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Following a visit to Amazon Week in Berlin, organized by the Brazilian Consulate, Responsible Research Support hosted a "Coffee Talk". Together with Brazilian scientist Dr. Matheus L. Silva, who works with indigenous communities in the Amazon region at the Brazilian National Institute for Amazonian Research, they emphasized that legal frameworks must be people-centered, robust, and flexible enough to address the complex demands of biodiversity research.

Brazil’s rich cultural tradition, deeply rooted in indigenous knowledge, can serve as a model for global standards. Within the framework of the Nagoya Protocol, Responsible Research Support invites researchers at TU Braunschweig to engage in an interdisciplinary dialogue that connects law, science, and the interests of communities.

On May 28, 2025, the kick-off event of the Commission on Ethics in Security-Related Research (KEF) took place in the Architecture Pavilion at Technische Universität Braunschweig. Invited were researchers from the TU BS who are addressing pressing questions regarding freedom, security, and responsibility in research in times of radical social upheaval. Following a welcome address by Prof. Dr.-Ing. Peter Hecker, Vice President for Research and Chair of the KEF, Dr. Johannes Fritsch (Head of the Secretariat of the Joint Committee on Security-Related Research, Leopoldina) the ethical challenges, while Prof. Dr. Melanie Brinkmann from the Institute of Genetics described her experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Following this, Prof. Stefan Heuser from the Institute for Protestant Theology and Religious Education moderated a panel discussion that addressed the tension between academic freedom, government regulation, and the necessity of security considerations.

The open discussion, held over light refreshments, allowed participants to discuss current risks, existing guidelines, and best-practice strategies. The event concluded with a summary and outlook from Prof. Hecker, who announced further initiatives to ensure interdisciplinary dialogue in the long term.