Ten Year Anniversary of ZAK!
For a decade, ZAK offers cross-curricular teaching, conducts research in the field of cultural studies, and is committed to Public Science. Reason enough to duly celebrate its anniversary in autumn 2012.
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Keynote speaker: |
The ceremonial act for the 10th anniversary on Friday the 30th November 2012 at 5:00 PM at the Audimax was just as interdisciplinary and intercultural as ZAK itself: Dr. Auma Obama, Kenyan sociologist and specialist in German studies, as well as sister of incumbent US President Barack Obama, spoke about the African perspective on flight and migration.
The Public Science Forum "Home Abroad. Migration in Times of Media Globalisation" in the Karlsruhe Chamber of Commerce (IHK Karlsruhe) on Saturday, December 1st 2012, continued the anniversary activities. At the event, international experts discussed the practical as well as the scientific perspective on the media dimension of flight and migration. On the one hand, their debates and lectures dealt with the risks of medial parallel worlds, which emerge when migrants do not or hardly see themselves represented in the media of their destination country. On the other hand, the challenges of new global media networks as well as the opportunities for the integration of migrants, which are hereby opened up, were discussed.
Both the Ceremonial Act and the Public Science Forum conclude the nationwide series "The Mediterranean in the Spot – Migration and Flight" of the German network of the Anna Lindh Foundation, which is coordinated by ZAK together with the Goethe-Institute.
Ten Years ZAK
In July 2002, the interfacultative institute for applied cultural science (Interfakultatives Institut für Angewandte Kulturwissenschaft, IAK) and General Studies (Studium Generale) merged into an interdisziplinary establishment of high repute.
The three pillars of the ZAK - interdisciplinary teaching, cultural science research and public science – have since been continuously advanced. Within the scope of teaching are the minor studies in “applied cultural science” as well as competence-related qualification modules and the General Studies for students of all faculties and guest students.
With over 240 lectures per semester the ZAK aims to convey interdisciplinary orientation for studies, jobs and society in a globalised world. Thereby it contributes to the education of responsible graduates of the KIT.
The research in cultural science has created projects with subjects like internationalisation, urban integration or inter-culturality. Currently, the competence centre for cultural heritage – digital Karlsruhe (KüdKa) at the ZAK is working on tasks of preserving the world cultural heritage, as well as another project named InsideScience, which aims to diminish barriers of understanding between scientists and interested citizens with the medium of film.
Public science holds a special place in the ZAK: The Colloquium Fundamentale, the Karlsruhe Dialogues and the International Forum combine discursive formats with artistic forms of presentation. It involved such distinguished figures as Federal Minister a. D. Hans-Dietrich Genscher as well as world-renowned scientists such as recently the sociologist Prof. Dr. Zygmunt Bauman.
The director, Prof. Dr. Caroline Y. Robertson-von Trotha and the ZAK team wish to thank all orators, visitors, alumni and loyal companions and are looking into the future of the ZAK with optimism.