In 2007, the University of California, Berkeley Division of Arts & Humanities and Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU Munich) established a joint program to pursue innovative, collaborative research in the Humanities. The program facilitates academic exchange of faculty members, graduate students and postdocs in the areas of the Humanities.
On November 2, Sara Guyer, Dean of the Division of Arts & Humanitites, welcomed Bernd Huber, President and Hans van Ess, Vice President for Research of the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München to the UC Berkeley campus for a visit to honor the longstanding research exchange help by the two universities. Joined by divisional faculty, including program participants, Luba Golburt, professor and chair in the Slavic Department, and Sophie Volpp, professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures and Comparative lIterature, Dean Guyer met with Huber and Van Ess to discuss future proposals, research excellence, and to celebrate the newly renewed partnership.
"International collaboration is one of my values, and this bilateral agreement opens up a multitude of opportunities that exceed our two institutions," Said Dean Guyer of the visit. "Together, we have supported dozens of faculty members and graduate students in Germany and in the US in a wide range of disciplines: Art History, Philosophy, Ancient History, Archaeology, English, Comparative Literature, East Asian Studies, South and Southeast Asian Studies, and Medieval Studies. Many beneficiaries of the partnership are joining us today demonstrating the enduring value of our international work."
During the visit to Berkeley, Hans van Ess, Vice President for Research will give a talk titled “Confucius's Analects" on Monday, November 7, 4:30pm in 3335 Dwinelle Hall and organized by Sophie Volpp.
At the culmination of the visit, Dean Guyer said "Cross-cultural, international exchange is crucial to how we understand the humanities as a discipline, and the importance and value of reaching across boundaries is one that is particularly urgent in our current moment, when working together has been made difficult by a pandemic and international turmoil. For those reasons, I am particularly delighted that we have extended our partnership with LMU for another 5 years, to 2027, and I am confident our program will be a continued success."
Faculty, students and postdocs interested in participating can visit the website for more information about how to apply.