The Academy for Islam in Research and Society (AIWG) at the Goethe University in Frankfurt conducts interdisciplinary research and transfer activities with a focus on Islamic-theological studies and Muslim life in Germany. It connects all faculties for Islamic theological studies or Islamic religious pedagogy located in a University in Germany. The academy addresses issues of social participation by including perspectives related to religion.
The AIWG has three objectives:
Enable Research: The AIWG contributes to the establishment of Islamic-theological studies in German academia. To this end, it enables collaborative and interdisciplinary research among different university institutions, and participates in international discourses.
Facilitate exchange and transfer of knowledge/expertise: The AIWG enables exchange between researchers, civil society actors, and government officials. The idea is to develop solutions by including multiple perspectives on societal issues.
Encourage objective and profound debate: The AIWG is devoted to informing public debate by making little-known expertise visible and accessible.
The structure of the AIWG:
The AIWG’s administrative office is located at the Goethe-University of Frankfurt. Its decision board comprises all faculties of Islamic theological studies operating in German Universities. The board also includes members from other academic disciplines as well as experts from Muslim civil society.
The academy’s council comprises its sponsors, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the Stiftung Mercator, as well as the President of the Goethe-University Frankfurt and the directors of the AIWG.
The primary sponsors of the AIWG are the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the Stiftung Mercator. The BMBF will support the academy’s research formats with EUR 6.4 million. In the previous period, between 2017 and 2022, the BMBF already supported the work of the AIWG with EUR 8.5 million. The Stiftung Mercator will provide up to EUR 2.8 million until 2023 for the academy’s activities concerning transfer. The foreign office previously supported the academy’s international programme by providing a total of EUR 296.278 for various pursuits.