Circle U. has selected eleven projects for its 2025 seed-funding round, supporting new academic, professional and student-led initiatives across the alliance. The funded proposals reflect the alliance’s commitment to interdisciplinarity, sustainability, inclusion and long-term cooperation among its member universities. Each month, we spotlight one of these projects.
Creating space for dialogue across differences
The October 2023 Hamas attacks and the subsequent war in Gaza have deepened tensions and raised difficult questions about identity, migration and coexistence in Germany and across Europe. In this context, Upholding Difficult Dialogue in Times of Crisis: Palestinian, Israeli and European Perspectives aims to create a space where young people can engage with these questions through dialogue and exchange.
Led by Saskia Schäfer, the initiative brings together Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Aarhus University, the University of Vienna, the Hochschule für Jüdische Studien Heidelberg and the Israeli-Palestinian NGO Tech2Peace. Its central activity is a week-long workshop in Berlin for 40 students: 20 living in Israel and Palestine and 20 living in Germany.
In this interview, Saskia tells us more about her project.
Why does your research project matter?
The historical moment is urgent: the October 7 attacks and the war in Gaza have intensified tensions. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the war have had direct spillover effects on communities in Germany and Europe, particularly around questions of identity, migration, and coexistence.
Young people need structured spaces to engage, and the workshop we will organise creates such a space. By bringing people together, the initiative plants seeds for future cooperation between individuals and institutions.
What will this workshop achieve?
Through academic lectures and facilitated dialogue sessions, participants will explore questions of identity, postmigration and coexistence, while engaging with perspectives that may differ from their own.
Beyond the immediate discussions, the workshop aims to help participants establish connections that can continue beyond the programme, building academic and intercultural networks among Israeli, Palestinian and German participants.
