Development of the Large-Scale Research Center Enters the Next Phase
Progress at the Center for the Transformation of Chemistry (CTC) continues to gain momentum. Following the establishment of CTC gGmbH at the end of last year and its transition to independence, the CTC management team has now also been appointed. With a dual leadership structure – scientific and administrative – the development of the emerging major research center in the Central German Chemical Triangle is moving forward strategically.
Chemist Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Peter Seeberger has now assumed scientific leadership. From the very beginning, Peter Seeberger has overseen and guided the start-up phase of the research center, whose idea and concept largely originated with him. During the first three years, from 2023 to 2025, this work took place under the umbrella of the Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces.
At the CTC, he is now primarily driving the further development of the scientific direction: “After laying the foundation for the overall orientation of the CTC and building up the administrative structures at the outset, we are now already working on our own research projects and have established initial scientific priorities. Over the course of this year, we will continue to expand the scientific team and hire three additional group leaders.” In January, the researchers moved into facilities at the CityLab Leipzig, where additional laboratory space will be set up by the fall to begin hands-on chemical research on site.
Christian Harringa has taken over the administrative leadership of CTC gGmbH. A trained lawyer, he previously spent more than eight years heading administration at the German Electron Synchrotron DESY in Hamburg. After serving on the DESY Directorate, he was primarily responsible for international scientific collaborations and the Science City Hamburg Bahrenfeld initiative. Prior to that, Christian Harringa held various specialist and leadership positions for the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg and worked as a national expert for the European Commission in Brussels.
“I am very much looking forward to the new responsibilities here at the CTC and to building connections within the Central German region. We have major plans for the coming years – especially with regard to the construction developments at the Delitzsch and Merseburg sites.” At the site of the former sugar factory in Delitzsch, construction of the first office and laboratory building will begin this year. In Merseburg, preparations for contruction planning on the university campus are progressing as well.
