From Wool Research to Interactive Materials
At the beginning of the 1950s, the world’s first research institutions focused on the analysis of wool were established – but not in Germany. The German Wool Association therefore decided in 1951 to found the German Wool Research Institute, whose first director was the protein chemist Prof. Dr. Helmut Zahn.
Mission: Interactive Materials
The DWI is a research institute that takes on the challenge of surpassing disciplinary limits and tackling new questions relating to substances and materials that combine technology and nature. The name Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials stands for DWI’s objective to develop materials with new functions that were previously only known from living matter. These innovative materials will enable advances in the medical and hygiene sectors as well as in the areas of mobility, the environment and sustainability, thus contributing to shaping our lives in the best possible way.
Member of the Leibniz Association
As a member of the Leibniz Association, the DWI is funded by federal and state governments as part of the joint funding program in accordance with Article 91b of the German constitution (Grundgesetz, GG).
