topic

Dialogues for Tomorrow

Discussion Series

To be able to grasp the complexity of today’s societal challenges, we need multiple perspectives and methods.

TOPIC CONTENT:

Dialogues for Tomorrow: Radikale Wende. Weil wir eine Welt zu gewinnen haben

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Global South and the Future of World Order

Dialogues for Tomorrow: A Green and Global Europe?

Dialogues for Tomorrow: Russia – A Society in Meltdown

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Future of Work with Barbara Prainsack

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Thirst for Illusion

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Future of Art with Hanno Rauterberg

Dialogues for Tomorrow: Transformation or Disruption

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Future of Design

Philipp Blom at AIL, November 2023 | Image by © Philipp Blom at AIL, November 2023. Photo: Thomas Peschat

The debate series Dialogues for Tomorrow critically examines the present from multiple perspectives in order to create a better understanding of tomorrow.

Beginning in Fall 2022, Gerald Bast, former rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, invited artists and experts to the new Café Exchange. The interdisciplinary conversations covered topics from the field of art, science, culture, technology and politics and give audiences a chance to join the discussion.

In Fall/Winter 2022 Gerald Bast was in conversation with designer and educator Anab Jain, social scientist Barbara Prainsack, author and historian Philipp Bom, journalist and writer Hanno Rauterberg, media artists Ina Conradi and Marc Chavez

As a sequel of the series, the program is now broadened:

In spring 2023 together with the Bruno Kreisky Forum and the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), the University of Applied Arts hosts experts from different disciplines to discuss future challenges.

Ranging from climate change to democracies in crisis, current wars and social controversies: this time it is historian, journalist and author Philipp Blom who will be in conversation with renowned, innovative, intelligent and provocative international guests to talk about transformation, reasonable change, necessary steps and new conceptual spaces.

video

Dialogues for Tomorrow: Radikale Wende. Weil wir eine Welt zu gewinnen haben

Discussion in German from December 2023

Philipp Blom in Conversation with climate activist Lena Schilling

Lena Schilling grew up with the climate movement and has become one of the most prominent and well-known activists in Austria. She helped organize the occupation of the Lobau and became the face of these protests; today she is committed to climate justice and social issues. But how can such concerns be addressed most effectively?

What networks both within civil society and internationally are necessary and possible in order to really change existing structures? How can social and political movements be created without them derailing? Can activists really challenge the power of multinational corporations, and break through the political incapacity of governments?

Philipp Blom talks to Lena Schilling about whether radical change is possible, and if so, how.

About the guest Lena Schilling:

Lena Schilling, born in Vienna in 2001, is an Austrian climate activist who came to public attention with the Fridays for Future movement. She was the spokesperson for the initiative for a supply chain law, is the founder of Jugendrat, and has been writing a weekly column in the Kronen Zeitung since June 2023. She is primarily committed to the issues of climate justice, feminism and migration.

About Philipp Blom:

Philipp Blom was born in Hamburg in 1970. After living and working in Oxford, London, and Paris, he is now based in Vienna. His historical works, essays, and novels have been translated into 16 languages and have received numerous awards, including a scholarship at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles and the German Non-Fiction Book Prize. Blom is also a prolific radio journalist and public speaker. Among his most recent German and English publications are: Diebe des Lichts, Karl Blessing 2021; Das große Welttheater, Zsolnay 2019; Eine italienische Reise, Hanser 2018; Was auf dem Spiel steht, Hanser 2017; Die Welt aus den Angeln, Hanser 2017 / Nature’s Mutiny; Bei Sturm am Meer, Zsolnay 2016; Die zerrissenen Jahre. 1918–1938, Hanser 2014; Böse Philosophen. Ein Salon in Paris und das vergessene Erbe der Aufklärung, Hanser 2011 / A Wicked Company; Der taumelnde Kontinent. Europa 1900–1914, Hanser 2009 / The Vertigo Years - Change and Culture in the West, 1900-1914

About the discussion series Dialogues for Tomorrow:

The debate series Dialogues for Tomorrow critically examines the present from multiple perspectives in order to create a better understanding of tomorrow.

