The Executive Board of the German Sociological Association (DGS) is deeply impressed by Karl Ulrich Mayer's research, particularly in the field of life course research. The major longitudinal studies that Mayer initiated and inspired have had a lasting impact on sociological research, not only in Germany. The Executive Board is equally impressed by his persistent commitment to the empirical grounding of sociological theory and by his extensive international research and publishing collaborations.

Mayer is one of the few sociologists to have directed a Max Planck Institute. Following German reunification in 1989/90, the Max Planck Institute for Human Development in Berlin played an outstanding role in integrating colleagues from East Germany. Mayer also ensured that East German life courses were incorporated into surveys without delay. Under his leadership, the Max Planck Institute in Berlin was always a place for exchange between different sociological perspectives and methodological approaches, as well as a place of mutual intellectual inspiration.

Karl Ulrich Mayer has held numerous leading positions both nationally and internationally, including a professorship at Yale University and the presidency of the Leibniz Association. Among other distinctions, he is a member of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, the British Academy, and an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Last but not least, he has been an important mentor and supporter to numerous colleagues who now themselves shape sociological research in Germany and beyond.

For these reasons, the Executive Board has decided to award the 2026 DGS Award for Outstanding Lifetime Achievement in Scholarship to Karl Ulrich Mayer. The award will be presented during the Closing Ceremony of the upcoming DGS Congress on 2 October 2026 at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, where Karl Ulrich Mayer will also deliver the closing lecture.

We warmly congratulate the award recipient.