As part of the core topic Perception: Episteme, Aesthetics, Politics, the University of Graz, in cooperation with the Centre for Intermediality Studies (CIMIG) and the Department of Arts and Musicology, is organising an interdisciplinary workshop for PhD and Master's students on the topic of protest with the title The Perception, Possibilities and Political Dimensions of Protest across the Arts, Humanities and Beyond. It will be held in English at the University of Graz on 17 October 2025.
Protesters not only take a stance against the current political situation and elite but also against the dominant patterns of thought, norms and values of a particular social-historical context. Thus, protest movements are often embedded in and motivated by a particular cultural climate. Hence, it is no surprise that protest in its various forms of expression reinforces the perception of a collective identity ex negativo by clearly distinguishing itself from a criticized other. Moreover, existing research on the phenomenon demonstrates that protest movements not only influence the policies criticized, but can also have a lasting cultural impact on an international, if not, global scale. Accordingly, the notion of protest has its roots, but also its effects in culture. Yet, protest is usually accompanied by the perception of crises that arise from the entanglement of aspects of the natural, social, and cultural spheres, such as climate change activist movements. Therefore, these interdisciplinary aspects and ideas surrounding protest should serve as a starting point for dialogue between the natural, social, environmental and legal sciences, religious studies and humanities.
The workshop thus aims to explore protest beyond its traditional political connotations and manifestations, delving into its socio-cultural, scientific, environmental, religious and legal significance. It seeks to examine protest as an expression of resistance driven by collective dissent, encompassing its epistemological underpinnings and the construction of collective identities. PhD students, aspiring young scholars and students working on their master's theses related to the topic of protest from diverse disciplines are encouraged to participate. The interdisciplinary nature of the workshop aims to promote dialogue and generate links between emerging scholars from different faculties.
Please find more information here.