The framework of Dresden-Concept has provided me with a unique opportunity to carry out interdisciplinary research at two institutes. My joint position as a research group leader at the Cluster of Excellence Physics of Life and the Helmholtz Zentrum Dresden Rossendorf allows me to pursue my passion of understanding the role of water in biological systems. My research interests span the fields of physical chemistry and biophysics and this is fostered by the international and highly collaborative environment in Dresden. On a daily basis, I am interacting with biologists, physicists and chemists to further our knowledge of how fundamental properties of molecules give rise to the complexity underlying living materials.