Up close and personal with the world’s leading scientists
07/21/2026600 selected early-career researchers from 87 countries took part in the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting – five of them were from Würzburg.
Every year, Nobel laureates meet with early-career researchers at a conference in Lindau on Lake Constance. The event, which lasts several days, is not solely about academic exchange. The focus is on getting to know one another in a relaxed setting: in doing so, the young researchers can learn a great deal from those who have received the highest scientific honour, which will benefit them in their own careers.
The 75th Nobel Laureates’ Meeting was characterised by interdisciplinarity: unlike previous subject-specific meetings, the 2026 programme was open to scientists from the fields of physics, chemistry and medicine. Five young researchers from Würzburg took part: one physicist, two chemists and two PhD students in medicine. They had gone through a multi-stage international selection process to secure their places.
The Würzburg researchers talk about their experiences, their discussions and what they have taken away for the future.
Discussions with the world’s leading scientists
When asked whether he would recommend other early-career researchers to attend the conference, Carsten Büchner replies: “Absolutely! It was definitely one of the most formative and impressive weeks of my life.”
The physicist is working on his PhD on ultrasound diagnostics of lithium-ion batteries at the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research and at the Graduate School of Life Sciences at Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg (JMU). One of the highlights for him was: A dinner with Professor Klaus von Klitzing, a JMU alumnus who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1985 for his discovery of the quantum Hall effect. “Even more exciting was the cultural exchange. After all, people from all over the world came together,” says Büchner.
Dr Hermann Neitz, a research assistant at the JMU Chair of Organic Chemistry I, particularly remembers his conversation with Professor Morten Meldal (2022 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry). “We discussed the details of solid-phase synthesis of biological macromolecules, an automated process for producing, for example, DNA, RNA or peptides.” The conversation reinforced the young researcher’s view “that research is driven by passion, and that this is independent of winning a Nobel Prize.”
Also representing Chemistry at the University of Würzburg in Lindau was Philipp Kessler, a PhD student in the field of ultrafast nano-optics at the Chair of Physical Chemistry I. He sees the greatest benefit of the conference as being the opportunity to exchange ideas in small groups through open-topic dialogue sessions. The chemist engaged in personal conversations over meals – such as at the Swedish or Bavarian evenings. His highlight was lunch with Professor Barry Sharpless, a two-time Nobel Laureate in Chemistry (2001, 2022).
Würzburg University Hospital: Two PhD students in Lindau
The University Hospital of Würzburg was also represented at Lake Constance. Two PhD students took part in the prestigious conference: Johanna Siegel, a postdoctoral researcher in the Immunocardiology Laboratory at the German Centre for Heart Failure, and Seungbin Han, who is pursuing his PhD in the Translational Genomics research group.
The cardio-immunologist appreciated how approachable the event was: “It felt less like listening to famous researchers, and more like talking to mentors who genuinely care about us and the next generation of scientists.”
For Siegel, the conversation with the 1996 Nobel Laureate in Physiology or Medicine, Professor Rolf Zinkernagel, left a lasting impression. During a lunch overlooking Lake Constance, his critical perspective on adaptive immune mechanisms helped her to further question her own findings.
From her conversations with the world’s leading scientists, Seungbin Han discerned a common theme: “Anyone who no longer finds joy in their work should look for something that truly inspires them.” For science without genuine interest is not a sustainable foundation. The physician regards interdisciplinary dialogue as particularly valuable. “I have realised how closely all scientific fields are interconnected.” Each discipline develops at its own pace, but the findings eventually converge and, together, have a greater impact.
About the 2026 Nobel Laureates’ Meeting
The 75th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting took place from 28 June to 3 July 2026. Students, PhD candidates and postdocs from all over the world were invited. Academies of sciences, universities, foundations and research-based companies from around the globe took part.
To mark the anniversary year, 600 early-career researchers from 87 countries flocked to Lake Constance, along with 70 Nobel Laureates – a record number. German political figures also accepted the invitation to Lindau: Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Federal Minister for Research Dorothee Bär and Bavaria’s Minister for Science Markus Blume welcomed the international researchers. Former Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel chaired a panel discussion on academic freedom.
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