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Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Unanimous Senate vote on supporting the march on 22 April 2017 / President, students, and Graduate Council call on the Hohenheim community to participate
Standing up for critical thinking and the value of science and research: With its vote at yesterday’s meeting, the Senate of the University of Hohenheim in Stuttgart renounced current tendencies to deny and relativize scientifically based knowledge or to present it as equivalent to “alternative facts.” To show their support for this value, people all over the world will march for science on 22 April 2017. Marches and rallies are also scheduled to take place in many German cities, including Stuttgart and Tübingen. For more information, see www.marchforscience.de
The President’s proposal to support the March for Science as an institution triggered a lively discussion. Members of the Senate emphasized their motivation to stand up for the freedom of science and its value for democracy.
“Another motivation was to show our solidarity with our many international partners in countries where the value of science and its relevance for democracy and society are increasingly being denied,” Hohenheim President Stephan Dabbert reports.
The Student Parliament and the Graduate Council had also announced their support for the Science March. The President, students and the Council said they were going to call on the Hohenheim community in the days ahead to get involved and join the march.
The Senate is the University’s main body of academic self-governance. It has a membership of 25, made up of members of the President’s Office, the Deans, the Gender Equality Representative and the elected representatives of the professorate, scientific staff, students and other employees.
The Student Parliament is the main representative body of the Hohenheim student population. It decides on all matters of student self-governance. The Graduate Council includes all doctoral candidates at the University of Hohenheim who have been admitted to doctoral studies.
Background: Mission statement of Science March Germany
“Critical thinking and sound judgement require reliable criteria for the evaluation of information. The thorough investigation of our world and the subsequent classification of the knowledge gained is what science is all about. If, however, scientifically based facts are denied, relativized, or simply considered equivalent to "alternative facts" to achieve political benefits, all constructive dialogue is made impossible. Since constructive dialogue is the foundation of our democracy, such developments affect all of society and not only scientists.
On 22 April 2017, people around the world will gather to demonstrate that scientific findings as the basis of social discourse are non-negotiable.”
Text: Klebs
Criteria of this press release:
Journalists, Scientists and scholars
interdisciplinary
transregional, national
Miscellaneous scientific news/publications, Science policy
English
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