Prof. Dr. Ute Fendler holds the Chair of Romance Literature and Comparative Studies with Special Emphasis on Africa at the University of Bayreuth. Her academic journey includes a 2006 Habilitation and 1992 PhD from Saarland University, with research spanning Francophone African literatures , intermedial phenomena , and postcolonial cinematic analysis . She coordinates the Bayreuth Academy of Advanced African Studies as Vice-Director and serves on multiple editorial boards. 2006-Present: Professor at University of Bayreuth 2011-2015: Director of Institute for African Studies 2015-Present: Vice-Director of Bayreuth Academy of Advanced African Studies Her research interrogates urban ecotonal spaces through African music videos, transnational cinematic flows in African and Afro-Asian contexts, and mediated memory practices . Recent publications explore post-apocalyptic storytelling and decolonial aesthetics in music videos and films. Scientific contributions include: 2025: Staging Atmosphere: Urban Ecotonal Spaces in African Music Videos (Brill) 2024: Co-edited Asia-Africa: Multifaceted Engagement (Palgrave Macmillan) 2022: Animating the Future: Superheroes in Africa (Brill) 2020: Ghosts as Mediators: Memory and Hauntology (iwalewabooks) 2019: K-Pop Fandom in Germany (Korea University Press) She received the Faculty Enrichment Award from the Canadian Embassy in 2005 and serves on multiple academic committees including the University Library Commission (2007-2016).
Dagmar Abendroth-Timmer is a Professor in Romance Studies - Didactics at the University of Siegen, Faculty I. She is a leading figure in foreign language didactics, with a strong focus on action-oriented teaching, multilingualism, teacher education, and digital learning environments. Her research is deeply international, involving collaborations across Europe through projects like LANGSCAPE, ENROPE, and ViMuLEnc. University: University of Siegen School: Faculty I Department: Romance Studies - Didactics Position: Professor Email: abendroth@romanistik.uni-siegen.de Her research interests include foreign language didactics, multilingual and intercultural education, teacher professionalization, empirical research methods, and digital learning. She has made significant contributions to the development of action-oriented language teaching models, particularly in digital and multilingual contexts. Her recent publications explore virtual multilingual encounters, translanguaging, and identity formation in language classrooms. The recent articles reflect a strong trend toward digitalization in language education, with a focus on virtual exchange, teacher training in digital environments, and the role of multilingualism in online learning. There is a consistent emphasis on reflective practice, identity, and critical pedagogy across her work. She is actively involved in academic leadership, serving as a network consultant for LANGSCAPE and coordinating international projects. She has contributed to numerous edited volumes and special journal issues, particularly on plurilingualism and teacher education. Dagmar Abendroth-Timmer supervises research assistants and contributes to curriculum development in teacher education. She is engaged in ongoing research projects such as ViMuLEnc, which explores virtual multilingual learning encounters, and drama pedagogy in language teaching. Her work bridges theory and practice, aiming to enhance both teacher training and classroom instruction in foreign languages.
GIGA German Institute of Global and Area StudiesGermany
Dr. Idriss Jebari is an Associate in the Department of Near and Middle Eastern Studies at Trinity College Dublin. Previously held positions include Visiting Fellow at the GIGA Institute for Middle East Studies (2023–2024), Bowdoin College (2017–2019), and the American University of Beirut (2016–2017). His research focuses on Maghreb intellectual history, decolonial thought, and political sociology. Research interests include Arab political thought, postcolonial intellectual trajectories, and transitional justice in North Africa. Key themes: nation-building processes, cultural heritage disputes, and the role of historians in decolonization. Active in analyzing Algerian-Moroccan relations and regional reconciliation models. Notable publications explore the Tunisian New Left, Abdallah Laroui’s historiography, and Franco-German reconciliation frameworks for North Africa. His work bridges historical analysis with contemporary political dynamics, emphasizing marginalized voices in Maghreb historiography.
