NEC News

On May 6, 2026, the event series "Transformation Dialogues" will launch at Leuphana University Lüneburg with an opening discussion entitled "Language Change and Political Activism." Matthias Schmelzer (Europa-Universität Flensburg) will discuss the topic together with Prof. Dr. Gretchen Bakke (Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin); the conversation will be moderated by Dr. Anke Gruendel from the Leuphana Transformation Lab.

At the center of the discussion is the question of whether transformation is an empty label or whether the term carries real substance. As an economic historian and transformation researcher, Schmelzer contributes perspectives from the debates surrounding the growth paradigm, fossil mentalities, and degrowth. Bakke, from an anthropological perspective, examines how morphological shifts in language bring forth new worlds.

The dialogue explores the tension "between transforming words and transforming worlds" — that is, the question of when conceptual innovations such as degrowth, decarbonization, or rewilding enable social change and when they replace it.

The announcement reads: Is transformation an empty label or does the concept carry real substance? On the one hand, scholars and activists continually coin new terms—such as degrowth or energy transitions—that diagnose unwanted social conditions and articulate alternative visions of more just, sustainable, or equitable futures. On the other hand, these concepts risk becoming the primary arena in which transformation takes place, displacing material, political, and institutional change into a linguistic register. The dialogue probes the tension between transforming words and transforming worlds, asking when conceptual innovation enables social change and when it substitutes for it. Attendees gain a deeper understanding of how neologisms—e.g., decarbonization, pluriverse, or rewilding—conjure real-world change and enable (or constrain) political activism.

The Transformation Dialogues bring together two scholars from different disciplines to engage in conversation about how transformation is invoked today. The term is increasingly used in academia, politics, and society, yet its meaning often remains vague. This event series by the Leuphana Transformation Lab creates a space for interdisciplinary exchange, in which each scholar's distinct research focus contributes to a vibrant discussion about transformation.

Leuphana University of Lüneburg I C40.256

Wed., May 6, 2026, 4–6 p.m.

Here's the link to the program.