The event, which takes place annually in December, was initiated by Prof Dr Tom Falter (OTH Regensburg) and Prof Dr Andreas Müller (Kempten University of Applied Sciences). This year, the debate forum took place on 5 December in the M26 meeting room in Regensburg's old town in order to offer interested members of the public the opportunity to participate.
Topics with social relevance
The international group of students dealt intensively with the following topics and debated in English:
- The environment is more important than the economy
- New parties (AfD, FPÖ, BSW, RN, Frat. Italia, …) are more a chance than a danger for democracy
- Universities are no longer needed by society and need to be replaced by other concepts
- Autocratic regimes foster progress more than democracies
- We need to respect intercultural more than individual differences in teams
Learning through debate
The aim of the debates was to give students the opportunity to engage intensively with current issues. This included researching credible information, developing their own well-founded position and presenting it passionately and convincingly to an audience. The evaluation of the students was essentially carried out by other students. In addition, shifts in opinion in the audience were measured, which were significant for some topics.
The event also contributed to the promotion of individual and intercultural learning: The 50 participants from different countries such as Germany, Turkey, Italy, Bangladesh and India dealt intensively with personal as well as national values and successfully worked together in teams.
Valuable cooperation between the university and the city
Wolfgang Dersch, Head of Cultural Affairs for the City of Regensburg, and Julia Falge (M26) emphasised the importance of the close cooperation between the university and the City of Regensburg on behalf of Regensburg society, expressed their desire for further events and immediately extended an invitation for the coming year. Dates and topics for the debates in 2025 are already being planned.