Julia Wurr is a Junior Professor of Postcolonial Studies at the Institute for English and American Studies, Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg, within the School of Linguistics and Cultural Studies. Her research spans postcolonial theory, gender studies, medical humanities, and Anglophone literatures, with a strong focus on reproduction, biocapitalism, and neo-orientalism. Her research interests include postcolonial medical humanities, biocapitalism, reproductive studies, gender and sexuality, Indian and Arab Anglophone writing, and literary theory. She critically examines how literature engages with medical, demographic, and security discourses, particularly in postcolonial and diasporic contexts. The recent articles highlight a consistent engagement with themes of reproductive labor, surrogacy, racial capitalism, and narrative ethics. Her work bridges literary analysis with critical theory, feminist studies, and global health, often analyzing how fiction reflects and challenges structural inequalities in medicine, demography, and security. Associate Editor, Journal of Postcolonial Writing (2024–) Vice-President, GAPS (Association for Anglophone Postcolonial Studies) (2023–2025) Member, DFG Network 'Bioethik und strukturelle Ungerechtigkeit' Member, Gesellschaft für Anglophone Postcolonial Studies (GAPS) Member, Anglistikverband Julia Wurr advises emerging scholars and promotes PhD opportunities in German-speaking countries through her involvement with GAPS. She has delivered numerous invited talks at international institutions including Columbia University, UC Berkeley, IISER Bhopal, and the University of Washington, reflecting her growing academic influence. Her work is supported by interdisciplinary networks and collaborative research initiatives. She is also active in public scholarship and teacher training, as seen in her workshop on Sarfraz Manzoor’s memoir.
Prof. Dr. Natascha Ueckmann is a Professor of Cultural Studies specializing in France/Francophonie and Spain/Latin America at the Institute of Romance Studies, Faculty of Philosophy II, Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg. She manages all IKEA degree programs and master's programs, supervises tutors, and coordinates Erasmus+ exchanges with West African universities in Togo (Lomé and Kara) and Senegal (Dakar). Her academic trajectory includes doctoral studies at the University of Osnabrück with a dissertation on 'Women and Orientalism: Travel texts by French-speaking female authors of the 19th and 20th centuries,' followed by a habilitation on 'Aesthetics of Chaos: Creolization and Neo-Baroque in the Franco- and Hispanic-Caribbean Contemporary Novel' at the University of Bremen, for which she received the Elise Richter Research Prize. Prof. Ueckmann's research focuses on postcolonial studies, particularly Franco-Caribbean literature, gender studies, and the transatlantic circulation of ideas. Her publication record spans from 2016 to 2024, with recent works examining Enlightenment influences in Caribbean literature, gender representations in Francophone digital media, and slave revolts in literary narratives. Her scholarly output demonstrates consistent interdisciplinary engagement across literature, cultural studies, and postcolonial theory. Berninghausen Prize for Outstanding Teaching (2016) Elise Richter Research Prize of the German Association of Romance Studies She has supervised students including Susan Bargmann, who created a blog on the Nantes excursion examining colonial history. Prof. Ueckmann has organized numerous educational excursions to Berlin, Nantes, and Avignon, and has led major research projects including a DFG-funded study on Enlightenment's impact on Franco-Caribbean literature (2017-2023) and the current RE-VISUALIZE project (2022-2025) examining gender and Islam in Francophone digital media. She actively participates in international academic collaborations, has organized multiple Caribbean and West Africa study days, and serves on the board of the Society for Caribbean Research (SoCaRe) as Board Member for International Affairs since 2015.
Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of BonnGermany
Prof. Dr. Claudia Jacobi is a full Professor of Romance Literature and Cultural Studies at the University of Bonn, where she holds a permanent W3 professorship. She is also the Chair of the Bonn Italy Center and a speaker of the trinational graduate program Italianistica (Bonn, Paris-Sorbonne, Florence). Her academic work spans multiple Romance literatures and interdisciplinary fields, with a strong focus on gender, body, and emotion studies. She has held visiting professorships at institutions including Sorbonne University, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, and Ovidius University in Romania. Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn: W3 Professor (2022–present) Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin: FONTE Foundation Guest Professor (2021–2022) Universities of Paris IV (Sorbonne), Bonn, and Florence: Doctoral Research (2012–2015) Goethe University Frankfurt: Studies in Romance Philology and Sociology (2006–2012) Her research interests include Dantesque mythopoetics, medieval and Renaissance women poets, Proust and autofiction, eating disorder narratives, gender and body studies, and intermedial approaches in literature and art. She explores emotional discourses such as laughter and tears, love in baroque theatre, and autobiographical writing in France, Italy, and Spain. Her work is deeply comparative and transnational, often analyzing cultural transfers across Romance-speaking regions. Her recent publications and lecture topics reveal a strong trend toward the literary and cultural representation of emotions, the body, and gender. She frequently examines how literature negotiates trauma, identity, and social norms, especially in relation to female authors and marginalized narratives. Her editorial projects, such as Riso, pianto, lacrime and Érotisme et esthétique des larmes , highlight a sustained interest in affect and aesthetics across historical periods. Kurt Ringger Prize (2023) Heisenberg Fellowship (DFG, 2021) Young Scientist of the Year by DIE ZEIT (2020) Premio Florencio Segura (2019) Premio Salvatore Quasimodo (2018) Prix de la République française (2016) Prof. Jacobi has supervised numerous doctoral and habilitation projects and regularly mentors master's and bachelor's theses. She has secured funding through prestigious fellowships and grants, including from the DFG and the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Her leadership roles include serving on the scientific advisory boards of several journals and book series, and as Vice President of the Institut français in Bonn since 2023. She is also an external board member of the Sorbonne’s doctoral school in French Studies. She leads the Bonn Italy Center and co-founded the early-career network RomANa. She has organized multiple international conferences on topics such as gender in drama, emotion in literature, and intermediality. Her research is conducted in close collaboration with institutions in France, Italy, and Spain, reflecting her deeply international academic profile.
