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Mecila Berlin Conference 2025; Exploring the Conviviality-Inequality Nexus: Findings and Prospects

Dates: 11-13 December 2025
Site: Henry Ford Bau HS B, Freie Universität Berlin, Garystraße 35, 14195 Berlin

The challenges of living together in societies marked by growing inequalities and divisions appear even more pressing today than they did around eight years ago, when the Maria Sibylla Merian Centre Conviviality-Inequality in Latin America (Mecila) began its activities. Recent developments along three interconnected lines of conflict seem particularly challenging.

The first line of conflict is the climate emergency and the difficulties in implementing the policies and measures needed to mitigate it. On the one hand, the interdependencies between the various regions of the world in fields such as the economy, health, the environment and the climate have become even more evident and profound, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic. On the other hand, national and nationalist strategies for overcoming these challenges prevail.

The second line of conflict relates to new tensions at both levels: international and domestic politics. On the international stage, the realignment of political blocs within the context of multipolar globalisation, while challenging the unequal global order, gives rise to new imbalances and tensions, as starkly reflected in the outbreak of prolonged wars. In domestic politics, the advance of the far right and illiberal regimes in several countries has created serious uncertainties about the future of democracy.

The third major tension between conviviality and inequality that requires particular attention concerns the widening North-South asymmetries. In this field, our primary focus is on examining how the Merian Centres foster equitable interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaboration.

These three lines of conflict structure the proposed conference. The main objective of the conference is to present the progress made so far by Mecila, the social relevance of the knowledge developed, and the prospects for continuing the Centre’s research programme and its dissemination to academic and non-academic audiences in Latin America, in Germany, and internationally. Another key goal is to strengthen existing networks of cooperation and collaboration. Accordingly, other pertinent German joint projects and particularly the Merian Centres based in Accra, Delhi, Guadalajara, and Tunis as well as the DFG Humanities Centre of Advanced Studies Futures of Sustainability and the GIGA Institute for Latin American Studies will contribute to the conference programme.

 



Programme

All times are shown according to the Central European Time (CET).

We will offer simultaneous German–English–German translation on 11 December 2025 and simultaneous Spanish–English–Spanish translation on 13 December 2025. On 12 December 2025, presentations and discussions will take place in English without simultaneous translation.

11.12 | Thursday

14:00-16:00

Opening

Arrival and conversations between conference participants from abroad and pertinent interlocutors

16:00-16:30

Welcome Address

Günter M. Ziegler, Freie Universität Berlin, President, Berlin University Alliance
Silke Launert, Parliamentary State Secretary of Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space
Rodrigo de Lima Baena SoaresAmbassador of Brazil in Germany
Sérgio Costa, Freie Universität Berlin, Mecila’s Spokesperson

16:30-18:00

Roundtable: Overcoming North-South Academic Asymmetries: Diagnosis and Responses

The primary objective of the Maria Sibylla Merian Centres for Advanced Studies initiative, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (formerly BMBF)is to establish sustainable partnerships between German research institutions and host institutions in different world regions. In addition to promoting the internationalization of the humanities and social sciences, and contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of societal transformations and planetary changes, the Merian Centres are particularly committed to addressing and mitigating asymmetries in the global production and circulation of knowledge. This roundtable will bring together representatives of the five existing Merian Centres to reflect on the contribution of the Merian Centres to foster innovative formats for academic internationalization and to promote academic freedom and knowledge diplomacy in a time marked by profund geopolitical uncertainty.

Martin Fuchs, University of Erfurt, Former Director of ICAS:MP
Olaf Kaltmeier, Bielefeld University, Former Director of CALAS
Susanne Klengel, Freie Universität Berlin, Mecila Principal Investigator
Hans-Peter Hahn, Goethe University Frankfurt, Executive Council MIASA
Rachid OuaissaUniversity of Marburg, MECAM’s Spokesperson

Moderation: Laila Abu-Er-Rub, Academic Coordinator of ICAS:MP

18:00-20:00

Reception

12.12 | Friday

09:00-10:30

Roundtable: Promoting Innovation and Excellence at Universities and Centres for Advanced Studies

This roundtable brings together leading representatives of German-speaking higher education and research institutions to discuss strategies for fostering excellent interdisciplinary and international cooperation. The discussion will address how universities and Centres for Advanced Studies can strengthen synergies across disciplinary boundaries, promote global partnerships, and provide supportive institutional frameworks for innovative research. By drawing on the diverse experiences of university leadership, research councils and institutes, and Centres for Advanced Studies, the roundtable aims to explore ways of advancing academic excellence while responding to current political challenges and the increasing complexity of research questions.

