Kickoff of the “Worlds of Raw Materials” Lecture Series: “Contours of the Future”

The world is in turmoil. International conflicts are increasingly centered on natural resources. In some parts of the world, we are seeing a massive expansion of renewable energy; elsewhere, there is an increasing reliance on oil and gas. These are facets of a massive upheaval whose full scale we have yet to fully grasp: We are at the dawn of a post-fossil-fuel era. This transformation poses challenges for sectors such as the economy, politics, technology and urban development, mobility, and agriculture. There will be new winners and losers; cultures of rejection will grow stronger, and uncertainty, disillusionment with democracy, and fear of the future will increase. At the same time, ideas and innovations are sprouting.

The Käte-Hamburger Kolleg “Worlds of Raw Materials: Cultures in Transition” at the University of Kassel will examine the full picture of this transformation through lectures by selected experts. We will identify problems and discuss how we can work together to overcome today’s challenges for the world of tomorrow.

In cooperation with: SDG+ Lab, Staatstheater
Funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology, and Space

Kick-off on October 22 at the TiF Theater in the Fridericianum:

Prof. Dr. Hans-Jürgen Burchardt & Dr. habil. Hannes Warnecke-Berger:
Käte Hamburger Kolleg | Worlds of Raw Materials – Perspectives for Politics and Business

Lisa Arnold & Maximillian Grünewald:
The New Science Theater at the Staatstheater Kassel

Additional Dates:

Oct. 29, Thursday, 6–8 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Marissa Lee Benedict & David Rueter
Scores for Infrastructures and Bureaucracies

Nov. 5, Thursday, 6–8 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Doreen Mende
SKD Dresden Min(d)ing: Relational Capital

Nov. 12, Thursday, 6–8 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Prof. Dr. Michèle Knodt, TU Darmstadt
New Energy, New Partnerships: How Germany Can Secure Its Energy Future

Nov. 19, Thursday, 6:00–8:00 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Prof. Dr. Rainer Quitzow, RIFS Potsdam
Green Hydrogen: Opportunities and Limits of the Energy Transition

Nov. 26, Thursday, 6:00–8:00 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Prof. Dr. Maximilian Mayer, University of Bonn
The World of Raw Materials: The Case of China

Dec. 3, Thursday, 6:00–8:00 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Prof. Dr. Robert Frau, TU Freiberg / Fellow, Käte Hamburger Kolleg | Raw Material Worlds
From Postwar Steel to Critical Raw Materials of the 21st Century: Europe’s Raw Materials Law in Flux

Dec. 10, Thursday, 6:00–8:00 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Dr. Tim Vietor, President of the BGR
Toward a New Era of Raw Materials: Geological Perspectives

Dec. 17, Thursday, 6:00–8:00 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Prof. Dr. Anita Engels, University of Hamburg CLICCS
The Future of Climate: Where Are Germany and Europe Headed?

Jan. 14, Thursday, 6:00–8:00 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Bernd M. Scherer, Former Director of HKW
Art and the Energy Transition

Jan. 28, Thursday, 6:00–8:00 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Dr. Jakob Kullik, Chemnitz University of Technology (TU Chemnitz)
The Return of Geopolitics in International Raw Materials Relations?

FEB 4, Thursday, 6:00–8:00 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Prof. Dr. Sina Leipold, UFZ Leipzig
Demand-Side Policies in the Global Energy Transition

Feb. 11, Thursday, 6–8 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Prof. Dr. Sunhild Kleingärtner, Scientific Director, German Mining Museum, Bochum
Worlds of Raw Materials: Between Yesterday and Tomorrow

Feb. 18, Thursday, 6:00–8:00 p.m., UNI:LOKAL, Wilhelmstraße 21

Prof. Dr. Mi You, Käte Hamburger Kolleg | Worlds of Raw Materials / documenta Institute
Worlds of Raw Materials: Imagination and the Future