Beginning in Fall 2022, Gerald Bast, rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, invited artists and experts to the new Café Exchange. The interdisciplinary conversations covered topics from the field of art, science, culture, technology and politics and give audiences a chance to join the discussion.

As a sequel of the series, the program is now broadened: In spring 2023 together with the Bruno Kreisky Forum and the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), the University of Applied Arts hosts experts from different disciplines to discuss future challenges. Ranging from climate change to democracies in crisis, current wars and social controversies: this time it is historian, journalist and author Philipp Blom who will be in conversation with renowned, innovative, intelligent and provocative international guests to talk about transformation, reasonable change, necessary steps and new conceptual spaces.

A cooperation of the Bruno Kreisky Forum, the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM) and the University of Applied Arts Vienna. Historian, journalist and author Philipp Blom invites international guests to talk about transformation, reasonable change, necessary steps and new conceptual spaces.

This event is kindly supported by RD Foundation

video

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Global South and the Future of World Order

Philipp Blom in Conversation with political scientist Oliver Stuenkel

Conversation in English, from November 2023.

In a restless, multipolar world order, South America’s great powers — Brazil, Argentina, Colombia — are claiming a stronger voice and more agency in global politics. Their strategic position and their political alliances mean that international arrangements need to be readjusted or entirely rethought.

Their stance on issues as diverse as the Russo-Ukrainian War and global trade issues are less and less aligned to the interests of the USA or the EU and more open towards China, India, and Russia, while the size of their economies, internal and external migration, as well as organized crime, armed conflicts and political instability make them a volatile and increasingly crucial factor of the international order. How will South America’s influence evolve, and which interests will South American countries prioritize as the international order is creaking under the strains of multiple crises?

About the guest Oliver Stuenkel:

Oliver Stuenkel is a Professor at the School of International Relations at Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV) in São Paulo. He is also a non-resident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington DC and a columnist for Estado de São Paulo and Americas Quarterly. His research focuses on geopolitics and global order, Brazilian foreign policy, Latin American politics and emerging powers. He is the author of several books about geopolitics, including The BRICS and the Future of Global Order (Lexington) and the Post-Western World: How Emerging Powers Are Remaking Global Order (Polity).

About the host Philipp Blom:

Philipp Blom was born in Hamburg in 1970. After living and working in Oxford, London, and Paris, he is now based in Vienna. His historical works, essays, and novels have been translated into 16 languages and have received numerous awards, including a scholarship at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles and the German Non-Fiction Book Prize. Blom is also a prolific radio journalist and public speaker.

Among his most recent German and English publications are: Diebe des Lichts, Karl Blessing 2021; Das große Welttheater, Zsolnay 2019; Eine italienische Reise, Hanser 2018; Was auf dem Spiel steht, Hanser 2017; Die Welt aus den Angeln, Hanser 2017 / Nature’s Mutiny; Bei Sturm am Meer, Zsolnay 2016; Die zerrissenen Jahre. 1918–1938, Hanser 2014; Böse Philosophen. Ein Salon in Paris und das vergessene Erbe der Aufklärung, Hanser 2011 / A Wicked Company; Der taumelnde Kontinent. Europa 1900–1914, Hanser 2009 / The Vertigo Years - Change and Culture in the West, 1900-1914

A cooperation of the Bruno Kreisky Forum, the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM Vienna) and the University of Applied Arts Vienna.

This event is kindly supported by RD Foundation

Institute for Human Sciences (IWM)

Kreisky Forum

video

Dialogues for Tomorrow: A Green and Global Europe?

Philipp Blom and Political Scientist Nathalie Tocci in Conversation

A cooperation between the Bruno Kreisky Forum, the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), and the University of Applied Arts Vienna

Historian, journalist and author Philipp Blom invites international guests to talk about transformation, reasonable change, necessary steps and new conceptual spaces.

Institute for Human Sciences (IWM)

Kreisky Forum

Beset by a crisis of democracy and geopolitical challenges, by demographic imbalances and environmental disaster, an economically weakened Europe, bereft of its old, liberal narrative, seems to be staggering, a waning force losing both credibility and power. 

