Obituary

The International Department of KIT gGmbH takes a grateful farewell in memory of Prof. Horst Hippler, who passed away on March 6, 2024, at the age of 77.

Horst Hippler played a key role in the merger of the former University of Karlsruhe and the Karlsruhe Research Center to form the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).
As founding president of KIT from 2009 to 2012, he drove the merger process forward and expanded KIT's cooperation in research, teaching and innovation, which contributed to the institution's international visibility. He also championed Franco-German cooperation.

He then served as President of the German Rectors' Conference from 2012 to 2018 and advocated for solid funding for universities and the interests of technical universities. Hippler was Professor of Chemistry at the University of Karlsruhe and a member of the German Academy of Science and Engineering acatech. He has received numerous awards, including the Polanyi Medal of the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Order of Merit of the State of Baden-Württemberg.

We will always keep Professor Hippler in honorable memory as a person and personality, and our thoughts and deepest sympathies go out to his family and all relatives. May he rest in peace.