© Falk von Traubenberg
Opening of the Congress
The opening event will take place on Tuesday, 16 May at 18:30 in Room A of the Estrel.
Greetings are given by Cerstin Richter-Kotowski the keynote speech will be given by Dr. Tina Klüwer.
Albertine Sarges will provide musical accompaniment for the opening event.
After the opening, at around 20:00, there will be a Get Together in the Sommergarten of the CCH.
Cerstin Richter-Kotowski was born on 14 April 1962 in Berlin and is a German politician of the CDU. Since June 2025, she has been State Secretary for Culture in the Berlin Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion. Prior to that, she was Deputy District Mayor and District Councillor for Education, Culture and Sport in the Berlin district of Steglitz-Zehlendorf from December 2021 to June 2025. She had already shaped local politics in the district for many years: in 2006, she took up the post of District Councillor for Education, Culture and Citizen Services in Steglitz-Zehlendorf for the first time. From 2016 to 2021, she served as District Mayor of Steglitz-Zehlendorf and was also a member of the Berlin House of Representatives for several legislative periods.
In doing so, she became a defining figure in the district’s educational, cultural and sporting policy.
Cerstin Richter-Kotowski is married and has one son.
© Anja Kunack K.I.E.Z.
Dr Tina Klüwer is an expert in artificial intelligence, start-ups and strategic innovation issues. Until June 2025, she headed the Department of Research for Technological Sovereignty and Innovation at the Federal Ministry of Education and Research. Prior to that, she spent many years conducting research into artificial intelligence herself and founded a start-up for the automation of customer service communication. She then worked as managing director of a German software company and at the interface between science and research for an innovation initiative of Berlin’s universities. She is a member of numerous juries and committees, a sought-after discussion partner for politicians, an advisory board member of an AI magazine and several start-ups, and a LinkedIn Top Voice.