13.02.2026 / scienceCLASH, a podcast developed at the Gläsernes Labor, has won the MINT-EC School Award, which is sponsored by the Dr. Hans Riegel Foundation and comes with 7,000 euros in funding. A second season is already in the works – and researchers at the Max Delbrück Center are invited to participate.

The first season of scienceCLASH explored the microbiome. Three students from Berlin’s Käthe Kollwitz High School interviewed Dr. Sarah Kedziora and Dr. Theda Bartolomaeus from the Hypertension-Induced End-Organ Damage lab at the Experimental and Clinical Research Center, a joint institution of Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin and the Max Delbrück Center. Their questions focused on the tiny organisms that live in our gut.

At the Gläsernes Labor – the joint student lab of the Max Delbrück Center, the Leibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP), and Campus Berlin-Buch ­– Helene, Til, and Mijo carried out experiments and learned how gut bacteria can affect heart health. The result was the first three episodes of scienceCLASH, which are available on all major podcast platforms.

The project, initiated by Dr. Joanna Ziomkowska – a former scientist now teaching at Käthe Kollwitz High School – was a hit, and not only with listeners. “We’re thrilled that our idea for a second season was recognized as one of the top three entries in this year’s MINT-EC school competition hosted by the Dr. Hans Riegel Foundation,” says Ziomkowska. The Foundation is now providing €7,000 in funding for scienceCLASH. “That gives us the resources we need for the next season, which will focus on artificial intelligence and neurobiology,” she adds.

How is AI changing research and medicine? 

Once again, advanced biology students will play the role of young researchers – and interview real scientists. Their questions: How do humans learn? How do machines learn? How is AI changing the way we learn, and how does it affect the work of scientists and physicians? What are the risks and opportunities?

Ziomkowska has already secured commitments from researchers at Charité, Medical School Berlin, and Humboldt-Universität for the new season. “I’d be delighted if researchers from the Max Delbrück Center would join us again – either for this season or a future one,” she says. “Anyone interested is very welcome to get in touch.”

She plans to use the award not only for producing the next season, but also to build a website and to launch social media channels. The site will feature all participating researchers with a photo and a short introduction – Kedziora and Bartolomaeus will also be among them.

Text: Anke Brodmerkel

Source :Max Delbrück Center
scienceCLASH podcast funded for a second season