Not so, says Nathalie Tocci, director of the Istituto Affari Internazionali in Rome and Europe’s Futures Fellow at the IWM in Vienna. If Europe is ambitious enough, it can secure future influence and prosperity by fully committing to a true green revolution, expanding on the goals of the energy transition that has already become the new heart of the European project. Tocci is one of the foremost thinkers on Europe and its future in the world. Even while faced with new uncertainties and challenges, Europe can find a new global role by championing and driving an agenda for green transition that recognizes only global solutions and global justice will be effective in the fight for a European future.

Philipp Blom speaks with Nathalie Tocci about a European future between energy transition and new strategic challenges, as well as the challenges for European democracies faced with popular discontent and a loss of trust in the European project or its institutions.

Is the future green and global, or will the European moment be swallowed up in epochal change?

About the discussion series Dialogues for Tomorrow:

The debate series Dialogues for Tomorrow critically examines the present from multiple perspectives in order to create a better understanding of tomorrow.

Beginning in Fall 2022, Gerald Bast, rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, invited artists and experts to the new Café Exchange. The interdisciplinary conversations covered topics from the field of art, science, culture, technology and politics and give audiences a chance to join the discussion.

As a sequel of the series, the program is now broadened: In spring 2023 together with the Bruno Kreisky Forum and the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), the University of Applied Arts hosts experts from different disciplines to discuss future challenges. Ranging from climate change to democracies in crisis, current wars and social controversies: this time it is historian, journalist and author Philipp Blom who will be in conversation with renowned, innovative, intelligent and provocative international guests to talk about transformation, reasonable change, necessary steps and new conceptual spaces.

About the guest Nathalie Tocci:

Nathalie Tocci is Director of the Istituto Affari Internazionali IAI, Honorary Professor at the University of Tübingen, Pierre Keller Visiting Professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and Adjunct Professor at the European Union Institute. She has been Special Advisor to EU High Representative and Vice President of the Commission Josep Borrell. As Special Advisor to HRVP Federica Mogherini she wrote the European Global Strategy and worked on its implementation. She has been a member of Eni's Board of Directors since May 2020. In 2022–23 she is a Europe’s Futures Fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences IWM.

Previously she held research positions at the Centre for European Policy Studies, Brussels, the Transatlantic Academy, Washington and the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies, Florence.

Her research interests include European foreign policy, conflict resolution, the Middle East and the Mediterranean.

About Philipp Blom:

Philipp Blom was born in Hamburg in 1970. After living and working in Oxford, London, and Paris, he is now based in Vienna. His historical works, essays, and novels have been translated into 16 languages and have received numerous awards, including a scholarship at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles and the German Non-Fiction Book Prize. Blom is also a prolific radio journalist and public speaker. Among his most recent German and English publications are: Diebe des Lichts, Karl Blessing 2021; Das große Welttheater, Zsolnay 2019; Eine italienische Reise, Hanser 2018; Was auf dem Spiel steht, Hanser 2017; Die Welt aus den Angeln, Hanser 2017 / Nature’s Mutiny; Bei Sturm am Meer, Zsolnay 2016; Die zerrissenen Jahre. 1918–1938, Hanser 2014; Böse Philosophen. Ein Salon in Paris und das vergessene Erbe der Aufklärung, Hanser 2011 / A Wicked Company; Der taumelnde Kontinent. Europa 1900–1914, Hanser 2009 / The Vertigo Years - Change and Culture in the West, 1900-1914

video

Dialogues for Tomorrow: Russia – A Society in Meltdown

Philipp Blom and political scientist Nina Khrushcheva in Conversation

A cooperation between the Bruno Kreisky Forum, the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), and the University of Applied Arts Vienna

Philipp Blom speaks with Nina Khrushcheva about Russia – a society in meltdown – and its future in the context of both its historical and political path, and of international security.

