International Days
October 15 to 18, 2024
This year's International Days at the University of Bonn will once again be all about excellent early-career researchers, international cooperation and global challenges. In addition to the traditional awarding of the State Prizes and the DAAD Prize, the Vice Rectorate for International Affairs invites you to informational events, lectures and workshops.
We are very pleased to be able to present the International Days 2024 in a new format. This year, we will be shaping our festive days together with the renowned cultural scientist Professor Homi K. Bhabha from Harvard University. We will have the great opportunity to get to know this outstanding researcher in different formats and with different panelists.
You can find more information about the program further down on this page.
Keynote Lecture Homi K. Bhabha, Harvard University
Subject: The fragility of democracy: Is understanding racial trauma the key to resiliency?
Lecture and discussion: Wednesday, October 16, 6:00 - 8:00 pm CET
Reception: from 8:00 pm CET
NEW VENUE: Hörsaal X of the University Main Building (formerly Hörsaal I)
Registration closed.
Homi K. Bhabha is Anne F. Rothenberg Professor of the Humanities in the Departments of English and Comparative Literature at Harvard University. He has written widely in the fields of postcolonial theory, psychoanalysis, contemporary art and cosmopolitanism. His publications include The Location of Culture, Nation and Narration and prefaces to Frantz Fanon's most important works. In addition, Bhabha has written essays on William Kentridge, Anish Kapoor, Taryn Simon, Matthew Barney and many others. He is Corresponding Fellow at the British Academy, Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and Critic-in-Residence at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
Program Details
Tuesday, October 15
Horizon Europe: From Concept to Grant
Time: 10:00 - 11:30 am CET
Venue: Senatssaal of the University Main Building
Event language: English
Registration closed.
This informational event offers insights into the most important research funding program of the European Union: Horizon Europe. It will shed light on the structure of the framework program and the associated funding opportunities for both individual applicants and international research groups. Another topic is how potential applicants can identify relevant calls for proposals for their field of research and submit a funding application. With regard to research collaborations, the event will explain what support the Research Funding Department at the University of Bonn offers researchers when applying for funding, especially if they are seeking a role as coordinator of an EU collaborative project. The information event will also focus on funding opportunities in the social sciences and humanities.
Wednesday, October 16
Lecture by Prof. Dr. Dorothea Kleine, University of Sheffield, UK: Towards Equitable Partnerships and Meaningful Dialogue in South-North-South Collaboration
Time: 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Venue: Festsaal of the University Main Building
Event language: English
Access: Public (Registration below)
Prof Dorothea Kleine is Director of the Institute for Global Sustainable Development at the University of Sheffield, where she leads the Digital Technologies, Data and Innovation (DDI) group. She is a Professor of Human Geography and her research investigates sustainable human development, global justice, and the role of digital technologies in making progress towards these aims. She has published widely on the potential and the ethical challenges of digitalisation in sustainable development in both the global South and North, focusing in particular on the perspective, agency and creativity of the more marginalised. Prof Kleine is well-known for her theoretical work, proposing the choice framework to apply the capabilities approach to digital development, as laid out in ‘Technologies of Choice?’ (MIT Press). She argues for a sustainable approach which focuses on people, justice, and the environment.
Prof Kleine combines conceptual and policy-level work with ongoing empirical research, including participatory action research and co-design with partners. She has led, or participated in, several international and interdisciplinary projects and has undertaken research in Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa.
Introduction and discussion lead by Prof. Dr. Detlef Müller-Mahn.
Keynote Lecture by Homi K. Bhabha, Harvard University
Subject: The fragility of democracy: Is understanding racial trauma the key to resiliency?
Lecture and Discussion: 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Reception: From 8:00 PM
NEW VENUE: Hörsaal X of the University Main Building (formerly Hörsaal I)
Event language: English
Registration closed.
