We are delighted to announce that three SCRIPTS members and affiliates of the Cluster have once again been included in Der Tagesspiegel’s “Top 100 Scientists in Berlin” for 2025. The annual ranking highlights researchers whose work not only advances academic knowledge but also enriches public debate across disciplines.

This year’s honourees are Tanja A. Börzel, Gülay Çağlar, and Martyna Linartas. We are delighted that three members of the SCRIPTS community are represented this year, reflecting the strong presence of the Cluster’s research in Berlin’s academic landscape.

Since the initiative was launched in 2023, a number of SCRIPTS scholars have regularly been included in the ranking. This continued recognition highlights the ongoing contributions of our researchers to academic and public debates on democracy and its challenges.

Below is a list of all SCRIPTS scholars who have been included in the Top 100 Scientists ranking since 2023.

2025

• Prof. Dr. Tanja A. Börzel (Freie Universität Berlin) – honoured for her leadership of the Cluster of Excellence SCRIPTS, which investigates how liberal societies respond to challenges such as populism and autocratisation. Under her direction, the Cluster recently secured renewed funding for another seven years.

• Prof. Dr. Gülay Çağlar (Freie Universität Berlin) – recognised for her pioneering research on online hate and gender-based violence, including a recent SCRIPTS study analysing misogynistic networks in the German-speaking Internet.

• Dr. Martyna Berekina Linartas (Freie Universität Berlin) – recognised for her research on social inequality and wealth concentration in Germany. In her book “Unverdiente Ungleichheit”, she challenges the idea of meritocracy and examines how inherited privilege shapes democracy and social cohesion.

2024

• Prof. Dr. Christoph Möllers (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) – constitutional law scholar and philosopher studying civil rights and state authority.

• Prof. Dr. Philipp Dann (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) – legal scholar examining globalisation and postcolonial legacies in international law.

• Prof. Dr. Anita Gohdes (Hertie School) – expert on cyber politics and state censorship who advises international institutions including the UN and the World Bank.

2023

• Prof. Dr. Gwendolyn Sasse (ZOiS / Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) – for her expertise on Eastern Europe and the war in Ukraine.

• Dr. Johannes Gerschewski (WZB Berlin Social Science Center) – for his comparative research on autocracies and young democracies.

• Prof. Dr. Dorothea Kübler (WZB Berlin Social Science Center) – for her contributions to behavioural and market design economics.

• Prof. Dr. Steffen Mau (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin) – for his influential analyses of social change, inequality, and transformation in Germany.

Read the full 2025 ranking on Tagesspiegel’s website (subscription required)