entitled "Visionary female researchers - 300 years of science from a female perspective" will open on Wednesday, 26 November at 4 p.m. at the Sankt Augustin Campus. It can then first be seen at the Rheinbach Campus before returning to Sankt Augustin.

The exhibition at a glance

"With this exhibition, we are honouring the achievements of women in science and making visible how much their contribution enriches our society. It is about recognition and encouragement for all those who want to go their own way in research and teaching," says University President Marion Halfmann.

Women portrayed as role models

Originally, the exhibition was to be shown to mark the 25th anniversary of the university, but it could not take place due to the coronavirus pandemic. Now the project is being implemented after all, initiated and curated by Sabine Baumgartner and Fidegnon Witte from the Centre for Science and Technology Transfer (ZWT). "The women portrayed were and are not only pioneers in their respective disciplines, but are also role models in their passionate and courageous commitment to social justice, emancipation, integration and sustainability beyond the boundaries of their disciplines in each individual case," says Fidegnon Witte. The exhibition was created in collaboration with the university's equal opportunity commissioner, Dr Barbara Hillen-Haas, and Josephine Kullat, Gender Consultant in the PeP@h-brs.de project.

Large-format photo collages with short biographies

The 30 women include greats such as Nobel Prize winner Marie Curie, General Motors CEO Mary Barra and the recently deceased behavioural scientist Jane Goodall. Less well known, however, is the Danish geodesist and seismologist Inge Lehmann, who discovered the existence of the earth's solid inner core, which revolutionised our understanding of the earth's structure. Also represented is nuclear physicist Lise Meitner, who worked closely throughout her life with chemist Otto Hahn, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1944 for proving nuclear fission. She herself was nominated for the Nobel Prize 48 times, but always came away empty-handed.

The exhibition consists of large-format photo collages, accompanied by short biographies, and will open on Wednesday, 26 November 2025, 4 to 6.30 pm, at the library in Sankt Augustin. The philosopher Amrei Bahr from the University of Stuttgart will be a guest. The professor is co-founder of the #I am Hannah initiative, which campaigns for fair working conditions in science. A panel discussion with Toni Loh (Professor of Applied Ethics, in particular Ethics and Transformation, at H-BRS) and Gabriele Alonso Rodriguez (Central Equal Opportunities Commissioner at the University of Bonn) will shed light on the situation of women in academia today, address structural hurdles and discuss possible solutions. The event will be moderated by Dr Barbara Hillen-Haas, Central Equal Opportunities Commissioner at H-BRS. After the opening event, the exhibition can be viewed in the foyer of the main building until Friday, 28 November inclusive.

From Monday, 1 December 2025, to Wednesday, 21 January 2026, the exhibition will initially be on display for several weeks in the library on the Rheinbach Campus. To kick things off, the authors Felicitas von Aretin and Vera Weidenbach will be "guests on the sofa" on Monday, 1 December at 7.30 pm and will talk about their latest books to coincide with the exhibition. The reading is entitled: "Ingenious, visionary, invisible: Ada Lovelace, Edith Peritz and other women who changed the world". Tickets are available by phone on 02241/865-680 or by email at bibliothek@h-brs.de.

From 9 February 2026 to 31 March 2026, there will be another opportunity to see the exhibition in Sankt Augustin (in the library). Admission is free of charge. The exhibition will be accompanied by an extensive selection of literature on the topic at both locations.

In realising the exhibition to mark the end of its anniversary year, the university worked with regional partners who helped to fund the project as sponsors for the individual researchers. The sponsors are Spectral Service, EATON/Hein Möller-Stiftung, Stadtwerke Bonn, Carl Knauber Holding, Conet, Kreissparkasse Köln, Reinold-Hagen-Stiftung, Miltenyi biotec, IHK, Solidaris, CPA ReDev, HiSolutions and C. Gerhardt.