Homi K. Bhabha is the Anne F. Rothenberg Professor of the Humanities in the Departments of English and Comparative Literature at Harvard University. He has authored numerous works in the fields of postcolonial theory, psychoanalysis, contemporary art and cosmopolitanism. His publications include The Location of Culture, Nation and Narration and prefaces to Frantz Fanon's most important works. Additionally, Bhabha has written essays on artists such as William Kentridge, Anish Kapoor, Taryn Simon, Matthew Barney and many others. He is a Corresponding Fellow of the British Academy, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and Critic-in-Residence at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
Bonn University Ambassadors Present Their Home Universities
Researchers and professors from all over the world work and teach at the University of Bonn. We are proud of this internationalism, which greatly enriches both Bonn's academic excellence and university life. As former guest researchers, our Bonn University Ambassadors have a close academic and personal connection to Bonn and are the ideal contacts to answer your questions about doctoral studies, research, or teaching based on their own experiences. Our Bonn University Ambassadors have either completed their doctorates in Bonn, spent a research stay here, or taught for an extended period. With the Bonn University Ambassadors, we aim to strengthen our international networks and provide a local point of contact for interested researchers.On the linked project page below, you will soon find short videos of our Bonn University Ambassadors introducing themselves and their home universities.
Already available on the site is a selection of the University of Bonn’s diverse international projects and initiatives.
Prof. Dr. Koichiro Agata (Waseda University, Japan)
Prof. Dr. Daniel Peterson (Rosalind Franlin University, USA)
Prof. Dr. Pratyush Shankar (Navrachana University, India)
Thursday, October 17
Open-Door Consultation: Study and Internship Abroad
Time: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Venue: International Office, Poppelsdorfer Allee 53, Room: International Club
Event languages: German, English
Access: Students
Are you interested in studying abroad during your studies and would like to get an overview of your options?
As part of the International Days 2024, you are welcome to drop by the International Office during open-door consultation hours for individual advice.
The brief counselling sessions take place in person and without prior registration in the International Club (basement).
Contakt: Celestina Trost, auslandsstudium@uni-bonn.de, +49 228 73-60613
Ceremony for the 20th Anniversary of the German-French Studies Program
Time: 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Venue: Festsaal of the University Main Building
Event languages: German, French
Access: Public; registration until September 20, 2024, via dfs@uni-bonn.de
The University of Bonn celebrates 20 years of German-French Studies with welcoming addresses, an alumni panel discussion and a French theater performance, followed by a reception (Café Unique).
Ambassadors Workshop I
As former guest researchers of the university, our roughly 20 Bonn University Ambassadors share not only a personal bond with Bonn but also a desire to represent our Alma Mater well abroad. Ambassadors from universities in Jordan, Ghana, India, Brazil, Australia, the Netherlands, the United States and the United Kingdom will once again travel to Bonn for a joint workshop during this year’s International Days. This annual gathering is intended to further strengthen the already strong ties of the participants to Bonn through joint activities and intensive exchanges, and to facilitate the program's ongoing development.
Workshop with Homi K. Bhabha
Subject: Third Space Turns 30: Revisit. Reflect. React?
Time: 2:00 PM – 4:00 PM
Venue: Festsaal and Senatssaal of the University Main Building
Event language: English
Registration closed.
Homi Bhabha's The Location of Culture, published in 1994, is undoubtedly one of the works that sparked a paradigm shift in the humanities. The African American writer and 1993 Nobel Prize in Literature winner, Toni Morrison, rightly emphasized that serious engagement with postcolonialism would be impossible without this work. To this day, the book remains relevant, especially regarding the distinction between cultural diversity and cultural difference. At the same time, The Location of Culture, as a collection of eleven key essays, also contains shifts or differences from current debates, particularly with regard to the central concept of "hybridity." New geopolitical configurations and the general consolidation of globality in the 21st century cast the book in a new light. Ideas Bhabha introduced have now become reality.
How does the author view these changes and shifts thirty years later? What remains unchanged, and which narratives have been further developed? What are the consequences? To address these questions, representatives from various disciplines, research groups, and clusters (including the Cluster of Excellence Beyond Slavery and Freedom, the Center for Reconciliation, the Forum Internationale Wissenschaft, the SFB Future Rural Africa and the Graduate School of Contemporary Literature) at the University of Bonn will have the opportunity to engage in discussion groups with Homi K. Bhabha about the old and new impulses of this seminal work.
Awarding of the State and DAAD Prizes
Award Ceremony: 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM
Reception: From 6:30 PM
Venue: Festsaal and Senatssaal of the University Main Building
Event languages: German and English (with simultaneous translation)
Welcoming Adress: Homi K. Bhabha, Harvard University ("On the value of cross-cultural exchange in academia and the role of the humanities and social engagement")
Registration closed.