Minerva Peinador is a Researcher at the University of Regensburg's Department of Interdisciplinary and Multiscalar Area Studies (DIMAS), affiliated with Prof. Anne Brüske's chair. Her work examines gender-based violence narratives, postmemory, and docufiction in Ibero-American and Francophone contexts. She holds a PhD in Romance Philology from the University of Rostock and an interdisciplinary doctorate from the University of La Plata, Argentina. Education PhD in Romance Philology (2021), University of Rostock Double PhD in Interdisciplinary Social Studies (Europe/Latin America, 2019), Universities of Rostock and La Plata M.A. in Literary Studies (2010), Universidad Complutense de Madrid German Philology degree (2007), Universidad Complutense de Madrid Research Focus Her Habilitation project investigates feminist and gender-dissident narratives addressing machista violence in contemporary Ibero-American and Francophone literature. Key themes include decolonial theory, cultural memory, and transnational migration. Recent works analyze texts like Selva Almada's Chicas muertas and Gabriela Wiener's Huaco retrato , exploring how literature confronts systemic oppression and reconstructs identities. Professional Contributions Supervised Bachelor's theses on Spanish music as generational change medium and queer cinema in Cuba Organized panels on popular culture and migration narratives at conferences like LASA 2024 Reviewer for Estudios Culturales Hispánicos and Diablotexto Digital Member of organizations including DHV (German Hispanistics Association) and CALITHI (Capitalism-Literature Research Group) Awards 2023 Karrierewegepreis from the German Hispanistics Association for her Habilitation project
Prof. Lieven D’hulst is a full Professor of Translation Studies and French Literature at the Catholic University of Leuven (Kortrijk Campus). His research focuses on the history of translation theory and practice in 19th- and 20th-century France and Belgium, as well as French and Francophone literature across Europe and the Caribbean. He led the DFG-funded project "Translation Policy in/for Belgium 1791–1841," resulting in a database of 1,100 bilingual texts and co-editing the special issue Translation strategies in Western Europe . Key research areas include cultural transfer, migrant literature, and the intersection of translation with national identity formation. His collaboration with Prof. Michael Schreiber at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz has advanced interdisciplinary approaches to translation history. Recent lectures addressed methodologies in translation historiography and the role of plurilingualism in migrant cultural transfer. His work bridges historical analysis with contemporary debates on multilingualism and cultural policy.
Max Planck Institute for Empirical AestheticsGermany
Cécile Bishop is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Liberal Studies at New York University, specializing in postcolonial francophone literatures and visual culture. Her research critically examines representations of race in French-speaking contexts, with emphasis on the Caribbean and sub-Saharan Africa. She challenges politicized interpretations in postcolonial studies through formalist approaches. Her research explores intersections of aesthetics, race, and power dynamics. Key interests include: Francophone literatures; photography as a tool of racial representation; colonial and postcolonial visual archives; and the role of aesthetic form in shaping perceptions of dictatorship and identity in Africa and France. Bishop's publications analyze how visual media (photography, portraiture) encode racial identities. Her 2014 book Postcolonial Criticism and Representations of African Dictatorship argues that political interpretations paradoxically foster new formalism. Current project Forms of Blackness investigates material and interpretive practices that make race 'visible' in France. No scientific awards, grants, or supervised students are mentioned in available sources.
