Bayreuth Graduate Wins the 2024 Rudolf Stobäus Prize

Miriam Knauer beams with joy as she receives the newly established Rudolf Stobäus Prize for her master's thesis on "Costs and Benefits of Sustainability Reporting in German Companies" from Matthias Dießl, President of the Bavarian Sparkassen Association, in a festive ceremony on 19 November 2024. “For me, it is particularly rewarding to see that the intensive work I invested in this topic is recognised not only at university but also valued outside of academia,” she remarks.

In 2024, the Bavarian Sparkassen Association launched its new academic award to honour scholars with outstanding contributions. Matthias Dießl reflects, “Even in the first round of the competition, we saw ground-breaking works come to the fore. Sustainability and digitalisation have emerged as key thematic focuses. These are two pivotal areas for the future of our economy and society. I am impressed by how many theoretical contributions already point clearly towards practical applications for the current work of savings banks.”

Nominations were open to all economics-related faculties and institutions at Bavarian universities. The prize aimed to recognise exceptional academic works related to the banking industry in three categories: Best Bachelor’s Thesis (Heinrich Schmidhuber Prize, €2,000), Best Master’s Thesis (Rudolf Stobäus Prize, €3,000), and Best Doctoral Thesis (King Max I Prize, €5,000). The selection criteria included the advancement of knowledge, the transfer of research to practice, and the potential benefit for the banking industry. Winners were chosen by a jury comprising members of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Bavarian Sparkassen Association. Through the academic award, the Association seeks to acknowledge achievement, inspire research, promote scholarship, and foster connections between academia and practical banking.