Events

What is “East Germany”? We want to talk about a region often perceived as gray, cold, and politically right-leaning. We aim to discuss how East German lifeworlds are constructed in media representations, political debates, and cultural and literary narratives, navigating between self-description and external attribution, between memory and the present.

In fall 2025, Worlds of Contradiction (WOC) will be 10 years old. In cooperation with the DFG Research Training Group 2686 Contradiction Studies, we cordially invite you to celebrate this anniversary together. An overview of the planned program for the 10 Years WOC – Contradictions Festival from November 10–14, 2025 can be found here.

With a commitment to the black body, the woman body, the queer or non-conforming body, the fugitive body, the errant body, the sick or uniquely abled body,  the decolonial body, the collective body, and how it is seen, felt, loved, and cared for, Phoebe Boswell will take us on a candid and illuminating journey through her […]

Panel Discussion:Dr. Onur Erdur | Department of Cultural History and Theory & WOC Guest Professor 2025Prof. Dr. Stephan Lessenich | Institute of Sociology, Goethe-University Frankfurt am Main & Institute for Social ResearchProf. Dr. Rozena Maart | University of KwaZulu-Natal Durban & GRK2686-Mercator Fellow Moderation:PD Dr. Ehler Voss | Worlds of Contradiction A complete program overview […]

Onur Erdur (Humboldt University of Berlin & WOC Visiting Professor 2025) in conversation with Karen Struve and Ehler Voss about his book Schule des Südens: Die kolonialen Wurzeln der französischen Theorie (School of the South: The Colonial Roots of French Theory). A complete program overview for the 10 years of WOC – Contradictions Festival, which […]

Early Career Networking Workshop as part of the 10th anniversary of the WOC Contradictions Festival with members of the WOC Graduate Network (WOC GradNet), the DFG Research Training Group 2686 Contradiction Studies, the Bremen International Graduate School of Social Sciences (BIGSSS), the Institute for Social Research (IfS) and the GRK 2638 Normativity, Critique, Change

An event by the DFG Research Training Group 2686 “Contradiction Studies –Constellations, Heuristics, and Concepts of the Contradictory” in cooperation with theBremen International Graduate School of Social Sciences (BIGSSS) and the Research Data Center (RDC) Qualiservice. Presentations will be in English, but contributions can be made in German.Responsible research data management is an essential component […]