Gerson Roberto Neumann

Prof. Dr. Gerson Roberto Neumann is a professor of German Studies at Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) in Brazil and a visiting researcher at the University of Potsdam’s Institute for Romance Studies during December 2023–January 2024. His research focuses on German literature in Brazil, minority literary systems, and interdisciplinary studies on globalization, sustainable development, and cultural diversity.

• Co-founder of the Center for German and European Studies (ZDE) in 2017, a collaboration between UFRGS, PUCRS, and German institutions.
• Key projects include analyzing German cultural elements in Brazilian literature since 1847 and studying migration-connected authors like Yoko Tawada, Guy Helminger, and Jose Oliver.
• Actively promotes the digitalization of historical German-language publications in Brazil (e.g., newspapers, calendars) and advocates for non-discriminatory cultural memory practices.

He maintains a strong academic connection with Germany, particularly through theories like Ottmar Ette’s “transareal literary research,” which inform his work on German-Brazilian literary systems.