The Leibniz Institute for Regional Geography (IfL) invites researchers, students, media and art professionals to take part in a one-week train journey through transformation regions in East Germany and Poland. Applications are open until 15 June 2025.
The summer school entitled ‘Transformation in Motion’ starts on 22 August 2025 in Berlin. The route leads via Węgliniec, Görlitz, Torgau, Naumburg (Saale), Erfurt and the Thuringian Forest and ends in Halle (Saale) on 29 August 2025. The journey along past and present borders is intended to offer participants a deeper insight into the social, economic and ecological changes that are summarised under the term transformation. The focus will be on phenomena such as structural change, transport and climate issues, cultural initiatives and specific aspects of urban and regional development.
‘The focus of our mobile summer school will be on examples of successful transformation,’ emphasises IfL scientist and project manager Tim Leibert. However, obstacles and difficulties will also be discussed. The programme includes visits to places in transition as well as meetings with relevant research projects and local stakeholders. There are also plans to exchange ideas with local authorities, cultural initiatives and civil society players at public events. ‘By collaborating with local initiatives, we want to build bridges between science, practice and society,’ explains Leibert.
The concept behind ‘Transformation in Motion’ is to combine specialist expertise, interactive methods and a sustainable way of moving forward. Jonathan Gescher, co-organiser of the mobile summer school: ‘Our idea was to use public transport as a place of learning where infrastructural aspects of the mobility transition, such as reactivated railway lines, electrification projects or revitalised railway stations, can be experienced directly.’
FURTHER INFORMATION
The organiser will cover the costs for seven overnight stays (mainly in shared rooms) including breakfast for a maximum of 15 people and two dinners. A limited number of bursaries of 400 euros each are available for participants without institutional ties, such as freelance artists and journalists. Deadline for applications is 15 June 2025.
BACKGROUND
‘Transformation in Motion’ is a project within the framework of the Leibniz Lab ‘Upheavals and Transformations’, which is coordinated by the IfL together with the Leibniz Centre for Contemporary History Potsdam: www.leibniz-gemeinschaft.de/forschung/leibniz-labs/umbrueche-und-transformationen
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