“Research must remain independent”

Through the UniBE Foundation, the University of Bern is committed to cutting-edge research. Around two years after its founding, Managing Director Claudia Lehnherr Mosimann takes stock.

Interview: Isabelle Aeschlimann, Photography: Adrian Moser

Read the original uniAKTUELL article here. (in German)

Right at the start, the UniBE Foundation achieved a major coup: the establishment of the Robert K. Schenk Endowed Professorship in Histology, worth CHF 10 million. Since then, things have been quieter around the foundation. What have you been working on?

Claudia Lehnherr Mosimann: We were delighted that the UniBE Foundation was able to make such a contribution in its first year of operation. Since then, we have pushed ahead with building up the foundation, developed a mission statement together with the Board of Trustees and given the foundation a public face with a website.

The Foundation aims to raise funds for “pioneering research into a sustainable future”. How do you go about this, and what influence do donors have?

On the one hand, we approach potential supporters with specific project proposals. These are usually strategic projects of the University or projects that cannot be financed, or not fully, through regular research funding. On the other hand, donors sometimes contact us with specific concerns or interests. Sustainability is a big topic today – be it the energy sector, the circular economy or climatology – and many people want to make a difference there with their resources. We then look at the possible forms this could take. These can be bequests, Endowed Professorships, new or existing projects or even a foundation of their own. For example, we have just found a new funding partner for a two-year doctoral project in the biomedical field. Promoting young researchers is one of the foundation’s funding priorities.

The credibility of science is the University’s most valuable asset. How is independence ensured?

I have never experienced donors interfering in research. Research is open-ended. It is not about following a predetermined path, but about gaining insights and developing a better basis for knowledge. It is clear that freedom of research and teaching comes first – this is always set out in the contract. In addition, the role of the foundation is clearly defined by new fundraising guidelines.

Research must remain independent – at the same time, the University faces tough competition, for example for funding, staff or suitable premises. How can the Foundation help here?

If a university wants to be at the forefront, it simply needs the appropriate resources. These are likely to come from the public purse in ever smaller proportions. So additional funding through other channels is needed. Founding the UniBE Foundation was a deliberate strategic decision by the University’s Executive Board. We are guided by the University’s Strategy 2030 and are currently focusing on research in its strategic priority areas. The Foundation cannot solve challenges such as the shortage of space on its own – that would be a drop in the ocean. Instead, it can channel suitable funding to where it really makes a difference – for the University and thus also for society and for Bern as a centre of science, which benefit from research.

If you compare it with universities in other regions of the world and the funds available to them, then yes. But I don’t like the expression “tough competition”. I see it more as all universities having the goal of making a contribution, and every university being exceptional in some way. So you seek support where it makes sense. Money isn’t everything; what matters much more is using it wisely. Besides, university foundations are now commonplace: the ETH Foundation has existed for 20 years, and UZH has had a foundation for 10 years. They have proven to be well-established vehicles.

You studied Italian and English at the University of Bern and worked as an upper secondary school teacher for 20 years before moving into fundraising. Why did you take this step?

I was a passionate grammar school teacher and found it very meaningful, but I wanted to see more of the world and get to know other realities of life. Meaningful work has always been important to me, though, and fundraising offered great opportunities. As a major donor manager at a large children’s charity, I travelled a lot. Later I became Head of Fundraising at a Swedish foundation that makes visionary knowledge accessible to a wider public worldwide. This allowed me to have many wonderful encounters. For example, it is incredibly moving to look back on someone’s life with them and consider what they would like to pass on.

What was it like to return to the University of Bern as Managing Director of the UniBE Foundation?

I immediately felt transported back to my student days, when, as a young student, I climbed the steps of the University of Bern’s main building for the first time – very proud, but with a pounding heart. I grew up in Bern. We often played on the lawn of the Grosse Schanze, but we would never have dared to enter the awe-inspiring building. I am delighted to now represent my alma mater.

Where would you like to set priorities as Managing Director? What do you hope for?

On my project trips, I saw a lot of poverty, inadequate medical care and social injustice, but also environmental problems. Some of these have become even more pressing since then. These complex problems must be tackled comprehensively. Excellent and independent research makes an extremely important contribution here. At the University of Bern, I experience such research and a great deal of support from across the whole University. You can’t take on such a task alone, which makes me all the more grateful and motivated.