The course "Critical Sustainability" provides a digital space to learn, reflect, discuss and take action together. The participants will jointly analyze existing power relations as well as society-nature relations and democratize them.
October 18th - December 8th
14.00 - 16.00 CET
Mondays & Wednesdays per Video Conference
In english
Through various interactive, artistic and group-dynamic formats, the participants will broaden their understanding of sustainability. For this they engage in individual work as well as small and large group work to jointly reflect and analyze their own positions/conditions in society. This will be the basis for their contribution to a socio-ecological transformation of society through individual and collective action.
What is the Critical Sustainability course about?
| Power Relations | Society-Nature Relations | Critical Theory | Merging Arts and Science | Intervention Research | Democratization | Social-Ecological Transformation
The participants expand their understanding of sustainability, especially with regard to social aspects such as power relations as well as society-nature relations and political ecology. The theoretical foundation for this is Critical Theory and theories of radical democracy. The pedagogical foundation of the course lies in the realm of critical pedagogy and pedagogies of democracy. During the course, the participants work on societal challenges from different interdisciplinary and artistic perspectives and engage in corresponding practices. They conduct an intervention research project through which they contribute to a democratization of society and its social-ecological transformation.
Which learning outcomes?
| Analyzing and Democratizing the Reciprocal Relations of Technology | Nature | Individuals | Society (TINS-D) |
The participants analyze and evaluate in a democratic process the present reciprocal relations of technology, individuals, nature, society and democracy (TINS-D). Based on this analysis and evaluation, they learn to democratize these reciprocal relations.
The participants acquire the competence to unveil the complex interdependency of their social, political, ecological and economic surroundings. This includes the consideration of different values, interests and needs within a global perspective as well as within one class(room). The course design encourages democratic decision-making not only to solve but also to define problems within the course itself and moreover outside of the classroom. In addition, the participants deal with artistic positions and practice artistic actions, for example by doing performances, and integrate these practices in their intervention research project.
How is it taught?
| High engagement and interaction between the participants |
The course promotes exchange and joint actions in digital as well as real life. This is why all participants are actively involved in the course again and again. Unlike many digital courses, this course lives from interactivity - dare to show yourself and contribute to the conduction of the entire course through individual, small and large group work as well as group-dynamic activities - only few lectures will be given. In order to achieve this high degree of interactivity, please make sure that you are able and willing to participate in the video conference of the course with audio and video. In addition, all meetings are intensely prepared and followed up with exercises by the participants through which they will intervene in their everyday-life. The single meetings build strongly up on each other so that the reciprocal relations of technology, individuals, nature, society and democracy (TINS-D) are continuously unveiled over the entire course.
Who can attend?
| all those who are there : ) |
No matter if you are still studying or already working, no matter if in Berlin or elsewhere - every person is invited to participate. Thanks to video conferencing the course can be offered almost without limits and borders - so please let your friends outside of Germany know.
The course is the compulsory module of the Sustainability Certificate for Students issued by TU Berlin. Students of all study programs from all universities/colleges in Berlin and beyond are cordially invited. Non-Students are also warmly welcomed. In this course they come together to share and question their different knowledges, expertises and perspectives. Together they will explore societal problems across any borders between humans and mutually work on them.
Supported by the Hybrid Platform.