The honorary doctorate was formally presented during a ceremony by Chairman of the Executive Board Prof. Heyo K. Kroemer, Dean Prof. Joachim Spranger, and Prof. Britta Eickholt, Associate Dean for Research with a focus on preclinical research. Prof. Karl Max Einhäupl, former Chairman of the Executive Board of Charité, and Prof. Axel R. Pries, WHS President and former Dean of Charité, also addressed the honoree.

Prof. Buchan, who is professor at the University of Oxford, is one of the world’s leading researchers in the field of neuroprotection and has had close ties to the Charité for many years. As an Einstein Visiting Fellow, he has been conducting research since 2021, together with his hosts at the Center for Stroke Research, on the molecular mechanisms of cell survival following a stroke.

Following Brexit, he has also worked to strengthen ties between Oxford and Berlin. On his initiative, the Oxford Berlin Research Partnership was founded in 2017 – the first joint strategic partnership between the University of Oxford and the institutions of the Berlin University Alliance (BUA). It stands for open science across borders and has since facilitated numerous joint research projects, workshops, and the exchange of over 1,300 researchers and students.