The war on Ukraine is catastrophic for both parties. Ukraine has to bear widespread destruction of infrastructure and a terrible loss of life. The morale within the society is high, and if the country can prevail, the future appears dynamic.

For Russia the situation is radically different, says political scientist Nina Khrushcheva, the first guest of the Dialogues for Tomorrow. Having divided her time between Moscow and the US during the past year, she has observed the changes in Russian society from within.

How is Russian society developing in the shadow of war and political oppression? How secure is Putin’s power and are their oppositional protagonists and structures apart from the Kremlin elite and the oligarchs? Is a change of power in Russia a plausible prospect, and what will Russia look like after the war, and after Putin? How much has been destroyed already by the loss of countless people who left the country, by the tightening of dictatorship and the breakdown of trade and political relations with Western countries? What will the future hold for Russia and for European and global power politics and global alliances?

Nina Khrushcheva is Professor in the Julien J. Studley Graduate Programs of International Affairs at The New School in New York. She is an editor of and a contributor to the Project Syndicate: Association of Newspaper Around the World. Her articles have appeared in Foreign Policy, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Financial Times, and other publications. She has commented widely on Russian politics for MSNBC, CNN, BBC, and other international media outlets. Khrushcheva's latest co-authored book is In Putin's Footsteps: Searching for the Soul of an Empire Across Russia's Eleven Time Zones (St. Martin's Press, 2019). She is currently working on a biography of her great-grandfather, Nikita Khrushchev.

Philipp Blom was born in Hamburg in 1970. After living and working in Oxford, London, and Paris, he is now based in Vienna. His historical works, essays, and novels have been translated into 16 languages and have received numerous awards, including a scholarship at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles and the German Non-Fiction Book Prize. Blom is also a prolific radio journalist and public speaker. Among his most recent German and English publications are: Diebe des Lichts, Karl Blessing 2021; Das große Welttheater, Zsolnay 2019; Eine italienische Reise, Hanser 2018; Was auf dem Spiel steht, Hanser 2017; Die Welt aus den Angeln, Hanser 2017 / Nature’s Mutiny; Bei Sturm am Meer, Zsolnay 2016; Die zerrissenen Jahre. 1918–1938, Hanser 2014; Böse Philosophen. Ein Salon in Paris und das vergessene Erbe der Aufklärung, Hanser 2011 / A Wicked Company; Der taumelnde Kontinent. Europa 1900–1914, Hanser 2009 / The Vertigo Years - Change and Culture in the West, 1900-1914

About the discussion series Dialogues for Tomorrow: The debate series Dialogues for Tomorrow critically examines the present from multiple perspectives in order to create a better understanding of tomorrow.

Beginning in Fall 2022, Gerald Bast, rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, invited artists and experts to the new Café Exchange. The interdisciplinary conversations covered topics from the field of art, science, culture, technology and politics and give audiences a chance to join the discussion.

As a sequel of the series, the program is now broadened: In spring 2023 together with the Bruno Kreisky Forum and the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), the University of Applied Arts hosts experts from different disciplines to discuss future challenges. Ranging from climate change to democracies in crisis, current wars and social controversies: this time it is historian, journalist and author Philipp Blom who will be in conversation with renowned, innovative, intelligent and provocative international guests to talk about transformation, reasonable change, necessary steps and new conceptual spaces.

This event is kindly supported by RD Foundation

video

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Future of Work with Barbara Prainsack

Talk in German from Oct 2022

The Importance of Redefining Work in the Face of Today’s Technological Revolution

About the discussion series Dialogues for Tomorrow

Sociologist, social scientist and researcher Barbara Prainsack in conversation with Gerald Bast, Rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, Oct 2022.

Welcome: Elisabeth Falkensteiner, Curator and Co-Head of AIL

Barbara Prainsack is a professor and Head of Department at the Department of Political Science at the University Vienna, where she also directs the Centre for the Study of Contemporary Solidarity (CeSCoS), and the interdisciplinary Research Platform Governance of Digital Practices.

