Discovery of the humanities: Bonn and Lille in exchange!

Discovery of the humanities: Bonn and Lille in exchange!

The summer school “La fabrique des sciences humanes” took place at the University of Bonn on June 13, 2025. The event spanned three days and brought together ten colleagues and doctoral students. The aim was to consolidate and further develop cooperation in the historical and social sciences as well as philology in a productive atmosphere. In the midst of these interdisciplinary gatherings, key texts by important thinkers such as Bloch, Adorno and Foucault were discussed.

A central theme of the summer school was the “factory of the humanities”. The participants had the opportunity to present their projects from history, linguistics and art history, where they also discussed differences between German and French specialist cultures. The event enabled an open exchange in which status issues and national affiliations were not the focus. For many participants it was their first time in Germany, which was a valuable intercultural experience.

Establishing collaborations

The University of Lille, a key partner in the field of brain research, will seek deeper collaborations in the humanities at the Center Ernst Robert Curtius (CERC) from 2024. The Bonn participants were willing to accept French as their working language in order to facilitate intercultural collaboration. Over the last five years, the CERC has established itself as a central player in German-French knowledge exchange and maintains close contacts with the Sorbonne University and the University of Nantes.

In order to raise awareness of the opportunities and challenges of German-French research collaborations, personal contacts in areas such as history didactics, environmental history and literary studies were also identified. The next summer school is scheduled to take place in Lille in 2026, which will further consolidate the ongoing collaboration.

Intercultural exchange and language courses

Exchanging and learning about languages ​​and cultures offers not only academic, but also personal and professional development approaches. Reports show that study abroad opportunities, including the opportunity to experience short-term study in France, are often coupled with language courses offered in either French or English. These programs are accessible to students from various disciplines and often also offer preparatory measures.

The Franco-German Youth Office (DFJW) supports cultural exchange and has special programs for students and young adults. These programs are intended to promote getting to know the respective cultures and include, among other things, voluntary internships and individual student exchange opportunities as part of the Brigitte Sauzay program.

The Summer School in Bonn is an example of the opportunities that such interdisciplinary, international event formats open up. The aim is to promote personal exchange and to develop the CERC into a central player in the German-French exchange of knowledge, with modern translation technologies also playing a role.