Käte Hamburger Centre for Cultural Practices of Reparation (KHK CURE) at Saarland University · Saarbrücken, Germany, Germany
The Käte Hamburger Centre for Cultural Practices of Reparation (KHK CURE) at Saarland University is an institute for advanced study, funded by the German Ministry for Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) since 2024. Each academic year, a new group of international and interdisciplinary fellows joins the centre to pursue research. For the centre’s fourth year (October 2027 to September 2028), we are pleased to invite applications —pending approval by the BMFTR—for up to twelve fellowships with a duration of six to a maximum of twelve months (beginning in October 2027).
THE RESEARCH PROGRAMME AT THE KÄTE HAMBURGER CENTRE
Questions about reparation and irreparability are at the heart of KHK CURE’s research programme, taken up by fellows and members of the CURE team from a range of disciplinary perspectives.
Many harms and damages, such as the destruction of cultural heritage in colonised regions, the trauma of war, or the consequences of climate change, cannot be undone. Such irreversible harms often trigger complex processes of negotiation that can reshape reflexive forms of cultural identity and newly imagined or created lifeworlds. They raise the question of how to build a shared future in which we and others can live despite a past scarred by violence, injustice, and the destruction of natural environments. Economic and legal compensation is often a prerequisite for dismantling asymmetrical situations and structures. But it is most often the case that enduring wounds suffered by individuals, and the harm done to their lifeworlds, can be addressed only through cultural and social practices.
The Käte Hamburger Centre CURE is dedicated to studying such cultural practices of reparation. We define reparation as a process of shaping the future through an awareness that past damage can never be fully undone. Repairing something always means that the traces of destruction remain – whether visible, felt, or understood – and thus gesture toward a fragility of the self. We view cultural practices of reparation as encompassing a broad range of responses to the awareness of damage: oral and written forms of narration, poetry, linguistic and non-linguistic rituals, music, visual art, films, theatre, exhibition practices, historiography, and other forms of scholarship or knowledge production. These practices aim to develop possibilities and scenarios for the future that reach beyond interests grounded in identitarian claims and the restitution of a supposedly original identity, even in the face of enduring harms. Our goal at the centre is to collaboratively develop theoretical approaches to such practices.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS AND SELECTION CRITERIA
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR ALL FELLOWSHIP:
Applications may be submitted by scholars in cultural studies, the humanities and social sciences who have completed a PhD (submitted and defended) by the application deadline.
Artists who hold a doctorate and have experience in academic collaboration are also encouraged to apply for an academic fellowship.
Applications are open exclusively to individuals who are currently active professionally in academia or research, including those who are not formally employed, such as freelancers.
The following groups of persons are not eligible to apply for a fellowship:
Retired individuals, including professors emeriti
Scholars and artists who have not completed a doctorate
Members of Saarland University
CURE expressly discourages the use of AI-generated text.
Writing academic texts independently is a key part of the intellectual work undertaken at the Käte Hamburger Centre CURE. We therefore welcome applications that reflect your individual voice and approach to your work, and expressly discourage the use of AI-generated text.
Please use minimum font size 11 and line spacing 1.15. Applications may be submitted in German, English, or French.
Please do not include photographs.
You should receive a confirmation email after submitting your application.
CONTACT
We will notify applicants by the end of April 2027. Until then, please avoid inquiries about the status of your application.
Further information about the application process, the project description, and KHK fellowships in general is available in the FAQ section .
€6,100 to €7,200. Stipend per month before taxes, depending on qualifications