For civil and social progress:

‘It is in this order that reconciliation lies;
we are no longer outraged by the barbaric,
and we are no longer offended by the distasteful
if we regard them as beginnings and
necessary transitions’
Heinrich Heine, ‘Journey from Munich to Genoa’, 1828.

Social conditions, both regionally and in global correlation, are man-made. They can therefore be changed. The horrors of war, injustice and the destruction of the foundations of life necessarily provoke contradiction: a rich world has a prosperous future if the equal dignity of all people is realised.

We all think, decide and act in a historically decisive situation: social humanity worldwide or destructive irrationality? Civil courage is needed!

The University of Hamburg, with over 40,000 students and many more members in total, should be a place for creative, vibrant development through science, education and enlightening commitment.

But is it relevant in everyday life as motivation, educational attitude, connecting theme and scientific practice?
Certainly, the University of Hamburg has committed itself to the sustainability goals of the United Nations; it wants to contribute to overcoming poverty and destructive inequality, it wants to promote the protection of our natural resources, it declares that it is committed to a globally just economy and to serving international understanding and peace. Last but not least, it wants to strive for the formation of self-confident, solidary personalities.

But for education and science to really make such human sense, all sorts of things need
to be changed: politically, structurally and mentally. The University Senate, as the highest elected body with student participation, is, at best, an example-setting initiator for the entire university.

Do we jointly enforce humane ethical, social and academic standards as a socially responsible way for the university to act?
Or does student representation exhaust itself in government-orientated harmlessness and reactionary propaganda?

That is what we are running for:

Dare more equality! The underfunding of education, science and social life must be overcome. There is enough money. Non-sensical spending in the billions on the military, exploding profits and the wealth of the richest who are not taxed are evidence of this. It is a joint task to educate with science, to intervene publicly and – with people in a comparable situation from the cultural, social or public services sectors – to bring a movement for a humanistic turnaround in (investment) policy into people’s minds and onto the streets. Austerity has to end! In favour of civil development – without ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’!

Improve the social situation! The Academic Senate is a relevant place for understanding the social situation of all those working at the university. We are working to ensure that in the future the university addresses the extremely precarious social situation of students and plays a role in bringing about change. Cooperation with the Studierendenwerk to overcome the housing crisis and a ‘BAföG for all’ campaign are key elements of this.

Study: Is joy the measure of success? At the moment, mostly not; nobody should get used to that! We are fighting for the removal of restrictions and the examination pressure. Education should be cooperative development and appropriation of the world. This requires more time to deepen the content, smaller learning groups and cooperative forms of learning as well as the master’s degree as a barrier-free standard qualification.

Vibrant democracy instead of politics with fear!
The far-right benefits when fear prevails. Critical scholarship, open educational processes and a lively, contentious discourse about the anti-social reality, about meaning, perspective or rather absolutely civil progress are fundamental to a real democracy. Whether in seminars, in everyday university life or in the committees: A positive orientation must be brought forth in education, science and culture. Instead of elitist misanthropy – courage to debate and committed human friendship!

We invite everyone to participate!

Election to the Academic Senate (AS)

The Academic Senate (AS) is the highest electable body of the university. It elects the president of the university and decides on the composition of the Presidential Board and the University Council, discusses all fundamental questions of university development and has decision-making rights (e.g. regarding examination regulations, distribution of funds, mission statements).

“The University Senate can request information from the Executive Board and make recommendations in all matters of self-administration that affect the entire university,” the Higher Education Act also states. Controversies surrounding academic freedom, the social responsibility of the sciences, university funding or construction issues can serve as examples of this.

The AS meets once a month in public. It is made up of 10 professors, 3 students, 3 academic staff and 3 members of the technical, administrative and library staff. The student representatives are elected annually, all others every second year.

The election is a postal vote. The election documents, including a prepaid envelope, will be sent to you by the university. Anyone who has not received any or incorrect documents by 6 January 2025 can have them returned to the university’s election office by 1.30 pm on 20 January.

The election ends on 20 January 2025, 2 pm. The completed documents must have arrived at the electoral office by then. The electoral office is located at Mittelweg 177, rooms S 4061 and 4058, 20148 Hamburg.