Trialog formats in March – internal events

In March various moderated discussion formats concerning the impact of the situation in Israel and Palestine on the university will take place. On March 6 and 7 three different formats will be offered in which both Jewish-Israeli and Palestinian perspectives will get the chance to speak as well as the opportunity to discuss your own experiences, concerns and position in protected and moderated spaces.

The Trialog project is a multi-perspective discussion format on the Middle East conflict initiated by Jouanna Hassoun and Shai Hoffmann. Based on the outbreak of war in Israel and Gaza and the associated social consequences, including the strong emotionalization, the project is dedicated to the great challenge of making the topic discussable.

The three kick-off events are offered for students and employees of the Academy. Please register (see below), as the number of participants is limited:

Thursday 6.3.2025, 10–11:30 h Keynote speech on the Trialog project
- for students and all employees

The keynote lecture on the Trialog project by and with Shai Hoffmann and Zakariyya Meißner offers insights into how the conversation about the Middle East conflict can succeed.
The multi-perspective format creates spaces for discussion in which one person with a Palestinian identity and one with a Jewish/Israeli identity are present. Students and staff of the Academy are invited to express their thoughts, feelings and controversial views. The aim is to create a place for mutual listening and understanding.
The lecture will be held in German. After the lectures, there will be space for exchange and discussion, where questions and contributions can be made in English or German.

Registration:
Limited number of participants - registration is required by 2.3.2025 at the latest under the following link: 
https://www.termino.gv.at/meet/b/dbfe53142b19f24126de4276454e10dc-411617  with your name, Academy e-mail address, and please write in the “additional information” field (“Zusatzinfo”) your institute/department and if you are student/staff member. You will receive confirmation of participation and details of the room as well as information on the waiting list approximately 10 days before the event. 

Thursday 6.3.2025, 13–14:30 h Trialog
- for students and all employees

The aim of the Trialog is to create a place for mutual listening and understanding. It is about channeling the enormous emotional challenges that the conflict has brought with it, understanding them and thereby also stimulating the process of processing and healing. At the same time, the aim is to counteract the great lack of knowledge about the various shades of gray and the increasing misanthropic prejudices and numerous conspiracy theories in connection with the Middle East conflict.

The Trialog at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna is led by Shai Hoffmann and Zakariyya Meißner. Both Jewish/Israeli and Palestinian identities are brought into the conversation and get the opportunity to express their thoughts, emotions and controversial views, discuss them and to reflect on them. Prejudices and stereotypes associated with racism, anti-Semitism or the glorification of violence should also be given space in the Trialog discussion, as this is the only way to correct and break down these narratives in society. The lecture will be held in German. During the Trialog there will be room for exchange and discussion, in which questions and contributions can be made in English or German.

Registration:
Limited number of participants - registration is required by 2.3.2025 at the latest under the following link: https://www.termino.gv.at/meet/b/8d2805f009cbeadaa6956f669f14679b-411621 with your name, Academy e-mail address, and please write in the “additional information” field (“Zusatzinfo”) your institute/department and if you are student/staff member. You will receive confirmation of participation and details of the room as well as information on the waiting list approximately 10 days before the event. 

Friday 7.3.2025, 9–15 h Workshop
- for students and teaching staff

The workshop makes it possible to discuss questions about Israel, Palestine and the effects of the Middle East conflict on our society. Because whenever the violence in Israel and Palestine escalates, we feel an echo of this violence in our society - a “second-order Middle East conflict”. We experience hardened fronts, selective empathy and an increase in racism and anti-Semitism. These dynamics also concern us in the university context and repeatedly lead to people no longer talking to each other. The aim of this workshop is therefore to open up a common space for teaching staff and students to discuss their own perceptions and interpretations of the Middle East conflict and to critically reflect on the dynamics.

The first workshop will be offered jointly for students and teaching staff and will be run by Johanna Voß and Amina Nolte. Subsequently, there will also be specific offers for students and teaching staff.
The workshop will be held in German, but questions and contributions can also be made in English.

Registration:
Limited number of participants - registration is required by 2.3.2025 at the latest under the following link: https://www.termino.gv.at/meet/b/341232e7dbff5cd6b7a8a60a30ff9150-411623 with your name, Academy e-mail address, and please write in the “additional information” field (“Zusatzinfo”) your institute/department and if you are student/staff member. You will receive confirmation of participation and details of the room as well as information on the waiting list approximately 10 days before the event.