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Anniversairies
and basic research. This was followed
by the key appointments of Helmut
Kettenmann, Walter Birchmeier, Udo
Heinemann and many others. The new
beginning engendered a tremendous
sense of anticipation about the future,
which was shared by everyone at the
MDC. This soon resulted in scientific
achievements, and as a consequence,
ever more positions were funded by
external grants.
Opening ceremony of
the MDC in 1992
The actual opening ceremony was
originally scheduled to take place in
the spring. Due to the death of Willy
Brandt, however, the ceremony was
postponed until December 7, 1992, and
was attended by the Federal President
of Germany, Richard von Weizsäcker,
Science Minister Heinz Riesenhuber,
Senator Manfred Erhardt and President
of the Leopoldina Professor Benno
Parthier. Behind the cafeteria was a
large open space. Barrack buildings
were still on campus at that time,
used for storing coal. Coal dust usually
covered everything in sight, but extra
for the ceremony, the area was cleaned.
Then President Weisäcker arrived in his
helicopter, and the whirling helicopter
blades distributed the dust all over the
place again. — President von Weizsäcker
was interested in everything, and
spent the entire morning exploring the
campus and talking with many of the
staff members.
The three pillars of
Campus Buch
The development of the research
center was accompanied by first spinoffs
from the MDC. Dr. Gudrun Erzgräber
began establishing the campus
management. On June 8, 1995 the MDC
subsequently founded a biotechnology
park, which is now the BBB Management
GmbH Campus Berlin-Buch.
Thus, the campus had three “pillars”:
Science in the MDC and the FMP, their
application in the hospitals of the
Charité and their commercialization
in the economy, the companies of the
BiotechPark Berlin-Buch. The cooperation
between these three areas created
Participants of the European Symposium at the MDC, September 1994
jobs and promoted the development of
a major research institution that had
a new style. The open Campus Berlin-
Buch became a magnet for scientists,
clinicians, companies from near and
far, but also for the citizens of Berlin
and Buch. The art and sculpture park,
public events, the Life Science Learning
Lab, the sports facilities and Café Max
strengthened the identification of the
local Buch community with the campus.
The development of Buch itself was
spurred by the success of the campus,
as can be seen with the new shopping
center, the artists’ courtyard, the new
Helios hospital and the development of
other clinic sites, etc.
The recipe for
success
Detlev Ganten likes people and
enjoys his work, which is readily apparent
when one meets him. “You have to
have a vision,” he said, quoting Karl
Popper, his favorite philosopher. Popper
writes that “optimism is a moral duty”
not because everything is somehow OK
“in the best of all worlds” as Voltaire’s
Candide says. For Ganten, the best
recipe for success is to have a longterm
perspective, a common objective
and honest dialogue. The same maxim
applies to science as well as to the
establishment of scientific structures:
no one knows the outcome beforehand.
And even if at the beginning no one
knows the “right way”, what is important
is a constant willingness to engage
in dialogue, to modify one’s ideas,
and eventually even to give up old
hypotheses – for Ganten these are the
prerequisites for success. Perhaps the
beginning was so successful because it
was built on a solid philosophy based
on dialogue and on the conviction
Ganten communicated that all goals
could be achieved by working together.
And everyone did work hard! The meetings
that continued into the early hours
of morning are legendary. Ganten was
accessible to all employees, who could
call and arrange a time to speak with
him. At the beginning the MDC had only
350 positions. But a way was found to
fund people temporarily through the
University Development Program (HEP)
and through external grants, so that
they could continue their research. Now
the MDC has a staff of more than 1000,
and more than 2.000 people work on
campus. In the early days, soon after
reunification, the MDC proved to be
truly democratic. The orientation was
clear: for the MDC to be one of the best
research centers, committed to the
well-being of its staff members, who
were to pursue their research in a safe
environment on an open campus with
which they could identify.
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