Migration and Integration 

Migration is happening worldwide and has many causes. From refugees and working migrants to people who are reestablishing their homes in another country for private reasons, there is a large variety of diffrent migration stories and backgrounds. For 10 years, the Center for Intercultural Studies (ZIS) has been concerning itself with aspects of migration that are also relevant for the understanding of new forms of society and successful integration.

On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of ZIS, various events took place at the university including the first "Intercultural Festival". Of the university's 34,000 students, 5,000 come from other countries. Country representatives from five continents presented their home countries at the festival.

The project “Hinduism in Migration” investigates which changes the communal life of migrant groups undergoes in the new environment. In addition to PowerPoint presentations on the construction of Hindu temples in Germany, the topic of Hindu myths was illuminated interactively.

Which role one assumes in which environment was humorously discussed in the film "Moi et mon blanc", which was shown on Sunday, September 9th at the Cinemayence. Briefly about the content of the film: “Mamadi is an attractive young man from Burkina Faso. He studies in Paris and is one of the best at the university. When the scholarship is not available from home, he has to finance his life with illegal work in a parking lot. Here he gets to know the “underworld” and the Frenchman Franck, with whom he flees to Africa after a large fund of money. A contemporary comedy about life in other cultures. For his fourth feature film, S. Pierre Yameogo received the audience award at the Festival Panafricain de Ouagadougou (FESPACO).” The research project “White roles in black African film”, which deals with role models, was presented at the stand.

European topics, like binational relations or the forming of a new European identity, were brought up when the deputy speaker of the ZIS, Prof. Dr. Véronique Porra, spoke on stage and at the booth about German-French relations.

A number of ZIS- research projects and activities were presented.