Should politicians listen more to science? Who do people trust in times of crisis? And what happens when scientific facts suddenly become a point of contention? Questions like these are on many people's minds - whether it's climate protection, energy prices or health policy.

A public panel discussion at RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau on February 25, 2026, starting at 7 p.m. at the Altes Kaufhaus cultural center in Landau will shed light on precisely this tension. Experts from science, science communication and practice will talk about how scientific findings influence political decisions - and why these relationships are increasingly shaping social debates.

The focus will be on the experiences of researchers from basic university research, applied research and industry as well as the question of how scientific findings can be communicated in politically charged times and under pressure from the media to gain attention. It also addresses the question of what challenges scientists face in doing so.

The panel will include Carolin Müller-Spitzer, Professor of Linguistics at the Leibniz Institute for the German Language in Mannheim, Professor of Linguistics Hans Jürgen Bucher from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Eva Wilke, Vice President for Research in Industrial Biotechnology at BASF, Uwe Steger, Head of Public Relations at the University of Innsbruck and Kristin Küter from Sci-Comm-Support, the national contact point for attacks and unobjective conflicts in science communication. Hanna Proner from ZEIT-Verlag will moderate the evening.

The discussion will offer exciting insights behind the scenes of science, politics and the media - explained in an understandable way and open to questions from the audience. It is aimed at anyone interested in understanding how scientific findings, political decisions and media reporting interact - and what consequences this can have for society and democracy.