Günter M. Ziegler, Freie Universität Berlin, President, Berlin University Alliance
Friederike Pannewick, University of Marburg, Forum Transregional Studies, Wissenschaftsrat (German Science and Humanities Council)
Robert Folger, University of Heidelberg, Käte Hamburger Centre for Apocalyptic and Post-Apocalyptic Studies, Director
Karin Harrasser, University of Art and Design Linz, International Research Center for Cultural Studies, Director
Sérgio Costa, Freie Universität Berlin, Mecila’s Spokesperson

Moderation: Verena Blechinger-Talcott, Freie Universität Berlin, Vice-President 

10:30-11:00

Coffee Break

11:00-13:00

Panel discussion: Knowledges in Dialogue: From Interdisciplinary to Transdisciplinary

This panel explores how diverse forms of knowledge—academic, artistic, and experiential—can move beyond interdisciplinary dialogue toward genuinely transdisciplinary engagement. The contributions examine a wide range of contexts: climate-related mobility in the Andean; Tunisian Sufi poetry; artistic practice in Africa as memory work; and reconfigurations of “atmosphere” in the Anthropocene. Taken together, these perspectives demonstrate how knowledge emerges not only from scholarly expertise but also from lived experience, cultural practice, and creative expression. The panel highlights both the challenges and the transformative potential of transdisciplinary research for addressing contemporary crises and reimagining convivial futures.

Gioconda Herrera, FLACSO Ecuador, Director, CALAS Principal Investigator, Mecila Advisory Board Member
Transdisciplinary approaches to Migrations and Climate Crises. Reflections from the Andean Region

Awadhendra Sharan, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies – Delhi, ICAS:MP
The Atmosphere in the Shadow of the Anthropocene

Sela Adjei, University of Media, Arts and Communication – Ghana, 2025 MIASA Artist in Residence
Fragments of Conviviality: Art, Memory, and the Unequal Politics of Repair

Cyrine KortasUniversity of Gabes – Tunis, Postdoctoral Researcher at MECAM
Toward a Transdisciplinary Reading of Tunisian Sufi Poetry

Moderation: Julius DihstelhoffMECAM Director ‘Germany’

13:00-14:30

Lunch break

14:30-16:30

Panel discussion: Climate Change and Multispecies Conviviality

This panel examines the entanglements of climate change, social transformation, and multispecies conviviality across diverse contexts. The presentations range from human – non-human relations in Maroon communities in the wake of the Plantationocene and conceptual inquiries into the idea of “nature” to toxic agricultural practices in the Global South and to the structural limits of the “decarbonisation state”. Together, these contributions highlight how multispecies perspectives unsettle inherited categories of nature, society, and the state, while also pointing to the challenges and possibilities of convivial futures under conditions of climate change and socio-ecological transformation.

Olivia Gomes da Cunha, University of Rio de Janeiro, Mecila Advisory Board Member
Fugitive Relations: Living with others in Plantationocene Worlds

Frank AdloffUniversity of Hamburg, DFG Humanities Centre of Advanced Studies ‘Futures of Sustainability’, Co-Director
Natures: objects outside or members of society?

Maya ManziFederal University of Recôncavo da Bahia, Former Mecila Postdoc
Conflicts over water contamination by pesticides: multispecies conviviality and the erosion of freedom and the Commons

Ulrich Brand, University of Vienna, DFG Humanities Centre of Advanced Studies ‘Futures of Sustainability’, Former Fellow
Structural limitations of the decarbonisation state, prospects of a transformation state and implications for conviviality 

Moderation: Manuel Santos Silva, Freie Universität Berlin, Mecila Principal Investigator

16:30-17:00

Coffee break

17:00-19:00

Roundtable: Disputing Environment and Climate Change

This roundtable brings together perspectives from government agencies, international cooperation, and academia to discuss the political, social, and epistemic disputes that shape contemporary environmental and climate debates. While global efforts to mitigate climate change increasingly emphasize technical and market-based approaches, social and institutional realities reveal complex interconnections between environmental degradation, extractivist economies, and social inequalities. The discussion will highlight how environmental and climate policies intersect with broader governance challenges — including issues of security, development, and justice — and how these intersections affect policy implementation in both the Global North and the Global South. The roundtable seeks to illuminate the diverse rationalities and power relations that shape environmental and climate policymaking.

