Organisation & Administrative Bodies

Association for Municipal Research

Difu is a non-profit limited company under German law with its headquarter in Berlin. Its sole shareholder is the Association for Municipal Research (Verein für Kommunalwissenschaften, VfK). Its members are nominated by the Association of German Cities and the State of Berlin. read more

Academic Advisory Board

Difu's Academic Advisory Board advises the Institute's Leadership and the shareholders’ meeting on specialist and strategical matters. The advisory board has 17 members. They include representatives from academia, practice, various German Federal Ministries and the State of Berlin. read more

Organisation of Difu

Difu is organised into four research departments and three service departments.

Organisation chart (PDF, 104 kB)

Institute Leadership

Difu is headed by a joint leadership team, consisting of a Scientific Director and a Managing Director. They set the Institute’s strategic course and are responsible for its work. They represent Difu, supported by two authorised signatories. Leadership is appointed and dismissed by the Institute's Board of Partners for a maximum duration of six years per term.

Prof. Dr. Jochen Monstadt

Scientific Director and Head of Institute

Katherine Kaplan, LL.M.

Managing Director

Dipl.-Geogr. Luise Adrian 

Authorised Signatory, Member of the Institute Leadership

Dr. Jens Libbe 

Head of Department, Authorised Signatory, Member of the Institute Leadership

Dipl.-Geogr. Ulrike Wolf

Head of Department, Authorised Signatory, Member of the Institute Leadership