Her work explores the social, ethical, and regulatory dimensions of genetic and data-driven practices and technologies in biomedicine and forensics. She holds honorary positions at the School of Social and Political Sciences at the University of Sydney, at the Department of Global Health & Social Medicine at King’s College London, at the Centre de recherche en éthique (CRE), University of Montreal, Canada, and at the Centre for Health, Law, and Emerging Technologies (HeLEX) at the University of Oxford.

Her latest books are: Personalized Medicine: Empowered Patients in the 21st Century? (New York University Press, 2017), and The Pandemic Within: Policy Making for a Better World (with H. Wagenaar, Policy Press, 2021).

Barbara is also involved in policy-related work, e.g. as a member of the Austrian National Bioethics Commission, and as Chair of the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies which advises the European Commission.

Gerald Bast, rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, invites artists and experts to the new Café Exchange for an open discussion series. The interdisciplinary conversations will cover topics from the field of art, science, culture, technology and politics and give audiences a chance to join the discussion.

To be able to grasp the complexity of today’s societal challenges, we need multiple perspectives and methods. A critical approach to the present requires more than a singular perspective, it needs the interdisciplinary approach of artistic and scientific research to create a better understanding and come up with solutions for the future.

video

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Thirst for Illusion

Start of the Discussion Series at Café Exchange from May 2022

Gerald Bast in Conversation (in English) with Ina Conradi and Mark Chavez

Artistic duo Ina Conradi (US, SG) and Mark Chavez (US, SG), based in Singapore and Los Angeles, have collaborated on numerous art and new media projects for the past 20 years. They both hold a Master's of Fine Arts Degree from UCLA. Ina has been an Associate Professor at the School of Art, Design and Media, Nanyang Technological University (2007 till present), living and working in Singapore since 2005. Mark is an award-winning animator, artist, educator and entrepreneur who has developed animation systems and techniques for many different media. Ina and Mark started their ongoing public art project Media Art Nexus (MAN) at Nanyang Technological University Singapore in 2016. This curatorial and educational initiative has connected students, emerging and established artists and academics globally with international cultural institutions.

About the event series:

In 2022, Gerald Bast, rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, will invite artists and experts to the new Café Exchange at Angewandte Interdisciplinary Lab. The interdisciplinary conversations will cover topics from the field of art, science, culture, technology and politics and give audiences a chance to join the discussion.

video

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Future of Art with Hanno Rauterberg

Talk in German from 2022

Artificial Intelligence, Robotics and Genetic Engineering: A Threat, Upgrade or the Reinvention of Art?

Hanno Rauterberg born in Celle in 1967, is deputy head of the feature section of DIE ZEIT and writes primarily about art, architecture and urban planning. He holds a doctorate in art history and is a graduate of the Henri Nannen School of Journalism. Since 2007, he has been a member of the Freie Akademie der Künste in Hamburg.

Most recently published: The Art of the Future. On the Dream of the Creative Machine (Suhrkamp), Wie frei ist die Kunst? The New Culture War and the Crisis of Liberalism (Suhrkamp), Art and the Good Life. On the Ethics of Aesthetics (Suhrkamp).

About the discussion series Dialogues for Tomorrow:

The debate series Dialogues for Tomorrow critically examines the present from multiple perspectives in order to create a better understanding of tomorrow.

Beginning in Fall 2022, Gerald Bast, rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, invited artists and experts to the new Café Exchange. The interdisciplinary conversations covered topics from the field of art, science, culture, technology and politics and give audiences a chance to join the discussion.

As a sequel of the series, the program is now broadened: In spring 2023 together with the Bruno Kreisky Forum and the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), the University of Applied Arts hosts experts from different disciplines to discuss future challenges. Ranging from climate change to democracies in crisis, current wars and social controversies: this time it is historian, journalist and author Philipp Blom who will be in conversation with renowned, innovative, intelligent and provocative international guests to talk about transformation, reasonable change, necessary steps and new conceptual spaces.

video

Dialogues for Tomorrow: Transformation or Disruption

Societies in Need of Change. Discussion (in German) at Café Exchange from June 2022