On October 17, as part of the International Days, outstanding young scholars will once again be honored with the State Prizes and the DAAD Prize. The State Prizes are endowed by the governments of France, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Traditionally, the State Prizes are awarded together with the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) Prize for special social and academic engagement. This year, Prof. Dr. Paul Geyer will furthermore be awarded the "Ordre des Palmes Académiques" as part of the ceremony. After the award ceremony, the Vice Rectorate for International Affairs invites all event guests to a reception in the Senate Hall.
In addition to members of our university leadership, many international guests, including Professor Homi K. Bhabha from Harvard University and our Bonn University Ambassadors from around the world, as well as representatives of the endowing governments and the DAAD, will attend the award ceremony.
Autumn cooking event for international students
Time: 5:00 p.m.
Venue: International Club
Event language: English
Target group: Students
Access: Limited number of participants; registration below
Organized by: International Club, International Office of the University of Bonn
Get to know a traditional, regional dish - we cook pumpkin soup and enjoy it together!
Friday, October 18
Franco-German Strategic Dialogue: “Le Nucléare se Partage Mal” – Franco-German Perspectives on Nuclear Deterrence
Time: 12.30 PM to 2:30 PM (CET)
Venue: Bonner Universitätsforum, Heussallee 18–24, 53113 Bonn
Event language: English
Access: Public
Organized by: Centre Ernst Robert Curtius, Institut français Bonn and CASSIS
Since the beginning of the Russian war against Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the issue of nuclear security in Europe found its way back into an open debate. Alongside the nuclear powers France and the UK, the USA in particular guarantees the nuclear defense umbrella in Europe. As part of nuclear sharing, NATO member states without their own nuclear weapons benefit from the USA's nuclear protection.
NATO's capability to defend its European members is therefore dependent on the USA's commitment to defend European NATO partners militarily in the event of a conflict. However, Europeans should not rely solely on the USA's nuclear defense.
What are Germany‘s and France‘s positions on nuclear deterrence? Should Germany participate in France’s force de frappe, or even develop its own nuclear weapon? Could French nuclear weapons complement the European nuclear umbrella? How realistic and feasible is the idea of a rotating "red button" among European countries?
These and other questions will be discussed at a Table ronde with the Institute Français Bonn and CERC on October 18, 2024. In two exclusive workshops, the French and German perspectives on nuclear deterrence will be explored. Afterwards, the results will be publicly presented and discussed.
For registration, please contact Julian Schneider: schneiderju@uni-bonn.de
You can find more information here.
Ambassadors Workshop II
As former guest researchers of the university, our roughly 20 Bonn University Ambassadors share not only a personal bond with Bonn but also a desire to represent our Alma Mater well abroad. Ambassadors from universities in Jordan, Ghana, India, Brazil, Australia, the Netherlands, the United States, and the United Kingdom will once again travel to Bonn for a joint workshop during this year’s International Days. This annual gathering is intended to further strengthen the already strong ties of the participants to Bonn through joint activities and intensive exchanges, and to facilitate the program's ongoing development.
Opening of the Academic Year 2024/25
Time: 5:00 PM
Venue: Aula
Event languages: German and English (with simultaneous translation)
With a ceremonial event in the main building’s Aula, the University of Bonn will inaugurate the new academic year 2024/25 on Friday, October 18, at 5 PM.
Traditionally included elements such as the ceremonial entry of the Rectorate and Deans in their robes, proclamations of office, commemoration of deceased university members, and the Rector's review and outlook have been part of the academic year opening ceremony for many decades.
Students will also publicly comment on the current state of the university, represented by their AStA chair, and the moderation will be provided by students from the campus radio station bonnFM.
All university members, especially students, as well as the media and all interested members of the city community, are warmly invited to attend the ceremony.
Event registration will be available on the event homepage starting in September.
Recap: International Days 2023
During the International Days 2023, the University of Bonn celebrated international partnerships, excellent young scholars, and world-class research with students, doctoral candidates, postdocs, researchers, and other interested parties.
On October 19 and 20, 2023, numerous international projects and initiatives of the University of Bonn were showcased, current challenges and future opportunities in international cooperation—especially with partners from the so-called Global South—were discussed, and students and researchers were provided with comprehensive information. Together with outstanding international guests, international cooperation was examined from diverse perspectives, and networking with researchers from around the world was facilitated.
Film and Photo Notice
During the International Days, the University of Bonn will be taking photos and filming, which will be published as part of its public relations work on the internet, in print media, and on social media channels. Please inform our photographers and camera operators on-site if you or your children do not wish to be photographed or filmed.
Contact and Organization
Maximilian Patzek
Amanda Henson