The 21st century is considered a globally networked age. “But in the Ukraine war, imperial military occupation of space is now colliding with economic network spaces,” says Prof. Dr. Martina Löw, spokesperson for the Collaborative Research Center 1265 and the Grand Challenge Initiative on Social Cohesion of the Berlin University Alliance. Not only are there more fortified borders around the world than ever before, but in the Ukraine war, new borderlines are also being contested. “Culturally significant Ukrainian cities are being destroyed. With urban space, Ukrainian nodes of connectivity are under attack,” Martina Löw continued. This destruction does not stop at the digital space, either. Russia, for example, is sealing off its network spaces against foreign influences, and in Ukraine digital infrastructures are undergoing lasting destruction.

The panel with other renowned co-discussants such as Prof. Dr. Katharina Bluhm, Dr. Ievgen S. Donskyi, and Prof. Dr. Steffen Mau will discuss whether the struggle for space can be understood as a consequence of globalization. However, the focus is not only on the causes, but also on the consequences of the war. Is social cohesion eroding locally and globally, or is it not being reinforced in many cases? Does Russian invasion policy take its cue from the pre-modern empire, or are we not witnessing the emergence of classically conservative-modern arguments? What future is still conceivable in the face of destruction? Interpretations of the causes of war, consequences of war, and observations on the reordering of the world will be negotiated in the conversation. The event language is German.

Time and Venue:

• Tuesday, March 29, 2022, 6 p.m.
• Institute of Architecture at Technische Universität Berlin, Straße des 17. Juni 152, 10623 Berlin

Livestream:

• https://www.youtube.com/c/institutfurarchitekturtuberlin 

The Panel:

• Technische Universität Berlin: Prof. Dr. Hubert Knoblauch and Prof. Dr. Martina Löw
• Freie Universität Berlin: Prof. Dr. Katharina Bluhm, and Dr. Ievgen S. Donskyi
• Humboldt Universität zu Berlin: Prof. Dr. Steffen Mau.

The Berlin University Alliance

The Berlin University Alliance is a consortium consisting of the three major Berlin universities – Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Technische Universität Berlin – and Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, established to jointly shape research and education in Berlin. The four partners joined forces to further develop Berlin as a research hub with international drawing power. Together the partners explore major societal challenges, increase public outreach, promote the training of junior researchers, address issues of quality and standards in research, and share resources in the areas of research infrastructure, teaching, diversity, equal opportunities, and internationalization. The Berlin University Alliance is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the State of Berlin within the framework of the Excellence Strategy of the German federal and state governments.

Joint press release issued by Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Technische Universität Berlin, and Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin

Press Contact

• Suhana Reddy, Head of Communication, Berlin University Alliance, Email:  suhana.reddy@berlin-university-alliance.de

Research Contact

• Collaborative Research Center 1265: Dr. Nina Elsemann, Managing Director and Scientific Coordinator, Tel.: +49 30 314-73787, Email: nina.elsemann@tu-berlin.de 
• Berlin University Alliance: Christian Richter, Academic Coordinator, Social Cohesion, Tel.: +49 30 838-697 46, Email: christian.richter@berlin-university-alliance.de 

Related Links:

• Collaborative Research Center 1265: “Re-Figuration of Spaces”: https://www.sfb1265.de/en/
• Grand Challenge Initiative Social Cohesion: https://www.berlin-university-alliance.de/commitments/grand-challenge-initiatives/call-social-cohesion_end/index.html