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Anniversary
of September 20, 1990, all Academy
institutes of the former GDR had to be
dissolved and restructured by December
31, 1991. Already in September 1991
Ganten went to Berlin-Buch as the first
founding director in the former East
Germany. He was accompanied by his
wife, Ursula Ganten, MD, who brought
her own third-party grant with her from
Heidelberg to continue her research in
Buch.
From science to
management
On the morning of September 5,
1991, Detlev Ganten signed his contract
in the Federal Science Ministry in
Bonn. On the afternoon of the same
day, he gave a speech as new founding
director to about 2.000 people, who
had gathered in the campus cafeteria.
The Acting Director Professor Günter
Pasternack, who since 1984 had been
director of the Central Institute of
Molecular Biology of the Academy of
Sciences of the GDR, continued until
December 31, 1991 as director in the
director’s office in what is now the
Max Delbrück Building. Ganten moved
into the single-story side wing. The
formal transfer took place on December
20, 1991. Once again, the employees
gathered in the cafeteria to hear what
the future would hold. Both directors
gave a speech. In Ganten’s recollection
it was a difficult but dignified transition.
As of January 1, 1992 the MDC
was officially established, for which
only 350 positions were planned.
The helicopter with the German President
arrives at the campus.
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