Gerald Bast in Conversation (in German) with Philipp Blom

Philipp Blom was born in Hamburg in 1970. After living and working in Oxford, London, and Paris, he is now based in Vienna. His historical works, essays, and novels have been translated into 16 languages and have received numerous awards, including a scholarship at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles and the German Non-Fiction Book Prize. Blom is also a prolific radio journalist and public speaker. Among his most recent German and English publications are: Diebe des Lichts, Karl Blessing 2021; Das große Welttheater, Zsolnay 2019; Eine italienische Reise, Hanser 2018; Was auf dem Spiel steht, Hanser 2017; Die Welt aus den Angeln, Hanser 2017 / Nature’s Mutiny; Bei Sturm am Meer, Zsolnay 2016; Die zerrissenen Jahre. 1918–1938, Hanser 2014; Böse Philosophen. Ein Salon in Paris und das vergessene Erbe der Aufklärung, Hanser 2011 / A Wicked Company; Der taumelnde Kontinent. Europa 1900–1914, Hanser 2009 / The Vertigo Years - Change and Culture in the West, 1900-1914

About the event series:

In 2022, Gerald Bast, rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, will invite artists and experts to the new Café Exchange at Angewandte Interdisciplinary Lab. The interdisciplinary conversations will cover topics from the field of art, science, culture, technology and politics and give audiences a chance to join the discussion.

A critical approach to the present requires more than a singular perspective, it needs the interdisciplinary approach of artistic and scientific research to create a better understanding and to come up with solutions for the future.

Moderation: Elisabeth Falkensteiner, Head of AIL

discussion

23 Nov 2022, 19:00

Dialogues for Tomorrow: The Future of Design

Will Technology Fundamentally Change the Societal Role and Occupational Image of Designers?

Gerald Bast in conversation with Anab Jain / Please note: this talk will be held in English

To be able to grasp the complexity of today’s societal challenges, we need multiple perspectives and methods. A critical approach to the present requires more than a singular perspective, it needs the interdisciplinary approach of artistic and scientific research to create a better understanding and come up with solutions for the future.

About the discussion series Dialogues for Tomorrow:

Gerald Bast, rector of the University of Applied Arts Vienna, invites artists and experts to the new Café Exchange. The interdisciplinary conversations will cover topics from the field of art, science, culture, technology and politics and give audiences a chance to join the discussion.

Image by ©

A designer, filmmaker, futurist and educator, Anab Jain grew up in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India, within the entangled postcolonial landscapes of a fast-growing nation. Through a series of planned and unplanned circumstances, she has made London her home. Although the idea of a ‘home’ remains as expansive as our hearts and minds.

In 2009, Anab, with Jon Ardern, co-founded Superflux, to foreground the practices of speculative design, critical foresight, design fiction and experiential futures as an integral strategy for businesses, governments, foundations and NFP organisations wishing to navigate deep uncertainty. In their 13th year, Superflux has received the Design Studio of the Year Award in in recognition of our ‘contribution to the fields of speculative and futures design with a committed social mission.’ Clients and commissioners include Google AI, DeepMind, Omidyar Foundation, the Cabinet Office, IKEA, UN Development Program and the Government of UAE.

Anab serves as Professor of Design Investigations at University of Applied Arts Vienna, where her pedagogical approach is to instill a culture of radical enquiry in young designers as they explore their changing roles in a complex and uncertain world. The program builds on its history of industrial design, but now encompases speculative, experience and futures design to catalyse critical thinking and transformative action towards a more hopeful and humane future.

Recently Anab was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from the University of the Arts, London, and is also the recipient of the Award of Excellence ICSID, UNESCO Digital Arts Award, and Grand Prix Geneva Human Rights Festival, as well as awards from Apple and the UK Government’s Innovation Department. She has delivered plenary lectures and keynote presentations at numerous conferences such as SKOLL World Forum and TED Vancouver and exhibited Superflux’s work at MoMA New York, V&A Museum, Vitra Design Museum, Design Museum London, Venice Biennale, Museum of the Future, Dubai and the National Museum of China amongst others.

Photo: Mark Cocksedge