Marta Machado, Ministry of Justice, Brazil, National Secretary for Drug Policy and Mecila Principal Investigator on leave 
Sarah David, GIZ, Head of Global Partnership on Drug Policies and Development (GPDPD)
Guilherme Bianchi, University of São Paulo, Former Mecila Fellow

Moderation: Barbara Göbel, Ibero-American Institut Berlin, Director, Mecila Principal Investigator

13.12 | Saturday

09:00-11:00

Panel Discussion: Democracy at the Crossroads: Challenges and Perspectives

This panel addresses the multiple pressures currently confronting democratic regimes in Latin America and beyond, situating these challenges in relation to broader global transformations. The contributions address various political settings, ranging from Brazil’s far-right actors and the construction of migrants as public enemies to discussions on the erosion of the political and the colonial legacy. Taken together, the panel’s contributions highlight how democracy at the crossroads must be understood not only in terms of institutional resilience, but also in relation to multiple crises and transnational governance challenges.

Marcos Nobre, University of Campinas, Brazilian Center of Analysis and Planning (Cebrap), Mecila Principal Investigator
Bolsonarismo and the Rise of the Digital Party

Bert Hoffmann, Freie Universität Berlin, GIGA Hamburg-Berlin
Contested democracies and the erosion of the res publica

Ina Kerner, University of Koblenz, Former Mecila Fellow
On the coloniality of democracy

Luicy Pedroza, Colegio de México
Can the Latin American Path of Migration Policies Endure the Backlash?

Moderation: Marianne Braig, Freie Universität Berlin, Mecila Ethics Committee

11:00-11:30

Coffee Break

11:30-13:00

Roundtable: Doing Politics in Difficult Times: The Contribution of Social Movements and Institutions

 This roundtable explores how social movements and institutional actors navigate and transform the political landscape in times of crisis, polarization, and ecological urgency. Bringing together Indigenous, feminist, environmental, and academic perspectives from Latin America and Europe, the discussion examines how collective action, community engagement, and institutional collaboration can contribute to sustaining democracy and promoting social justice. Reflecting on the diverse strategies through which marginalized voices, environmental movements, and civic organizations articulate political agency and resistance, the roundtable underscores the transnational character of contemporary struggles and the importance of alliances that bridge social movements and formal institutions. It invites to reflect on the potential of innovative forms of “doing politics” to generate new forms of solidarity and coexistence amid uncertainty and global transformation.

Yasmin Romero Epiayú, Indigenous Group Wayuu, Colombia
Ari Lutzker, YoNoFui Collective, Argentina
Marisa Ramos Rollón, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Political Scientist
Fatim Selina Diaby, Climate Activist and Poetess, Germany

Moderation: Tomaz Amorim, University of Bochum, Former Mecila Academic Manager

13:00-14:30

Lunch Break

14:30-16:00

Closing Panel: Wrapping Up and Prospecting Future Collaboration

Encarnación Gutiérrez-RodríguezGoethe-Universität Frankfurt, Mecila Advisory Board Member
Kristina Dietz, University of Kassel, CALAS Board of Directors
Gloria Chicote, CONICET/University of La Plata – Argentina, Mecila Principal Investigator
Jörg Gengnagel, Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg, ICAS:MP Director
Mamadou Diawara, Goethe University Frankfurt, German Director MIASA

Moderation: Gesine MüllerUniversity of Cologne, Mecila Principal Investigator


OpenEdition suggests that you cite this post as follows:
sukritimanocha (December 8, 2025). Mecila Berlin Conference 2025; Exploring the Conviviality-Inequality Nexus: Findings and Prospects. ICAS:MP. Retrieved January 13, 2026 from https://doi.org/10.58079/15amw


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