Berlin to go, english edition 2/2015

A vibrant network. The

A vibrant network. The Pulse of Life. Berlin-Brandenburg. Berlin-Brandenburg is one of Europe’s leading locations for the Life Sciences. It is also an R&D capital that magnetically attracts the world’s top scientists. Here you’ll find attractive funding conditions, close linkages between business and science, the highest concentration of R&D in Europe, a dynamic startup scene and a multifaceted entrepreneurial environment made up of more than 500 pharmaceutical, biotech and medical technology companies. Come discover this one-of-a-kind landscape for scientists and entrepreneurs. www.healthcapital.de/en Investition in Ihre Zukunft! EUROPÄISCHE UNION Europäischer Fonds für Regionale Entwicklung Funded by the federal state of Berlin, the federal state of Brandenburg and the Investitionsbank Berlin, co-funded by the European Union (European Fund for Regional Development). Investing in your Future

EDITORIAL “Health Capital – Berlin as the capital city for health” EDITORIAL Dear Readers, the latest issue of Berlin to go looks at the capital city and its region as a Health Capital, that means Berlin and Brandenburg as a powerful centre for the healthcare industry. A number of you certainly wonder now: “Health Capital – how has the region earned itself this title?” Well, let‘s take a quick look at the figures now: About 315,000 people work in more than 20,000 companies in the healthcare sector, and they generate total annual revenues of about EUR 20 billion. photo titel: Hilch / Shutterstock.com; Portrait Franzke: Fotostudio-Charlottenburg I‘ll happily concede to you, as the interested reader, that numbers alone cure no illness. But the innovations behind the figures certainly do: For example, an international team with scientists from Berlin has made a breakthrough when researching on the blood cancer “Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia” – the most common type of childhood cancer. They have decoded the molecular characteristics of the previously incurable form of this blood cancer, and therefore opened up approaches for new treatment possibilities. And apps can also save lives in an emergency: With its “BERLIN SHOCKS” campaign, the Workers‘ Samaritan Federation wants to ensure that all defibrillators in Berlin are registered. In case of a heart attack, every minute counts. The app shows the location of the nearest available device. This and many other examples from Berlin‘s healthcare industry show that Berlin is a Health Capital based not only on figures and innovations, but also on people whose aim is to save lives and improve our quality of life: They are working every day to ensure that we stay – or become – healthy. I think that the capital region has more than earned the title of Health Capital. Don‘t you? I wish you fascinating reading. Yours, Dr. Stefan Franzke BERLIN TO GO 3