Gesine Lenore Schiewer is Professor of Intercultural German Studies and Dean of the Faculty of Linguistics and Literature at the University of Bayreuth. She also serves as Co-Director of the International Research Center Chamisso Literature (IFC) at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich and as President of the Society for Intercultural German Studies (GiG). Her academic career spans multiple institutions including the University of Bern, where she previously held a professorship in German Studies. Professor Schiewer's research focuses on the intersection of language, culture, and emotion. Her primary areas of interest include Intercultural German Studies, German Linguistics, German Literature from the 18th to 21st centuries, and Emotion Research. She has pioneered work in intercultural communication, dialogic teaching methods, and the linguistic expression of emotions. Her research combines theoretical frameworks from pragmatics, sociolinguistics, discourse theory, and cognitive linguistics to explore how language functions in multicultural contexts and how emotions are expressed and understood across cultures. Her recent publications reveal a strong trend toward interdisciplinary research that bridges humanities and social sciences. Schiewer has made significant contributions to the international handbook on Language and Emotion (2022), demonstrating her leadership in establishing emotion research as a legitimate field within linguistic studies. She has also been instrumental in developing educational approaches that incorporate intercultural perspectives in German language teaching, as evidenced by her trilogy on "Emotionen," "Lebenswelten," and "Identitäten" in German language education (2017-2018). As Co-Director of the International Research Center Chamisso Literature (funded by the Robert Bosch Foundation), Professor Schiewer leads research on intercultural literature with a focus on Chamisso's works. She has also secured funding from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for projects on Intercultural German Studies and German as a Foreign Language in Francophone West Africa. Additionally, she participates in the CLIENT II project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, focusing on sustainable innovations, and a project on climate-sensitive adaptation strategies for flood risk reduction in the Lower Mono River catchment. Professor Schiewer actively contributes to academic infrastructure through her role as editor of the "Zeitschrift für interkulturelle Germanistik" (Journal for Intercultural German Studies) and as co-editor of the De Gruyter handbook series "Handbücher Sprache und Kommunikationswissenschaften." She has initiated and developed international partnerships, including a German Studies institutional partnership between Bayreuth, Togo, and Benin, demonstrating her commitment to global academic collaboration.
Professor Markus Messling holds the Chair of Romance and General Literature and Cultural Studies at Saarland University's Faculty of Philosophy. He is a founding member and collegium member of CEUS since 2021 and currently serves as Director of the Käte Hamburger Kolleg for Cultural Practices of Reparation (CURE) since April 2024. His academic career spans prestigious institutions including Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Freie Universität Berlin. PhD in Romance Philology, Freie Universität Berlin (2007) Habilitation, Universität Potsdam (2015) ERC Consolidator Grant recipient (2019-2024) Member of Academia Europaea Professor Messling's research centers on the cultural-historical and cultural-theoretical foundations of European self-reflection and its global relationships. His work critically examines universality thinking after European universalism, Mediterranean studies as public space, and the intersections of philology with colonial knowledge production. His scholarship demonstrates a consistent engagement with postcolonial theory, decolonial approaches to literature, and critical examinations of racism in European intellectual history. His recent publications reveal a strong trajectory in universalism studies, with particular focus on Francophone literatures as sites of alternative universalisms. The 'Rhinozeros' journal series he co-edits explores European transition through various thematic lenses including reparation, property, dreaming, and housing. His monograph 'Champollion's Hieroglyphs' represents a significant contribution to understanding the relationship between philology and colonial world appropriation. ERC Consolidator Grant 'Minor Universality. Narrative World Productions After Western Universalism' (2019-2024) DFG Emmy Noether-Nachwuchsgruppe 'Philologie und Rassismus im 19. Jh.' (2009-2014) Member of Academia Europaea Professor Messling has directed major collaborative research initiatives including the Franco-German Youth Office-funded 'Penser la Méditerranée ensemble – trans-Mediterranean youth policy' (since 2022) and the Käte Hamburger Kolleg CURE (since 2024). His editorial work on the 'Rhinozeros' yearbook series has created an important platform for interdisciplinary European studies. His international collaborations span institutions including EHESS Paris, University of Cambridge, School of Advanced Study/University of London, and Universität Kobe in Japan, reflecting his transnational scholarly approach. As Director of the Käte Hamburger Kolleg CURE, Professor Messling leads a major research team focused on cultural practices of reparation. This interdisciplinary center brings together scholars from multiple European and global institutions to examine reparation not merely as legal or financial concept but as cultural practice across historical and contemporary contexts.
