In the presence of Brandenburg’s Prime Minister Matthias Platzeck the inauguration of the Brandenburgische Institut für Gesellschaft und Sicherheit (BIGS) was celebrated in Potsdam on 1 July. The institute will conduct research on economic and sociological topics around public security, and communicate the results obtained to an interested public in the context of, e. g., information events. The aim is to develop on a scientific basis innovative strategies for handling the kind of threats which free democratic societies increasingly face. The non-profit institute pursues a multi- and interdisciplinary approach in the form of a target-oriented dialogue with politicians, authorities, enterprises, and science & media representatives. Objectives of the BIGS are the analysis of “security” and ensuring that the necessary edge over relevant knowledge is being developed in order to sustainably strengthen the national security architecture and thus - in the long run - freedom and security in Germany.
The BIGS was founded with the participation of the University Potsdam and its Transfer GmbH as well as by the companies EADS, IABG and Rolls-Royce Germany. The independent and non-party Institute is promoted by the Land Brandenburg.
The president of the University Potsdam, Professor Dr. Dr. Sabine Kunst, emphasized that high transparency of the research work is essential for the BIGS to receive general acceptance. The motivation and support of the federal state government was reflected very clearly in the speech of the Prime Minister Matthias Platzeck, who sees the BIGS as an enrichment for the science location Potsdam. Platzeck underlined the necessity for “security research in the sense of an open and pluralistic society “and referred to the causal links between “security, freedom and justice”.
The location of Potsdam, in the capital region Berlin-Brandenburg, ensures a close link of the key topic of security with the Federal Government. This was underlined by the Secretary of State in the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Mr. Klaus-Dieter Fritsche, who - in his keynote speech - referred to technically and organizationally comprehensive mechanisms in the prevention of and defence against sensitive events.
In the course of the panel discussion on the necessity of social research and political consulting, Professor Dr. Rudolf Schwarz pointed out the chances and risks of modern technologies as well as their effects on public security. He stated that human behaviour (human factors) always had to be considered as a measured variable and risk factor in technically dominated projects and organizations. In this context he referred to IABG’s great expertise within the security research sector.
For IABG as one of the founding partners of the BIGS, the institute represents an important pillar for the development of public security solutions. Based on our large experience in the military field, we now additionally focus on the increasing markets of consulting, solutions and systems on the public security sector. Here we consider the capital region to be of particular strategic importance and therefore plan to develop our presence there.
