Enabling international visibility
Ten years of the Eberhard Robke Fund for the promotion of young talent at the Schumpeter School
Conferences, stays abroad, high-quality research data: for the past ten years, entrepreneur Eberhard Robke has been using his fund to support early-career researchers at the Schumpeter School in their international research activities. // Photo: Peter Gwiazda
The fund supports the international activities of PhD students, postdoctoral researchers and junior lecturers. This financial support gives them the opportunity to present their research findings at international conferences and to establish contacts with researchers worldwide. In the last three years alone, there have been more than 50 successful applications.
Since its establishment ten years ago, 330,000 euros have been channelled into the fund. During the annual meeting between the faculty management, the members of the selection committee and the donor himself, it was agreed to continue the fund unchanged. “This means that, in the coming academic year too, the findings of early-career researchers in economics will be shared with the world thanks to the support of Eberhard Robke,” emphasises Dean Nils Crasselt.
Access to high-quality research data
During the COVID-19 pandemic, international activities came to a near standstill. In consultation with Eberhard Robke, the funding was used during this period to access the Wharton Research Data Service (WRDS): this licence-based platform provides access to various economic databases. This funding also benefited early-career researchers in particular. The high-quality research data available in the WRDS database formed the basis for several doctoral and post-doctoral research projects.
About the sponsor
Eberhard Robke is the managing partner of a medium-sized company based in Wuppertal, which will celebrate its 150th anniversary in 2026. In 2005, he founded the Renate and Eberhard Robke Foundation, which acquires contemporary art for the Von der Heydt Museum in Wuppertal. Together with his wife, Waltraud Robke-van Gerfsheim, he donated the large sculpture ‘Horizons’, which stands in front of the Johannes Rau Centre, to the university in 2022. He is a recipient of the City of Wuppertal’s Ring of Honour.
Eberhard Robke (centre) with Dean Prof. Dr Nils Crasselt (second from left), Vice-Dean Prof. Dr Falko Jüßen (second from the right) and the other members of the selection committee, Prof. Dr Michael Fallgatter (right) and Prof. Dr André Betzer (left). // Photo: Schumpeter School
