ANTWERP—The new president-elect of the EOSC Association is Klaus Tochtermann, Director of the ZBW – Leibniz Information Center for Economics, and current Treasurer of the EOSC-A Board of Directors. Klaus will begin his term on 01 July 2025.
Klaus ran unopposed, and was elected by a unanimous double majority up-or-down vote at the 10th General Assembly of the EOSC Association on 27 May 2025. This included all votes from the represented EOSC-A Mandated Organisations and all votes from the Member delegates in attendance at the meeting, with three abstentions.
Klaus succeeds Karel Luyben, Rector Magnificus Emeritus at Delft University of Technology, who is in his seventh year of service in a leading role for the EOSC community. Karel has served two years as chair of the Executive Board of EOSC (during Horizon 2020) and four and a half years as president of the EOSC Association.
“This is a tremendous honour bestowed by our General Assembly, and a responsibility that I take up with great enthusiasm,” said Klaus. “EOSC is quickly approaching its operational phase already this year, which raises the stakes for the ongoing discussions on the future of EOSC post-2027. This will be at the top of the Association’s agenda in the months ahead.”
Klaus has been the director of the ZBW – Leibniz Information Centre for Economics in Kiel and Hamburg for the past 15 years, while holding a chair for Digital Information Infrastructures at Kiel University. He has also served as the EOSC-A Board Treasurer since 2021.
Klaus studied computer science at Kiel University and at Dortmund University, where he received his doctorate. From 2001 to 2010 he was the scientific director of the research institute Know-Center, a competence centre for information technology-based knowledge management located in Austria.
He was a member of the two European Commission High-Level Expert Groups on the European Open Science Cloud. In addition, he is a member of the Scientific Senate of the German National Research Data Infrastructure (NFDI).
During the General Assembly, a good-natured passing of a ship’s steering wheel took place between the two Directors. “I will be leaving the helm as of the 1st of July,” said Karel to Klaus. “It’s up to you whether you go left or right, south or north, that’s for you to decide. I will observe from a distance and enjoy watching you steer the ship.”
Teaser portrait photograph by Sven Wied, courtesy of ZBW
