Ingo Cornils

Professor Ingo Cornils is a leading scholar in German Studies at the University of Leeds, where he holds the position of Professor in the Department of German within the School of Languages, Cultures and Societies. His academic leadership includes roles as Head of Department, Director of Student Education, and Digital Education Lead. He is an internationally recognized expert on Hermann Hesse, German science fiction, and the 1968 student movement, with a strong focus on utopian and dystopian thought in literature and film.

• First Staatsexamen (MA) in English, German, and Pedagogy
• Second Staatsexamen (PGCE)
• PhD from the University of Hamburg

His research centers on the intersections of politics, utopia, and the fantastic in German literature. He has published extensively on Romanticism, science fiction, and the cultural memory of 1968. His monograph Writing the Revolution (2016) reframes '1968' as a mythic identity construct, while Beyond Tomorrow (2020) explores how German SF engages with ethical challenges of technology and climate change. He co-edited New Perspectives on Contemporary German Science Fiction (2022) and Hermann Hesse’s Global Impact (2024), highlighting transcultural and interdisciplinary dimensions of German literature.

His recent publications reveal a growing interest in climate fiction, artificial intelligence, and digital culture, often through the lens of Hesse’s enduring relevance. These works combine literary analysis with philosophical inquiry, emphasizing how speculative narratives help societies anticipate and navigate uncertain futures.

• Shortlisted for Leeds University Union Partnership Awards (2016, 2021)

Cornils has supervised PhD and MA students on topics ranging from protest gentrification to Hesse’s reception in Japan. He has secured grants for innovative teaching, including the German dissertation as a research project, and led the 'Languages for All' initiative. He regularly contributes to public discourse through blog posts, conferences, and media engagement. He is co-editor of literatur für leser:innen and active in professional networks such as the International Hermann Hesse Society and the German Studies Association.

He leads research groups on the transcultural fantastic and German world literatures, and continues to develop new projects on Günter Grass, Hesse’s parables, and AI in German literature. His work bridges academic scholarship with public intellectual engagement, shaping both pedagogy and research in German Studies.