Professor Jan-Oliver Decker, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Cultural Studies, had brought along an edition of Kant from his own student days for his welcoming address. One of the aims of the evening was to confront these 250-year-old texts with current questions: What does freedom mean in the 21st century and to what extent does our current understanding of freedom coincide with Immanuel Kant's concept of freedom? These questions were at the centre of the panel discussion and accompanying exhibition, which took place at the beginning of July in the Audimax of the University of Passau as part of the PASSAUtonomy project.
The project team welcomed three Kant experts to the podium who brought different ideas on freedom and Immanuel Kant: Professor Peter Niesen from the University of Hamburg presented Kant's concept of external freedom, i.e. freedom from the restrictions imposed by other people. Dr Katharina Naumann from the University of Magdeburg, on the other hand, dedicated her speech to the idea of inner freedom, i.e. the freedom of individual action. In turn, Assistant Professor Dr Aloisia Moser from the Catholic Private University of Linz introduced an aesthetic perspective that locates freedom in sensory perception. Based on this and the contributions from the audience, an exciting discussion ensued on current topics such as humanitarian interventions, the climate crisis and modern technologies such as artificial intelligence.
The moderators Johanna Sinn (from left) and Lena Scholz from the PASSAUtonomy project with the panel guests Prof. Dr Peter Niesen (University of Hamburg), Ass.-Prof. Dr Aloisia Moser (Catholic Private University Linz) and Dr Katharina Naumann (University of Magdeburg). Photos: PASSAUtonomy / Marie Hirsch, Julia Berner, Johanna Sinn
In addition to the invited guests, the special thing about the discussion was the fishbowl format with free chairs for audience participation. Participants were able to move from their seats in the lecture theatre to the podium and contribute to the discussion with questions and comments throughout the evening. Fabian Willemsen from the project team, who is studying political science at the University of Passau, was very pleased that this idea worked: "For me, it was a special experience to see that the free chairs in the discussion were taken up exclusively by students, who were thus able to discuss at eye level with the Kant experts present." Johanna Sinn was also enthusiastic about the format: "The panellists answered all the questions and comments in a very respectful manner. It was a great experience to exchange ideas from so many sides."
Stimulating philosophical dialogue about freedom and related topics is also the aim of the project beyond the panel discussion. A small exhibition was organised in the foyer of the Audimax: At the ‘Freiheitsflipper’, a philosophical exhibit from this year's Kant exhibition at the Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn, people were able to playfully engage with different understandings of the concept of freedom. University members and other participants were also able to contribute to a collective collection of thoughts on Kant and the concept of freedom by attaching their notes to a large fishing net. These installations were on display in the foyer of the Nikolakloster on the two preceding days, inviting passers-by to share their ideas. Using a fishbowl and a net, they not only succeeded in capturing ideas about freedom, but also in releasing them back into the world.
The panel discussion was moderated by two members of the project group: Lena Scholz, who is studying political science in Passau, led the evening together with Johanna Sinn, a doctoral student in philosophy. For Lena Scholz, this was a valuable experience: ‘It was a lot of fun to talk to the very committed panellists and to get to know the sometimes very different positions on the topic of freedom in Kant. The free chair was a great addition, as it also gave the students' questions and topics a lot of space on the podium.’
The discussion was one of several events organised by the PASSAUtonomy project group, which is made up of philosophy enthusiasts Paulina Dannhäuser, Marie Hirsch, Marian Micke, Lena Scholz, Fabian Willemsen and Julia Berner as well as doctoral student Johanna Sinn. Together, they want to start a dialogue at schools, at the university and with the population of the city and district of Passau about the philosophy of Immanuel Kant, his concept of freedom and its relevance for the 21st century. The project is one of twelve prize-winning projects in the university competition in the Science Year 2024, an initiative of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) and the organisation Science in Dialogue ("Wissenschaft im Dialog").
The next PASSAUtonomy event is the third and, for the time being, last event in the ‘Philosophising in the beer garden’ series. This will take place on Wednesday, 24 July 2024, from 6.30 pm in the beer garden of the restaurant "Das Oberhaus". More information (German)
Geramn text by: Julia Berner und Johanna Sinn
This text was machine-translated from German.
BMBF project PASSAUtonomy: Rediscovering freedom according to Immanuel Kant
The Passau project PASSAUtonomy is one of the winners of the Science Year 2024 university challenge which has "Freedom" as its theme. It revisits the old idea posited by the philosopher Immanuel Kant – we are free when we are able to give ourselves our own laws.
