Despite their apparent contradictions, tradition and innovation, the tried and true and the new are not mutually exclusive, but rather mutually stimulating. A look at the association's year 2021 shows how successful the efforts are to understand opposites not as a hurdle, but as the basis for a creative dialog. 2021 was a successful digital year. With the relaunch of our homepage, the establishment of a sustainable CRM system and the development of hybrid event formats as well as our multifunctional conference platform of DGM-Inventum GmbH, we had initiated a digitalization offensive in 2020. Not without reason, these fundamental innovations were accompanied by initial uncertainties and doubts in our community: Can a historically traditional society like the DGM do justice to its vitality and diversity in the virtual space? The answer is YES. The association year 2021 was a successful digital year, in which we were able to maintain the familiar association life independent of time and place and set new impulses.

Times change and we change with them - 2021 was a year of profound change. Together, we in the society have opened up new avenues of communication and scientific exchange for ourselves. A look at the 2021 Annual Report, now available, makes this very clear. 

We wish you a stimulating and entertaining lecture.