This profile line represents a synthesis of the University of Wuppertal's long-standing strengths in fundamental research across the natural sciences and mathematics. It is distinguished by its research foci in experimental and theoretical particle physics, scientific computing, and representation theory. A significant research interest pertains to the elementary building blocks of matter and the forces acting between them. The corresponding experimental work is realized in various forms, ranging from participation in large-scale international experiments at particle accelerators to astrophysical observatories. Research in the field of mathematical methods, with particular emphasis on the realization of symmetries in nature, opens up the possibility of theoretical analysis and the search for laws. In addition to theory and experiment, the University of Wuppertal employs numerical simulation and high-performance computing to acquire knowledge. These activities are characterized by their interdisciplinary nature and structural interconnection with the international community.

The second profile line relates to education, knowledge and culture as decisive social categories. Recognising that all thought, action and decision-making is contextual, various disciplines investigate the shaping of educational processes and the relationship between education, knowledge and culture in the past and present.

The prerequisites and possibilities of education are also analysed in detail, whereby both formal, institutionally bound forms as well as everyday life and cultural practices are taken into consideration. A transdisciplinary approach is particularly promising for dealing with the questions arising here. Accordingly, the contributions available at the University of Wuppertal from the humanities and cultural studies, humanities, social sciences, economics and education as well as design and art offer outstanding potential for joint research projects. This transdisciplinarity makes it possible to combine different methodological approaches, which is essential for the complex subject of "education, knowledge and culture in social contexts" and, not least, is one of the foundations of excellent teacher training.

Prevention and exercise, the basic elements of maintaining health and the associated performance and work ability of employees, are becoming increasingly important as a social factor. Health has long since ceased to be the sole domain of medicine and is now regarded as a complex phenomenon both in research and in companies in the healthcare industry. There are numerous disciplines at the University of Wuppertal that deal with the topics of health, health management and public health from various perspectives. These include contributions from health psychology, pedagogical concepts of health education in kindergartens and schools, approaches from sports pedagogy, sports medicine and sociology, exercise science, occupational and organisational psychology, safety engineering, health economics and special legal sciences. The aim of the profile line is to bring together such contributions in interdisciplinary research projects. Overall, research and application-related concepts for strengthening health literacy are to be further developed at an individual level, at the level of organisations and at a regional or societal level, not least in order to be able to effectively meet future challenges in our society (e.g. demographic change).

Narration and storytelling are not specific to literature, but are at the same time an omnipresent mode of conceptualising, structuring, interpreting and communicating real or imagined experiences, knowledge, ideas and intentions in the world we live in. One focus of humanities and cultural studies research at the University of Wuppertal takes particular account of this general significance of the cultural form of action "narration". Both the structural and contextual aspects of narrative are analysed in the research fields of "historical development of literary narrative", "non-literary linguistic narrative" and "intermedial aspects of narrative". In this context, other focal points of research in the humanities and cultural studies that cut across the individual subjects include the practice and theory of editing texts, language acquisition, language structure and interdisciplinary cultural and communication research.

This profile line combines interdisciplinary research on the topics of environmental systems and economic, ecological and social sustainability. Input is provided by the natural sciences and engineering disciplines as well as parts of the social sciences and economics, also in co-operation with the "Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy" (WI). The entire chain of knowledge production is served, from basic research to the development of application-orientated
products and high-tech processes or efficient systems in cooperation with industry. Research into environmental systems, engineering, the circular economy and safety strategies aims to improve the understanding of complex interrelationships in ecological, economic and technical systems and to promote technological innovation. On the application side, the focus is on the question of how the future needs of consumers and producers, as well as the challenges of environmental protection and globalisation, can be met in the face of changing environmental conditions and the availability of resources. The development of energy-optimised architecture and ensuring sustainable mobility and the effective exchange of goods are also relevant in this context.

This profile line focuses on interdisciplinary research into the relationship between entrepreneurship, start-ups and innovation on the one hand and economic and social development on the other. This initially involves the economic, legal and political, but also the ecological, social, psychological, historical and ethical foundations and framework conditions of entrepreneurship and innovation. Furthermore, the interactions between the micro-political decisions of the individual actors and the macro-political decisions of the federal levels, including their implications for the development of economic and social systems, are at the centre of the analysis. In addition to the contributions of economics (programmatically organised in the "Schumpeter School of Business and Economics") and the humanities and social sciences, the engineering sciences, architecture and design also play an important role in understanding the technical and creative aspects of innovation processes, as do mathematics and computer science in particular for the methodological instruments.

The TEC2ZERO field of activity works on the design of future technologies that increase energy efficiency, rethink mobility solutions and focus on the responsible use of critical raw materials - including the assessment of possible toxicological and ecological effects.

This approach combines economics, management and education: from sustainable product design and efficient implementation strategies to lifelong learning and clear communication that successfully supports change processes.

In the area of material flow, the focus is on comprehensive life cycle analyses, the use of waste as a resource, urban mining and the recovery of secondary raw materials. Through intelligent supply chain management, we create transparent, circular value chains.

Together, we aim to develop solutions that combine ecological responsibility, economic efficiency and technological innovation.

With the NextGen field of activity, the University of Wuppertal bundles its diverse activities relating to future-oriented learning and positions itself as a designer of innovative forms of teaching, learning and knowledge transfer - from kindergarten and school to university and professional practice.

NextGen makes existing competences and projects of the BUW visible, connects stakeholders from different research disciplines and opens up spaces for creative ideas and joint developments. We explore the question of what "Next Generation Learning, Teaching, Knowledge Transfer" can look like across disciplines. The focus is on the vision of actively shaping innovative teaching, learning and knowledge transfer and providing impetus for sustainable, networked, digital and diversity-sensitive learning - in order to rethink education in a future-oriented way.

The central aim of this field is not only to analyse social change, but to actively help shape it: It is about how societies - locally and globally - can be moved towards sustainability, taking into account ecological, social, economic, technical and cultural dimensions. In the coming years, it will also be a matter of making societies more resilient - to the climate crisis, scarcity of resources, digitalisation, demographic change.
Universities have a key role to play: not only as providers of knowledge, but also as agents of transformation. Participatory formats, e.g. co-design with citizens, living labs and art interventions are becoming increasingly important. Against this backdrop, this field of activity opens up innovative approaches to key questions about the future:

• How do we want to live?
• What ideas of socio-ecologically sustainable prosperity do we have?
• What kind of society do we want to be?
• And: How do we get there?

With Artificial Intelligence for Empowering the Future (AI4EF), the University of Wuppertal is bundling its diverse activities relating to artificial intelligence and positioning itself as a shaper of a human-centred digital future. AI4EF makes existing expertise visible, connects stakeholders from research, teaching, administration and transfer and creates spaces for new ideas and joint developments.

The focus is on the vision of a responsible and sustainable use of AI - as a tool that empowers people, improves processes and creates added value for society. The mission: to provide impetus, strengthen structures and promote interdisciplinary collaboration. AI4EF pursues clear goals and a long-term strategy to not only research AI at BUW, but to actively help shape it.