Jody Danard is a Researcher at the University of Bremen since 2022, specializing in French Canadian and Indigenous literatures from Québec. Holding a Master of Education in English and French Philology from Kiel University (2021) and a Bachelor’s degree from the same institution (2019), she combines literary analysis with eco-critical and feminist frameworks. Key research areas: French Canadian literature, Indigenous narratives, North as cultural construct, ecofeminism Research Trends : Her work explores the North as a Site of identity negotiations Space for environmental and gender discourses Platform for postcolonial reimaginings through texts by Gabrielle Filteau-Chiba, Naomi Fontaine, and others. Scientific Recognition : DAAD Prize (2024) for academic excellence AIEQ/Globe Scholarship (2023) Teaching & Transfer : Danard teaches Quebec literature courses and organized the 2024 Mehr als einige Morgen Schnee exhibition in Bremen. She frequently presents at conferences on topics like intersectional Northern narratives and Innu literature.
Prof. Sarah Burnautzki holds a W1 Tenure-Track Professorship for Romance Literature at the University of Heidelberg. She specializes in Francophone literatures of Africa, the African Diaspora, Antilles, and Latin America, with a focus on postcolonial theory, critical race studies, and archival research. Her work bridges literary studies with sociology and anthropology. She leads the BMBF-funded MeAviA project on media antiziganisms and previously directed a Baden-Württemberg Foundation-backed project on postcolonial literary models. Her research includes studies on Brazilian literary canonization and racial discourses in Latin America. Education: MA from Heidelberg (2009), cotutelle PhD from Heidelberg/EHESS Paris (2014). Awards include the Margarete von Wrangell Program (2015-) and Humboldt Foundation Feodor Lynen fellowship (2016-2017). She serves as Erasmus Representative for French universities and advises doctoral candidates like Thomas Sazpinar. Notable publications include her monograph on racial borders in French literature (2017) and co-edited volumes on postcolonial literary dynamics and authorship studies. Research Interests: Postcolonial and critical race approaches to Francophone/Afro-Latin texts Archival methodologies in literary analysis Temporalities in modernist/naturalist narratives Authorship dynamics across editorial/public spheres Grants/Projects: Elite Program for Postdocs (2017-2022) Media Antiziganisms interdisciplinary initiative (2023-) Multiple DFG-reviewed projects Labs/Teams: Active member of the Junge Akademie Mainz since 2019, collaborating with interdisciplinary networks in postcolonial and media studies.
Annegret Richter is an academic assistant for French and Spanish literature at the Romanesque Seminar, University of Heidelberg (since October 2023). She serves as Managing Director of the publication series 'Passagen' and 'TKKL – Theory and Critique of Culture and Literature' (since 2023) alongside Prof. Dr. Birgit Mertz-Baumgartner at the University of Innsbruck. Prior roles include research assistant at the Institute of Romance Studies at the Technical University of Dresden (2020–2023) and lecturer at the University of Leipzig and TU Dresden (Winter 2019/20). Her doctoral thesis (2015) focused on colonial Mexican historiography and translation practices, while her current postdoc project analyzes queer subjectivities in Francophone Maghreb literature. Research Focus : Literature of the Maghreb Transculturality Queer Studies Postcolonial Identity Construction Migration Narratives Medical Humanities Key Trends in Publications : Richter’s work bridges postcolonial studies, queer theory, and transcultural analysis. Her recent research explores crisis identities in Moroccan-French literature through medical humanities frameworks, earlier publications examine gender metaphors and colonial hybridity in Mexican chronicles.
Claudia Gronemann has been Professor of Romance Literature and Media Studies at the University of Mannheim’s Romance Studies Department since 2009. Her research spans postcolonial theory, autobiography/autofiction, gender studies, and intermediality in 18th-, 20th-, and 21st-century Francophone, Spanish, and Latin American literature. Co-editor of Passagen: Transdisziplinäre Kulturperspektiven (Olms Verlag) Member of the editorial board for Cuadernos de Estudios del Siglo XVIII Her work interrogates: gender performativity in Spanish Enlightenment texts; transcultural memory (e.g., Saint Augustine in Maghrebian narratives); postcolonial hybridity; and intermedial strategies in Maghrebian and Latin American cinema. Recent publications explore picaresque narratives in Algerian literature, conjugal friendship as a model for marriage in Spanish comedy, and queer readings of Tunisian cinema. She employs keywords like transcultural memory , gender performativity , autofictional strategies , colonial legacies in film , entangled histories , and intermediality in postcolonial contexts . As a leading scholar in gendered literary analysis, she has co-edited volumes on Spanish gender debates, Maghrebian masculinities, and Latin American intermediality. Her habilitation Polyphonic Enlightenment (2009) established her expertise in 18th-century Spanish gender discourses.
