Empowerment-Workshops
“How Science Works – The Rules of the Scientific Community”
Empowerment Workshop for Students from Sinti and Roma Communities,
held as part of the 2nd Conference of the DFG-funded Research Unit “Antigypsyism and Ambivalence in Europe (1850–1950)”
11 November 2026, 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. | Internationales Wissenschaftsforum Heidelberg
How does academia actually work, and what are the rules of the scientific community?
What formal and informal structures shape academic education and career paths?
And how can Sinti and Roma students and early-career researchers confidently navigate
these structures to pursue their own academic journeys?
The empowerment workshop “How Science Works – The Rules of the Scientific Community”
provides a space for guidance, exchange, and networking. It is aimed at Sinti and Roma students
who are interested in academic work or have already gained initial experience at university and in research.
The workshop draws on the recent study “Sinti and Roma in the German Higher Education Landscape”,
authored by Radoslav Ganev, a member of the Advisory Board of the DFG Research Unit, and funded
by the German Federal Anti-Discrimination Agency. As part of the workshop, Atide Jasarova (RomAnity e.V.)
will provide insights into the situation of Sinti and Roma within the German higher education system, setting the stage for a joint discussion.
The workshop will focus on questions relevant to participants’ own academic journeys:
What funding and support opportunities are available to students and doctoral researchers from the community?
How can networks be built, and how can experiences of discrimination in everyday university life
be understood and addressed? What strategies can help participants actively shape their academic careers?
In addition to providing practical guidance and information, the workshop offers an opportunity for
personal exchange with experienced researchers, reflection on individual experiences, and networking
with other students and early-career researchers from the community.
The aim is not only to help participants understand how the academic system works,
but also to identify and strengthen their own agency and opportunities for action.
The workshop takes place as part of the second international conference of the DFG Research Unit
“Antigypsyism and Ambivalence in Europe (1850–1950).” From 9 to 11 November 2026,
the conference will be held at the Internationales Wissenschaftsforum Heidelberg under the title
“Self-Articulation and the History of European Persecution."
Workshop participants are explicitly invited to attend the conference’s academic panels and discussions
before the workshop, gaining first-hand insights into current research debates.
Date: 11 November 2026, 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Venue: Internationales Wissenschaftsforum Heidelberg
Workshop facilitator: Atide Jasarova (RomAnity e.V.)
Travel, accommodation, and meal expenses will be covered for students from Sinti and Roma communities.
Registration: Please register by email at s.taubert-PleaseRemoveIncludingDashes-
„Authorship as Power – Empowerment through Poetry and Spoken Word“
Prior to the conference “Circulation of Knowledge and Aesthetics of the Spectacular” at JLU Gießen (28-29 Jan 2026),
the first of four planned empowerment workshops for students from the German and international Sinti and Roma communities
took place. Participants attended the bilingual workshop „Authorship as Power – Empowerment through Poetry and Spoken Word“
led by Cat/ Catalin Jugravu (MxCAT), theater director, performer, and researcher based in Berlin.
The workshop opened with a lecture by Francesco Arman, advisory board member of the Research Unit,
and Kirsten von Hagen on “Carmen – Sociocultural and Aesthetic Aspects and Performative Transformations of a Text,"
inviting critical reflection on ethical questions surrounding the representation of Sinti and Roma in art and culture.
Workshop participants were invited to attend the conference and presented the public performance
“THE TEXTS WE KEEP — A Public Multilingual Poetry Reading” in the foyer of the GCSC – International Graduate Centre for the Study of Culture.
The multilingual poetry reading constituted a powerful statement on authorship, self-representation, and artistic agency,
underscoring the Research Unit’s commitment to fostering dialogue between academic analysis, empowerment, and artistic practice.