Learning Objectives
Collaborative and Community-Based Action – The aim of the module is to develop and collectively implement environmental activism in public spaces in collaboration with the Klimanetzwerk Emmen, a local grassroots association. The focus is not on combating the symptoms of the ecological crisis, but on addressing one of its fundamental causes: the culturally conditioned separation of humans and nature.
Critical Ecological Understanding – Students explore this topic under the concept of interconnectedness and develop creative ways to rethink the inseparability of humans from the environment and make it tangible. The future of a sustainable society is inextricably linked to principles of care and community. Today, politics is often determined by fear and structures of domination. According to Bell Hooks, a society based on interconnectedness has the potential to overcome this fear and create space for trust and collective solutions. (Hooks, B. (2021). All About Love. Hamburg: HarperCollins)
Interdisciplinary Practice – Interdisciplinary approaches from design, film, and art give rise to interventions that inspire action, promote a (re-)connection to nature, and open new perspectives on the relationship between humans and the environment. From participatory installations, audio works, and performances to experience-based events, everything is possible in terms of media and methods.
Students acquire theoretical knowledge of the historical, ecological and philosophical foundations of a highly relevant social issue, as well as practical skills in the development and implementation of experience-oriented actions and experience in working with local actors and the natural environment. In addition, they learn about special research tools through interdisciplinary working groups, both in practice and in theory.
Content
What role do we humans play in the environmental crisis? What is our relationship with nature? What motivates people to act – and what prevents them from doing so? How can activism and artivism help to change the situation? And what contribution can we make with our strategies from design, film and art – what experiences can we create that touch people emotionally, stimulate reflection and foster attitude changes?
All these questions will be explored in this interdisciplinary module in cooperation with the grassroots association Klimanetzwerk Emmen and will result in inspiring and provocative contributions in public spaces in early summer 2026.
The focus is on actively shaping experiences that promote the idea of interconnectedness and encourage critical questioning of social norms.
Students will work in an interdisciplinary and experimental manner, developing their own formats and testing them in public spaces. Whether installations, participatory actions, immersive experiences, or performative formats – anything that touches people, stimulates thought, and promotes new perspectives is possible.
In collaboration with the Klimanetzwerk Emmen and the local community, participants gain direct insights into the practice of environmental activism and learn how to use creative strategies to initiate concrete social change.
Input from ecological, historical, social, and philosophical perspectives, as well as from the practical fields of art, film, and design, forms the basis of the creative work. Lectures and discussions encourage critical engagement with the topic.
Course language
English
Lecturers
Sebastian Utzni
