Event Series

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»Questions on the Future of Society«

The aim of the event series is to address core themes of social transformation and the role universities play in these processes, in particular the role of the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar.

The format involves renowned external and internal experts and draws upon local, regional, national, and international perspectives, bringing them together with the views of students and the Weimar audience. The event series is accompanied by a seminar that introduces and reflects on the content.

The focal points of social transformation (ecology, history, politics, economics, technology, and aesthetics), which reinforce and influence one another, offer a starting point for thinking about current and future developments at our university.

The following topics, in which the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar plays a leading role in and for society, were selected for the series of events:

Summer Semester 2025

Democracy
Artificial Intelligence
History
Nature
Culture
Europe

Winter Semester 2025/26

Economy
City & Country
Living
Knowledge
Labour
Media
Media

Termine Sommersemester Datensatz (en)

MODERATION: Carsten Tesch TIME: Thursday, 5-6.30 pm LOCATION: Oberlichtsaal (OLS) or the Maurice-Halbwachs-Auditorium (MHA)

Date	Subject	Location	Experts
10 April	What is Social Transformation? This question forms the foundation for the event series by focussing the discussion on the term and its implications for the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar.	MHA	with Raj Kollmorgen (Hochschule Görlitz), and Ulrike Kuch (Bauhaus-Universität Weimar), unfortunately Elisabeth Niejahr (Hertie-Stiftung Berlin) had to cancel
24 April	The Future of Democracy Democracy did not simply appear out of nowhere and it is not a guaranteed success. For the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, the experiences of National Socialist, the GDR, reunification, and the post- reunification period all shaped and influenced the understanding of democracy, as was demonstrated in the last elections. How should universities deal with this? How should the Bauhaus- Universität Weimar deal with this?	OLS	with Axel Salheiser (Institut für Demokratie und Zivilgesellschaft Jena) and Andreas Ziemann (Bauhaus-Universität Weimar)
8 May	The Future of Artificial Intelligence The possibilities offered by artificial intelligence (AI) seem incredible, even magical. Digitalised aspects of life are developing at lightning speed – AI seems omnipresent and omnipotent. This raises questions that can only be answered from an interdisciplinary perspective and in a way that refers back to the fundamental relationship between technology and society.	MHA	with N.N., Henning Schmidgen and Benno Stein (Bauhaus-Universität Weimar)
15 May	The Future of History There is no future without history. In early December 2024, Aleida Assmann drew attention to the connection between history and identity – the »soul« in the 19th century – when the Audimax was renamed the Maurice-Halbwachs-Auditorium. Addressing its own history is a constant challenge for the Bauhaus- Universität Weimar, including the widespread misrepresentation of National Socialist history, which is a matter of concern in Thuringia.	OLS	with Jens-Christian Wagner (Buchenwald Memorial and Mittelbau-Dora Memorial Foundation, Weimar and Friedrich-Schiller-Universität, Jena) and Jan von Brevern (Bauhaus-Universität Weimar)
5 June	The Future of the Planet No transformation process will have more existential consequences than human- induced climate change. The diversity of life on our planet has rapidly declined and the changes in temperatures have caused floods and droughts. Does our planet have an anthropogenic future? Does Thuringia?	OLS	with Ingolf Profft (Thüringer Forsten Gotha) and Alex Toland (Bauhaus-Universität Weimar)
19 June	The Future of Culture Culture is bound with caring, building, and preserving, as the basic Latin etymology suggests. The word has strong roots in making and mysticism, in topography, in time, and in thinking about the future. Culture is a foundational constant of human existence. What does culture mean today? What role does it play in social transformation processes and our understanding of the world?	OLS	with Annemie Vanackere (Hebbel am Ufer, Berlin), Ulrike Lorenz (Klassik-Stiftung Weimar), N.N. (Bauhaus-Universität Weimar)
3 July	The Future of Europe Through the Bauhaus4EU Alliance, the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar is establishing a network with nine European partner universities over the next four years in order to tackle regional, European, and global challenges together. Will this be the last time? Will the polarisation of political forces in Europe and, most significantly, the drift to the right lead to the end of the European Union? Or does Europe provide a strong enough identity that community will prevail over separation?	OLS	with Benjamin- Immanuel Hoff (Berlin), Daniela Zupan and Christian Kästner (Bauhaus-Universität Weimar)